Last August I got a call from one of our volunteers about a cat abandoned in a local trailer park. I took a drive over with a can of stinky food, a flashlight and a cat carrier.
An hour later, after crawling under the most funky trailer that ever existed, I emerged with cobwebs in my hair and a frightened but sweet brown tabby cat under one arm. She was hungry but in decent shape, except that her eyes were all pupil and it was obvious that her vision was impaired. She'd flinch if touched unexpectedly, but if you rustled your fingers as they approached her head, she would butt and purr.
Our shelter has a policy: Any cat with a medical problem requiring more complicated treatment than a dose of Strongid is automatically euthanized. (At this point, we're so overcrowded that all cats abandoned there are euthanized. It's not a high-kill shelter, it's an all-kill shelter.)
Our shelter vet checked her over and diagnosed Glaucoma. I was given the option to take the cat home or have her put down. I took her home. My vet said it's not bothering her too much at this time, and the cat does not seem to be in any particular discomfort. I asked him about just removing the eyes and having done with it and he said that's not necessary right now.
She is currently living in a small spare room, because the other cats here startle and upset her. She loves her cat condo and her cuddle bed and loves mealtime. I just don't have the time to give her the 'people time' she craves. She's a nice and affectionate cat, we guesstimated her at about 4 or 5 years of age. She's been spayed and Rabies vaxed, I've dewormed her and treated her with Advantage. She is FeLV/FIV negative.
We're in north east Ohio, but I'm willing to drive her as far as the NYC area if the home is good. She comes with her little bowls, a supply of food, a kitty bed and a ton of toys. The people drove away and left her sitting on the porch, surrounded by cardboard boxes with her stuff in them. I don't know how they thought she would open the cans, they didn't leave her a can opener. I've been calling her Verna.
An hour later, after crawling under the most funky trailer that ever existed, I emerged with cobwebs in my hair and a frightened but sweet brown tabby cat under one arm. She was hungry but in decent shape, except that her eyes were all pupil and it was obvious that her vision was impaired. She'd flinch if touched unexpectedly, but if you rustled your fingers as they approached her head, she would butt and purr.
Our shelter has a policy: Any cat with a medical problem requiring more complicated treatment than a dose of Strongid is automatically euthanized. (At this point, we're so overcrowded that all cats abandoned there are euthanized. It's not a high-kill shelter, it's an all-kill shelter.)
Our shelter vet checked her over and diagnosed Glaucoma. I was given the option to take the cat home or have her put down. I took her home. My vet said it's not bothering her too much at this time, and the cat does not seem to be in any particular discomfort. I asked him about just removing the eyes and having done with it and he said that's not necessary right now.
She is currently living in a small spare room, because the other cats here startle and upset her. She loves her cat condo and her cuddle bed and loves mealtime. I just don't have the time to give her the 'people time' she craves. She's a nice and affectionate cat, we guesstimated her at about 4 or 5 years of age. She's been spayed and Rabies vaxed, I've dewormed her and treated her with Advantage. She is FeLV/FIV negative.
We're in north east Ohio, but I'm willing to drive her as far as the NYC area if the home is good. She comes with her little bowls, a supply of food, a kitty bed and a ton of toys. The people drove away and left her sitting on the porch, surrounded by cardboard boxes with her stuff in them. I don't know how they thought she would open the cans, they didn't leave her a can opener. I've been calling her Verna.
