The Less Adoptables: Pirata - Our Cat Without Eyes
As part of PetFinder's "Adopt A Less Adoptable" awareness campaign, Kate Pullen About.com Guide to Rubber Stamping, shares the story of her cat Pirata.
Pirata is a very special cat - he was born without eyes. Learn how Kate and her family prepared for Pirata's arrival, and how life has been since adoption.
From Kate Pullen:
Pirata is definitely a special cat. He was born without eyes, which means that as well as having to face the challenge of being blind, he also looks a little different to other cats.
We thought long and hard before giving Pirata a home. We have a lively animal family with pets ranging from our 160-pound Pyranean (also known as a Great Pyrenees) dog, to a nervous dog with epilepsy. We knew that Pirata would have special needs, however once we had researched looking after blind animals well and spoken to a vet, we felt confident we could look after him.
Of course we made mistakes. One of my biggest mistakes was to underestimate how clever he is – and how inquisitive. Before he arrived I invested in 100 small bells. I decided I was going to sew them onto our socks so Pirata could hear where we were – a prospect which filled my husband with horror! We also bought Pirata a little cat tree as we thought the big cat tree we have would be too big. We only put the first stage on his cat tree so it wouldn't be too much for him. When Pirata arrived we soon realized that our precautions were completely unfounded as within seconds he was exploring and, ignoring the small cat tree completely, had made his way on to the top of the chair that I'd put on the table to keep out of his way, and on to the top of the big cat tree.
Much to my husband's delight, this put pay to any further ideas about wearing bells. Very soon Pirata was climbing and exploring like any sighted cat.
Because Pirata was born blind, he knows no different, so he has developed his own way of doing things. He climbs rather than jumps and he walks by lifting his front paws up very high so he can feel if there are any obstacles in front of him. He doesn't find life scary or traumatic, but he lives in a very caring environment. Pirata has a secure yard to play in and will never be allowed outside into the street. He doesn't seemed phased by loud noises, but we make sure that we try to reassure him during a thunderstorm. We also shut Pirata in a secure room if we have even the slightest concern about his getting outside. For instance if we have builders working in the house then we will make sure Pirata is in a room so he can't get outside if they leave a door open.
From Kate Pullen About.com Guide to Rubber Stamping:
Pirata really is like any other cat, simply without the gift of sight. He enjoys exploring and loves playing with other animals. He quite happily stalks and leaps out on other dogs and cats, sometimes he is pointing in the wrong direction, other times he is more successful, but it is just another game for him. He does seem to seek out one of our dogs for special attention and he can quite often be found biting her nose!
Living with blind animals means that it is important not to keep moving things around as they find their way using 'landmarks'. They can become disorientated when things are different. We try to keep furniture in the same place, but we have noticed that with both Pirata and our blind dog, that they cope quite well and soon adjust if furniture is moved or a new piece of furniture arrives.
We love Pirata and his special look, but we know that some people find his eyeless sockets a little difficult to look at. We wash his eyes every day to keep them clean and while we could have his eye lids sewn close, that seems like an unnecessary thing to put him through given that its only purpose is cosmetic. Apart from having his eyes cleaned Pirata requires no special care or medication.
Pirata is a lovely animal and we are privileged to share our life with him. Everyday he brings a smile to us, whether he is stalking a mosquito, chasing a leaf or telling us that it is his tea time. There are challenges involved, of course, however the upsides by far outweigh the challenges.
Pirata is a very special cat - he was born without eyes. Learn how Kate and her family prepared for Pirata's arrival, and how life has been since adoption.
From Kate Pullen:
Pirata is definitely a special cat. He was born without eyes, which means that as well as having to face the challenge of being blind, he also looks a little different to other cats.
We thought long and hard before giving Pirata a home. We have a lively animal family with pets ranging from our 160-pound Pyranean (also known as a Great Pyrenees) dog, to a nervous dog with epilepsy. We knew that Pirata would have special needs, however once we had researched looking after blind animals well and spoken to a vet, we felt confident we could look after him.
Of course we made mistakes. One of my biggest mistakes was to underestimate how clever he is – and how inquisitive. Before he arrived I invested in 100 small bells. I decided I was going to sew them onto our socks so Pirata could hear where we were – a prospect which filled my husband with horror! We also bought Pirata a little cat tree as we thought the big cat tree we have would be too big. We only put the first stage on his cat tree so it wouldn't be too much for him. When Pirata arrived we soon realized that our precautions were completely unfounded as within seconds he was exploring and, ignoring the small cat tree completely, had made his way on to the top of the chair that I'd put on the table to keep out of his way, and on to the top of the big cat tree.
Much to my husband's delight, this put pay to any further ideas about wearing bells. Very soon Pirata was climbing and exploring like any sighted cat.
Because Pirata was born blind, he knows no different, so he has developed his own way of doing things. He climbs rather than jumps and he walks by lifting his front paws up very high so he can feel if there are any obstacles in front of him. He doesn't find life scary or traumatic, but he lives in a very caring environment. Pirata has a secure yard to play in and will never be allowed outside into the street. He doesn't seemed phased by loud noises, but we make sure that we try to reassure him during a thunderstorm. We also shut Pirata in a secure room if we have even the slightest concern about his getting outside. For instance if we have builders working in the house then we will make sure Pirata is in a room so he can't get outside if they leave a door open.
From Kate Pullen About.com Guide to Rubber Stamping:
Pirata really is like any other cat, simply without the gift of sight. He enjoys exploring and loves playing with other animals. He quite happily stalks and leaps out on other dogs and cats, sometimes he is pointing in the wrong direction, other times he is more successful, but it is just another game for him. He does seem to seek out one of our dogs for special attention and he can quite often be found biting her nose!
Living with blind animals means that it is important not to keep moving things around as they find their way using 'landmarks'. They can become disorientated when things are different. We try to keep furniture in the same place, but we have noticed that with both Pirata and our blind dog, that they cope quite well and soon adjust if furniture is moved or a new piece of furniture arrives.
We love Pirata and his special look, but we know that some people find his eyeless sockets a little difficult to look at. We wash his eyes every day to keep them clean and while we could have his eye lids sewn close, that seems like an unnecessary thing to put him through given that its only purpose is cosmetic. Apart from having his eyes cleaned Pirata requires no special care or medication.
Pirata is a lovely animal and we are privileged to share our life with him. Everyday he brings a smile to us, whether he is stalking a mosquito, chasing a leaf or telling us that it is his tea time. There are challenges involved, of course, however the upsides by far outweigh the challenges.