When Carlton started entering the house, it was clear he was ready for an easier life.

Then, in May, the teenager heard Carlton crying outside and noticed a laceration behind his ear. She knew she couldn’t leave such a friendly cat on the street — especially when he was coming to the window begging for help.

So she and her sister reached out to Little Wanderers NYC for help.

“It’s been the worst rescue season on record — we used to say it every year, but this time it’s really true,” Lisa Scroggins, cofounder of Little Wanderers, told The Dodo. “We’ve never received so many rescue requests for kittens, moms and sick and injured animals.”

The family dropped Carlton off with Scroggins, who brought him to the vet. The vet treated Carlton’s ear and discovered that he was FIV-positive, a virus common in stray cats — especially males who may wind up in fights over food and territory.

While Carlton’s diagnosis won’t affect his health with the right treatments, Scroggins knew it would make it harder to find him a family due to the misconception that FIV-positive and FIV-negative cats cannot live in a home together.

But if any street cat deserves a second chance at life as a family pet, it’s Carlton. The sweet, gentle boy wants nothing more than to be snuggled and loved on.

“With every single person he’s met so far, he’ll just plop on your lap or headbutt you until you give him pets,” Carianne Loughlin told The Dodo. “He just loves humans so much. It’s adorable.”

The perfect home for Carlton would be somewhere he’d get plenty of attention, and where he’d either be a single cat or with a female cat. But when it comes to people, Carlton isn’t too picky.

“He warms up immediately, he loves everyone and he’s very snuggly,” Loughlin said. “He’s a big boy, too. He’s like a big cuddly mountain lion.”

While Carlton’s future is still uncertain, one thing is sure — whoever adopts him will be very, very lucky.