One of the things I love about cats is that they are all so different.
Each cat has his or her own individual personality and unique appearance. There are playful cats, funny cats, and just plain adorable cats. But when I saw Matilda, I was sure that I'd never seen anything like her before.
Matilda is a 2-year-old tabby cat who certainly falls into the category of weird looking animals. To say that she is extremely unique in appearance would be an understatement. In fact, her owners have lovingly dubbed her "Matilda the Alien Cat". So what makes Matilda so special? Her eyes!
Matilda isn't just a cat with big eyes. She is a cat with huge eyes. And they keep getting bigger and bigger. Her condition is truly one of the most fascinating unexplained mysteries I have ever encountered.
Matilda might be odd looking, but she is one of the sweetest cats out there. And now I can't take my eyes off of her.
Please SHARE if you think Matilda is one truly special cat.
h/t The Dodo/People
Matilda was born on Valentine's Day in 2013 in the house of a hoarder. Fortunately for her, she was quickly taken in by a rescue society and adopted by a loving family at the age of 12 weeks.
Her family writes on their blog that Matilda was "the cutest, teensiest thing that anyone had ever seen! She came home from the vet that day with a cone on her head and showed no fear when she met [the] dog who was about 10 times her size."
As time passed, her owners noticed that Matilda had one squinty eye, earning her the nickname "Quasimodo". Right after her first birthday, the pupil of her eye became extremely enlarged and Matilda was rushed to the vet. This happened several times over the course of a few days, leaving the vet baffled.
Matilda's owners told People Magazine, "The regular vets were for the most part stumped. After she saw a specialist we learned that it is a spontaneous lens luxation, which means that the lens detached from the rest of the eye for no known reason. This is the mysterious part of the problem since she is an otherwise healthy cat."
Over time, Matilda took on her now famous alien appearance as both of her lenses became detached. Her owners were determined to find more answers about her condition, so they reached out to the rescue society where they adopted Matilda. They wanted to be sure to warn the families of the other cats from Matilda's litter in case the problem was somehow genetic.
When they finally heard back from the rescue society, they received quite the surprise!
Matilda's owners write on their blog, "They had moved offices and had lost the contact information… and had been trying to reach [us] for months! As it turned out, two of Matilda's littermates had developed a mysterious eye condition, and they had been trying to re-find Matilda."
They told People Magazine about Matilda's affected sisters, "Two of them had the lenses removed but recovering from the surgery was very difficult." Her owners had a large decision to make.
"The specialist believes that their disorder could also involve a collagen deficiency, which makes healing from injury or surgery very hard for them."
Making a tough call, her owners decided not to send Matilda in for surgery. Because Matilda was not in any pain and was enjoying her life like any normal cat, they chose to let her unique eyes take their own course.
Matilda's family writes on their blog, "As long as Matilda remained happy and healthy, that was the only thing that mattered."
Unfortunately, as time went on, her eyes continued to become enlarged. They told People, "The problem continues to progress. She is developing glaucoma and will inevitably have to have surgery despite the difficult healing process."
Though the surgery is still down the road a bit, Matilda's family raised $2500 to help offset the costs of her procedure and recovery. Any money that they raised that is leftover after paying the medical bills will be donated to animal charities.
And raising money was actually easier than expected. Matilda's "alien" eyes have made her an internet sensation!
Matilda's family has been posting pictures of the adorable cat on Instagram. In fact, @aliencatmatilda has over 36,000 followers!
Her profile playfully alludes to the fact that she is an alien visiting the planet Earth. "I am a visitor here. Pay attention to me. Have you seen anyone else that looks like this? I'm seeking my kind." While this is a cute profile, Matilda's owners are hoping that the attention on social media will help them to find more answers to explain and hopefully treat Matilda's condition.
Her owners told People that Matilda revels in all of the attention she gets for her special appearance and that in almost every way she is just a normal, friendly cat.
"She also loves tissue paper, cardboard boxes, and her scratching post. She likes to make the dog uncomfortable by walking too close to his face. She loves to eat and will cry like the world is ending if her dish isn't full."
While Matilda's future is somewhat uncertain, she has been leading a regular, healthy and happy life. Her family writes, "No matter what happens, [we] think she's perfect and beautiful and will love and care for her the absolute best way that [we] can for however long this little alien is here."
To learn more about Matilda, visit her website here.
Please SHARE if you think Matilda is one truly special cat.
