Blind kitten found abandoned and crying in wet trash pile, Oregon rescuers say
An animal’s cries for help led a good Samaritan to a soaking wet pile of garbage in California’s Central Valley — revealing a cold, abandoned and blind kitten bundled in a bag, rescuers said.
The person who discovered the cat swaddled it in a T-shirt and brought her to a nearby animal shelter in Madera, California. But that shelter was overcrowded and small, so the kitten, now named Ilene, was sent to another shelter in Portland, according to the Oregon Humane Society.
Rescuers in Oregon said that “despite all she’d gone through, she started purring and soliciting affection the moment she was rescued.”
Ilene arrived in Portland on Dec. 6 with a larger group of cats and kittens from California, said shelter spokesperson Laura Klink in an email to McClatchy News on Friday.
“When we got the call to help with Ilene, we immediately said ‘yes,’” Mia Heaslet, second chance program manager at the shelter, said in a statement on Friday. “We are fortunate at OHS to have a great medical team who are well versed in unusual conditions.”
Ilene underwent surgery this week in hopes of warding off future infections in her eyes.
“It’s likely that she has a condition called microphthalmia in both eyes and was already blind,” said Dr. Maia Titcomb, a shelter veterinarian. “This condition is usually caused by a congenital defect in cats, but can also be due to trauma or infection.”
The Humane Society said Ilene was transferred to the Oregon shelter through a partnership with Madera Animal Services and PetSmart Charities.
The Oregon Humane Society said in a news release in November that PetSmart Charities recently awarded the shelter a $107,500 grant supporting the second chance program, which “transported more than 8,000 pets from 85 partner shelters and rescues” last year.
“The resiliency of this tiny kitten and the compassion of the people who saved her are inspiring,” Sharon Harmon, president and CEO of the Oregon Humane Society, said in a statement. “The next step for this special feline is to spend the holidays with a new, loving family.”
Titcomb said “not being able to see has not slowed Ilene down a bit. She is a happy, playful kitten.”
The cat will likely be available for adoption on Saturday, rescuers said, adding that her profile will be added to the organization’s adoption page.
“She is doing great and will hopefully find her forever home this weekend,” Klink said.
This story was originally published December 13, 2019 at 12:29 PM with the headline "Blind kitten found abandoned and crying in wet trash pile, Oregon rescuers say."
