Unlike the toys, this Weeble does wobble and falls down, but Friday she captured the heart of one local woman who said this adoption must’ve been fate because they both share something special.
“She didn’t really seem to understand that she had a disability,” said Danielle Childs. Childs didn’t plan on adopting a cat this Valentine’s Day, until she stumbled across a video of a kitten named Weebles. “I didn’t realize that she was disabled at first,” Childs said. “I just fell in love with her tail, how long and fluffy it was… and then I watched her walk.”
“She has cerebellar hypoplasia,” said Committed Alliance To Strays (C.A.T.S.) Executive Director Kristina Lanier, “which is where the cerebellum at the base of the skull does not fully develop.” It’s Weebles’ disability that Childs said makes them a perfect match. “I’m also disabled,” she said, “so in my mind, an animal shouldn’t be treated any differently just because they have a disability.”
Childs has struggled with rheumatoid arthritis for nearly a decade, she was diagnosed with it at the age of 21. “Walking is sometimes difficult for me, so I can relate to her a little bit with the walking,” said Childs. “I often have to have help with a walker or a cane.”
When she stopped by to meet Weebles it was love at first sight. “She stuck her nose right back up at me and put her nose on mine and that was it… she melted my heart. I needed to have her.”
Childs said despite being different, she’s going to look at her new furry friend just the same, because that’s how she wants people to view those who are disabled.
© 2024 KOBI-TV NBC5. All rights reserved unless otherwise stated.