By Craig Horleman

DOVER — Capt. Jack holds a special place in Shirley Domino-Donovan’s heart because he came into her life the day her husband left it.

John P. Donovan Jr. was a lifelong and well-known Bowers Beach-area waterman who passed away at age 80 on June 15, 2015.

It was that day that a then-feral cat — later named Capt. Jack — was rescued from a junkyard in Camden at about 10 weeks old.

“I used to get a rotisserie chicken and pick all the bones and everything else, and I would take it over there, and (the cats) would just run (to it) as soon as I put that down for them,” Ms. Domino-Donovan recalled.

“But there was this little tiny orange kitten, and I had these real thick leather gloves on. I grabbed him, and if I didn’t have these gloves on, he would have tore me up. But finally, he calmed down, and I put him against my chest, and it’s been great ever since.”

Now, the Dover woman’s ginger tabby is in the running to be named “America’s Favorite Pet” in an online contest, with Capt. Jack recently making the quarterfinals.

“There were 176,400 cats when I entered. Now, it’s down to a little over 2,000 are left,” she said.

The contest is run by the Progressive Animal Welfare Society, a 501(c)3 organization that rehabilitates orphaned and injured wildlife; shelters and adopts homeless cats and dogs; and provides education and outreach across the country.

Ms. Domino-Donovan is hoping people will vote for Capt. Jack at Americasfavpet.com/2024/capt-8357. This round of voting closes Thursday at 10 p.m.

The winner takes home $10,000, with the pet earning the cover of Modern Cat magazine.

Capt. Jack shares some things with Mr. Donovan, even though they never met.

The waterman took his 65-foot head boat Reliable II out of his Donovan’s Dock for more than 25 years on fishing expeditions or to answer a call from the U.S. Coast Guard.

“(Capt. Jack) has the same characteristics as my husband had. I’ve never seen a cat with a hooked nose. He’s got the same sized and colored birthmark that my husband has,” Ms. Domino-Donovan said.

“He’s left-pawed, and my husband was left-handed and has the same color eyes. My husband had (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), and this cat suffers from asthma.

“It’s just crazy. A couple of my friends said, ‘Oh, my God. Jack came back as a cat.’ He’s very photogenic, and my husband always had a ginger cat growing up and had one before he passed.”

The online contest started in January with the grand prize winner to be announced April 12.

“It would (be) great to put Delaware on the map,” Ms. Domino-Donovan said. “But, even if he doesn’t win the contest, he’ll always be a winner in my book.”