The recent election events have spurred concern for minority groups, including people with disabilities. In this time of grief and fear for many people, I would like to point out an organization that has brought me hope regarding those with disabilities. But for this organization, those people aren't people, they're cats.

North Carolina is not my favorite state right now, but Blind Cat Rescue & SanctuaryTM reminds me that even in the darkest (or reddest) places, there is still light and love. Located in St. Pauls, NC, the non-profit shelter provides homes and care for blind cats and cats with Leukemia (FELV+) and Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV+). These cats would normally be deemed unadoptable by other shelters and would be euthanized. The shelter has protected the lives and qualities of life of disabled and ill cats since 2005.

The sanctuary was founded by a mother and daughter team that volunteered at a local shelter and saw blind cats being turned away despite being otherwise perfectly healthy. They ended up taking the blind cats and eventually applied to become a non-profit organization. Although they originally set out to help blind cats, they noticed similar injustices to FELV+ and FIV+ cats and expanded their facility in 2011.

In North Carolina, animal control facilities are authorized to kill sick, injured, or blind animals by law. However, humans are not killed if they are blind or ill; special measures are taken to preserve their lives. Why should animals be treated any differently, especially if they are in perfectly good health? Blind cats are well adapted to live without sight--they can use their whiskers to detect obstacles and their senses of smell and hearing to orient themselves--but they need loving homes, and many people do not want to adopt disabled cats. Blind cats cannot survive outside on their own, but typically fare well in an indoor setting.

The same goes for FELV+ and FIV+ cats. FIV is not “cat AIDS” and is not transmittable to other species. Most FIV+ cats live long, happy lives with treatment, but most shelters still euthanize any cats with the virus. FELV+ cats are commonly misdiagnosed and can recover from leukemia with treatment. These cats are also killed immediately in most shelters. Blind Cat Rescue & Sanctuary offers more educational resources about blind, FELV+ and FIV+ cats on their website: https://www.blindcatrescue.com/about.htm.

The best way to help these cats is by donating to the sanctuary, volunteering, and raising awareness. Personally, I didn’t know about blind cats until I stumbled across the sanctuary’s Facebook page. Since then, I have donated to the shelter and followed along with some of the cats’ stories. Many of their stories are as

inspiring as they are heartbreaking. Animal rights are often washed over, especially now that so many human rights are held at the mercy of the new government. It is heartening to know that people are not only advocating for the lives of other people, but also for the lives of cats. As Jackson Galaxy would say...

(Link to the Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/BlindCatRescue/)

(Link to Live Feed of cats: https://www.blindcatrescue.com/watchus.htm)