Wishbones have long been credited for bringing good luck, but for a cat named Tommy, the legendary bone proved to be perilous.

One Sunday evening, Tommy’s pet parent David D. enjoyed a take-out meal of rotisserie chicken in his Queens, New York, apartment. The next morning, David found Tommy crouched in the kitchen corner, bleeding from the neck.

“At first I thought he had fallen,” says David. He then realized that his 10-lb. tomcat had likely torn open the trash and swallowed the leftover chicken—wishbone and all.

David and his mother, Darlene, rushed Tommy to the ASPCA Animal Hospital, where Veterinarian Dr. Yvonne Kline conducted an oral exam and noticed a bone deep inside Tommy’s throat.  After sedating Tommy, Dr. Kline plucked out the bone, then cleaned and sutured his wound with 12 stitches. Tommy was also neutered, and the next day, he went home with antibiotics.

“I was glad to have my soul mate back,” says David, who first found Tommy when he was working as shop supervisor for an auto mechanic. “A driver came in complaining that cat noises were coming from the car’s motor bay,” he recalls. “Tommy was behind the gas and brake pedals.”

David adopted Tommy on the spot. “I never even thought of giving him to someone else,” he says. “We relate to each other, and he trusts me. He even has a sense of humor, like me.”

David’s brother Daniel, along with Darlene, brought Tommy back to the ASPCA two weeks later to have his sutures removed. After the re-check exam, veterinarians gave Tommy a clean bill of health.

At home, David reports Tommy is better than ever. “He means so much to me. We were destined to be together.”