Winky Sam, a Cat with Only One Eye and Steadily Going Blind, Finally Finds a Home in Port St. Lucie

Winky Sam

Winky Sam's world is going black. He has only one eye and he is rapidly losing the sight in his other eye. 

After wandering the cruel streets of Port St. Lucie, Florida for an indeterminate amount of time, he spent the past few months at the Dogs and Cats Forever animal shelter before recently being adopted. His new caregivers are Chuck and Chantal Gray and their ten-year old son, Brandon.

At the Gray household, Winky Sam will join Dolly, a five-year old beagle with epilepsy, a loquacious Quaker parrot, two birds, and a fish. For feline company, he will have Jet, a cat which Chuck rescued from Witham Field in Stuart where he works.

Oddly enough, Winky Sam will be taking the place of a diabetic cat who was also rescued from the airport and lived with the Grays for six years before dying four months ago.

Shelter officials told the Sun-Sentinel of Fort Lauderdale that a birth defect was most likely responsible for the enlargement of his right eye. This necessitated its removal and the suturing shut of the eyelids in order to save his life.

When it rains it pours, however, and ultrasound has revealed that the playful two-year old buff tabby's left retina is detaching and that he will soon lose the sight in his left eye also. This is one reason why shelter officials were so happy to see him find a new home now.

Although it is not known how soon it will be before Winky Sam goes completely blind, hopefully he will have enough time in order to acquaint himself with his new surroundings and housemates while he still has his sight.

An ad placed earlier with petfinder.com by Dogs and Cats Forever stated that Winky Sam does not get along well with other cats and dogs and that he should be the only animal in his new home. If this is so, why did the shelter give him to the Grays?

With his vision problems, he has enough troubles without fighting with other cats and dogs. Moreover, there is something inherently suspicious about individuals who collect animals and children.

No matter how much money or how many servants a person may have, caregivers nonetheless have only so much time and attention to devote to each animal and child under their care; ergo, the greater the number of dependents, the less time and care there is to go around.

It is hoped that everything will work out for Winky Sam at the Grays but the situation is nonetheless troubling.

Photo: Dogs and Cats Forever.