Here's why you need to take a tour of this blind cat sanctuary.
Blind or not, these furry felines have captured our hearts.
Welcome to the Blind Cat Rescue and Sanctuary, where all cats — whether they're blind, have FeLV, or are FIV-positive — have a home for life.
Pepper the cat and his friend JT. Photo from Blind Cat Rescue/Facebook, used with permission.
This wonderful place was created by North Carolina native Alana Miller together with her daughter back in 2005. The idea was born out of a single blind cat rescue Miller made while volunteering for another shelter.
"A man was going to leave this sick six-week-old kitten in the PetSmart parking lot if the shelter would not accept him. I found myself saying 'I will take him,'" Alana writes on the organization's website. From that moment on, she found herself constantly encountering similar situations because finding forever homes for sick or blind cats is, well, hard.
Once they had taken in four cats, BCRS became an official cat rescue. Now, they have 90 cats.
In 2005, they built a separate space on Miller's property just for blind cats who would've been euthanized by local shelters otherwise. In 2011, they built a separate compound for feline leukemia positive (FeLV+) cats and feline immunodeficiency virus positive (FIV+) cats. Despite common misconceptions, FIV+ cats can live long healthy lives and FeLV+ cats can remain healthy for years before getting sick.
Caroline, one of the cats who's FeLV+. Photo from Blind Cat Rescue/Facebook, used with permission.
"We are a lifetime care sanctuary, we are their lifetime home," Miller told Upworthy.
Anyone who wants to is more than welcome to come visit the cats, and they have open house days scheduled regularly.
The sanctuary is surrounded by a six-foot-tall white fence that allows the blind cats to walk around freely (they can't see the fence, so they don't try to climb it). Beyond that, blind cats are just like any other cats — they jump, they play, they get into crazy, out of reach places, and they pose hilariously.
"You talkin to me?" Photo from Blind Cat Rescue/Facebook, used with permission.
In fact, blind cats are actually more like super cats than their seeing counterparts. According to Miller, if you rearrange your furniture, blind cats will readjust to the new configuration almost immediately. Meanwhile, if I rearrange my own furniture in my apartment, there's a 99% chance I'll trip on it within the next hour. So blind cats: 1, Ally: 0.
BCRS has been drastically improving the lives of sick and blind cats for more than a decade, so why are we talking about them now?
Because they recently started making incredible videos using Facebook Live, which are being shared wildly across the internet.
Photo from Blind Cat Rescue/Facebook, used with permission.
Their shelter tour (which they just posted) already has over 11,000 views and 2,400 Likes. They also have a ustream channel where you can check out what's going on in the sanctuary 24 hours a day, seven days a week. So you know where I'll be if you need me.
However, if you're not into watching the entire 20-minute video, you can meet a few of the cats below:
Here's Atticus:
This gorgeous boy was found as a stray. He is FeLV+ but appears pretty happy and healthy (and competitive). GIF from Blind Cat Rescue & Sanctuary Inc./YouTube.
Introducing Mickey:
Just because Mickey's blind, doesn't mean he can't catch feather toys like a ninja. GIF from Blind Cat Rescue & Sanctuary Inc./YouTube.
And here's Marge:
Marge just cannot be bothered with this thing. GIF from Blind Cat Rescue & Sanctuary Inc./YouTube.
Of course there are many more adorable, hilarious, charming cats at the Blind Cat Rescue and Sanctuary, but you'll have to check out their site and/or watch their many videos on Facebook and YouTube to see them.