How AAI got its start (Part 1): One blind kitten, one informative vet, and a SWOT analysis

August 2011: perfect weather for vacationing by the beach in the mostly Mediterranean climate of Varna, Bulgaria. Except that I'm not there as a tourist but to visit family members since this is my native town. And yes, I kinda hate heat. Completely naturally, as if I have been doing it every day, I fall back into the routine of carrying around cat food and feeding the many, many neighborhood homeless animals. (Why cat food and not dog food? There are many more homeless cats on the streets of Bulgaria than homeless dogs. In addition, cats have higher protein needs than dogs so cat food can be protein-adequate for dogs while dog food won't be protein-adequate for cats). With every kitty I see my heart breaks because I know how hard their life is and how soon the harsh winter will come. And then I come across a kitten who leaves me speechless.

His eyes are completely covered in dirt, stuck directly onto the eyeball, to the point where the lids don't close. He is following the sound of my voice but bumping into things since he clearly can't see me. And he's only a month and a half old! Yes, people in the neighborhood have seen him before, they say, they know who his mama and litter mates are. "Poor blind thing, he'll probably die soon". The verdict is terrifyingly accurate. Winters in Bulgaria can be very cold and snowy. Food becomes exceedingly scarce, shelter is largely nonexistent. Dogs get to the point of starvation where they kill and eat cats. Being blind in a winter like that (if he even survived until the winter) means certain death. I am perfectly, stubbornly unwilling to let this kitty die!

With a little over 2 weeks left until I fly back to the US, I need to formulate a plan. The only way I can personally guarantee this baby is safe is if I take him back with me and find him a home. I volunteer with a local rescue group (as I have been doing on and off over the years) and they will help with advertising his case. I do some research: the US requires only a rabies shot (whew, that is easy), the airlines I fly with allow up to 2 in-cabin animals and none of my 3 flights have reached that maximum (booked!), I note down the airline carrier requirements and start searching for the right one that will match the disparate requirements the 2 companies I fly with have (of course, why would they be in agreement with each other?!). But before all of this is done, I take the sweet baby to a vet.

At the vet office the diagnosis is easy: the little baby's eyes cannot be saved. The eyeballs need to be removed, the lids stitched together, since the tiny unseeing eyes are now open wounds waiting for a horrible infection to happen. As I give authorization to proceed with the surgery, I get to name the sweetie: World, meet Charlie! Charlie, you won't get to see the world but, boy, does it have a lot of wonderful things in store for you! While chatting with the vet about immunization, travel, and follow up care for Charlie, I mention that I volunteer with a rescue group which will help me with finding Charlie a forever home. Yes, there are so many rescue groups in the US, I wish this was the case in Bulgaria. "Funny you should mention this", Dr. Todorov replies, "Over the last year or two there has been more and more rescue activity happening in the city. Let me tell you more about it..."

(To be continued)
Read part two of the story here