Rescue Tails / JACK THE PIRATE

by Tammy Fox
Executive Director, Florida Keys SPCA

In February, our Marathon Campus had its largest intake of animals at one time. 40 cats were rescued from horrific conditions in a hoarding situation. On a very hot day, huge dog kennels containing as many as seven or more cats were unloaded from the back of two pickup trucks. Each cat was suffering in some way: caked feces and urine in their coats, scratches, ear infections, fleas, and three were even missing eyes. A little orange tabby, later named Jack, was one of those three. 

The shelter closed for an entire day to process each cat. Thanks to local veterinarian, Dr. Maddox, and professional groomer Sophia Pierce, along with staff and a handful of volunteers, each cat was tested for communicable diseases, vaccinated, de-wormed, microchipped, photographed, bathed and medically evaluated. For twelve hours straight, and at a cost of over $5,000, each cat was finally given the medical care it needed. For some of the traumatized cats, it would take months for them to finally feel safe and loved. As it turned out, Jack came into our shelter at just the right time. 

With only one eye, and being particularly shy, our volunteers showered him with extra love and attention. Having captured the heart of one volunteer in particular, Jen made it her daily goal to give Jack one-on-one play time and affection. One afternoon she noticed a very small, seemingly trivial black dot on his eye and some minor cloudiness. In any normal situation this would be easily missed by even the most astute owner. Considering little Jack had just the one eye, he was seen by the veterinarian and shockingly diagnosed with a rare and mysterious eye disease called corneal sequestrum. Without swift medical intervention Jack the Pirate could quickly go blind. He needed surgery by a specialist, and he needed it now! 

Dr. Dylan Buss of the Animal Eye Clinic in Deerfield Beach heard our call for help and offered to evaluate and perform the delicate surgery. Volunteers took the four-hour drive to get there and in August he had his surgery. While Dr. Buss generously discounted her fee, the procedure cost $1,000, a large sum for a small animal shelter.* So far, the surgery has been successful but with the possibility of re-occurrence in the future, what this little pirate cat needs now is a home with a special family that understands and accepts his special needs. Jack may not be adopted just yet, but most certainly, he was rescued. 

*To help animals with medical needs we established Oscar’s Fund, solely dedicated to help pay veterinary costs for animals like Jack.

If you’d like to learn more about Jack the Pirate Cat, Oscar’s Fund or the services we provide our community, please contact Tammy Fox at [email protected] or visit us at fkspca.org. 

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