RUBY BUTTONS WAS A PURR-FECT MATCH
Tiny kitten with facial abnormalities won the hearts of deaf couple who saw past her unusual looks and fell in love with her unbreakable spirit
WHEN Ruby Buttons arrived at Battersea at just seven weeks old, it was immediately clear to staff that she was a special kitten that would require extra care. Born with a cleft lip, Battersea’s vets discovered that she also suffered from a rare congenital abnormality where one of her eyeballs was underdeveloped, and they had to remove it to ease her discomfort.
As a result the kitten struggled to find a home, and staff feared it was due to her unconventional looks.
Then one day, Deborah Cochrane – who had been looking to rehome a cat with her partner Alex – saw an article about the kitten in a newspaper and her heart melted.
“The minute I read her story, I knew she was the one for us. Her wee face just got me,” she explains.
“I had planned to adopt or foster older cats but reading that people were overlooking her because of her face made me want her more.
“Nobody wanted her because of how she looked, and she was very small. Alex and I talked it over and we applied to get her.
“We are both deaf and have to overcome barriers every day, and I thought it was so unfair that Ruby was missing out too because she was a bit different. To us it just made her extraspecial.
“Just because Ruby’s face was a little different didn’t mean she was any less perfect.”
A perfect match was made. Now safe and happy in the couple’s home in Birmingham, Ruby Buttons is thriving.
“I’m glad she was overlooked because she fits with us so well and makes us so happy,” says Deborah. “Ruby Buttons has changed our lives. I wanted her so much that I felt like I’d won the lottery when we were accepted. She is one in a million.” Deborah adds that she’s not surprised Ruby Buttons has won the hearts of the nation “because she is so adorable” and reveals that despite having only one eye and a cleft lip, “she is still a cute little kitten, fluffy, and brings so much happiness to us”. “She should never have been ignored or dismissed because she has an incredible personality too. She really deserves this award.” Ruby Buttons has now been joined by three-month old brother Nuno, another rescue, and the pair are getting on famously. “Rescue is the way forward, they just want a loving home. If you can give them one, do it. The rewards are endless.”
See battersea.org.uk for more.