Generous readers save cat with no eyelids (From Surrey Comet)

Generous readers save cat with no eyelids

4:49pm Tuesday 16th December 2008 in News By Katie Wilson

A kitten who faced being put down if his Battersea owners could not raise enough money for him to have a life-saving operation has been saved thanks to money pledged by Guardian readers.

Four-month old shorthaired tabby cat, Danny, who was born with no eyelids, leaving him in constant pain and discomfort, desperately needed £3,000 to help pay for his surgery and other treatments.

His owners, Joseph and Victoria Stantejsky, of Wakehurst Road, were told Danny would have to be put to sleep or have his eyes removed if they could not raise the cash.

But after an appeal by the Guardian, the couple now have enough money to pay for Danny’s op.

Mr Stantejsky said: “We have received over £700 from people wanting to help, and can now afford to pay the rest ourselves. We are so thankful to everyone who donated and are just so pleased we were able to help him.”

Danny will have to wait until February, when he is six months old to have the operation, which involves grafting skin to the top of his eyes to act as eyelids.

In the meantime, he needs to be sedated to have the hair around his eyes plucked using freezing technology, and have costly eyedrops put in his eyes twice a day.

“Danny is fine at the moment - as much as he can be. We are just trying to make things as comfortable as we can for him until the operation," Mr Stantejksy added.