Two orange tabby kitten brothers who each survived their own life-threatening surgeries have decided they will only be adopted together. Lemon and TangerineCredit: AMA Animal RescueFour tiny kittens were found as neonatal babies, just days old, after their mother disappeared and never came back. AMA Animal Rescue out of Brooklyn, NY took in the whole litter and began the long work of round-the-clock bottle-feeding.Two of those kittens have already found their forever homes. Lemon and Tangerine, the brothers left behind, grew up close from the very start, the kind of pair who could never quite settle unless the other was nearby.Each of them nearly lost his life before finding a home. Credit: AMA Animal RescueLemon, the bolder of the two brothers, has always been the one tracking every sound in the house, ears pinned forward, determined not to miss a thing.When he is truly happy, he headbutts anything within reach- chairs, hands, his brother's face- and does not seem to notice or care. Credit: AMA Animal RescueTangerine is more easygoing, with a habit of following wherever his brother leads.He also has a habit that makes his foster laugh every time: the moment anyone sits on the floor, Tangerine flops dramatically onto his side, as if standing a moment longer would ask too much of him. Credit: AMA Animal RescueTheir favorite game has always been trying to conquer the tower of storage bins in the laundry room, one boy scaling straight to the top while the other plots his own climb from below.It was the kind of ordinary kitten mischief that made it easy to forget, for a while, just how fragile their beginning had been. Credit: AMA Animal RescueLemon grew into a happy, loving little boy, chasing toys and settling into a normal kitten routine in his foster home.Then his foster noticed something was wrong. He had begun straining constantly to urinate, and what first looked like mild discomfort quickly became alarming. Credit: AMA Animal RescueA trip to the vet brought devastating news. The diagnosis was more serious than anyone had expected."Lemon was born with a severely abnormal urethra. He has almost no opening to pass urine, forcing him to strain painfully every time he tries to go," AMA Animal Rescue discussed with LoveMeow. "This procedure must be done by a board-certified surgeon only." Credit: AMA Animal RescueWithout treatment, the condition could turn life-threatening. Lemon needed a perineal urethrostomy, a surgery that creates a wider opening for urine to pass, along with an additional procedure to correct a related complication that required surgeons to open his abdomen during the same operation.While Lemon recovered, his brother Tangerine seemed fine, until the morning he suddenly was not. He stopped eating and started acting strange, so his foster rushed him to the vet. Lemon (left) : Tangerine (right)Credit: AMA Animal RescueThe news was worse than anyone feared. Tangerine was diagnosed with a severe intestinal obstruction, and whatever he had swallowed was already lodged deep inside him. He was rushed to an emergency hospital, too weak to undergo surgery right away, and doctors placed a feeding tube through his nose to stabilize him."Tangerine swallowed a large piece of a fake plastic plant that became deeply lodged in his intestines," AMA Animal Rescue said. "The blockage was so severe that surgeons had to remove a portion of his intestines." Credit: AMA Animal RescueEach boy pulled through his own surgery on his own timeline, not side by side but separately, and eventually, two brothers who had each faced down their own emergency were ready for the next chapter.Tangerine's story is a good reminder for anyone with young kittens at home. Kittens explore the world mouth-first, and ordinary household items like string, rubber bands, and artificial plants can turn into a life-threatening emergency if swallowed. Swapping out artificial plants for pet-safe alternatives is one of the easiest precautions a cat household can take. Credit: AMA Animal RescueThey were fully vetted and placed into a foster home together, gentle, affectionate, and easygoing from day one. Cuddling, lounging, and staying within arm's reach of each other quickly became their full-time occupation.Now nearly grown, Lemon and Tangerine still do everything together, eating together, playing together, napping together, and generally staying attached at the hip. They have a way of sleeping with their heads tucked against one another, so close it can be hard to tell where one brother ends and the other begins. Credit: AMA Animal Rescue"If you adopt Lemon without Tangerine, we're pretty sure they'll be filing a formal complaint," AMA Animal Rescue joked. "These two have been inseparable since they were tiny kittens found on the streets as newborns."Even with an entire couch to choose from, they tend to end up on neighboring pillows, just inches apart, each keeping half an eye on the other.Lemon and Tangerine are healthy, inseparable, and living together in Brooklyn, as close as they have ever been. Credit: AMA Animal RescueShare this story with your friends. Follow AMA Animal Rescue on Instagram @amaanimalrescue, Facebook, or YouTube @amaanimalrescue to learn more about Lemon and Tangerine.Related Story: They Take in 2 Kittens in Need, From the Very Beginning, the Cat Brothers Clearly Belong TogetherLoveMeow may earn a small commission from purchases made through links in this article at no additional cost to you.