Meet Bruce Willis, the cat. Not the Hollywood actor, but a ginger-haired, tailed fellow who once had perhaps the saddest face in the world.
He lived on the streets for many years until, at the age of six, he was finally taken to a local shelter.
His years of wandering left their mark on him: Bruce had battle scars, an eye injury and broken teeth.
In addition, he was diagnosed with feline immunodeficiency virus, which caused him to constantly catch upper respiratory infections and fall ill at the shelter.
But what caught people’s attention most was his gaze — his sad eyes revealed a real struggle for survival.
Weeks passed, and Bruce was still sitting in his cage. Despite his bedraggled appearance, the shelter staff called him ‘the most affectionate and kind boy,’ but no one wanted to take in a sick adult cat.
This continued until one day a girl named Sandra saw his photo on the Minnesota Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals’ Instagram page. Her heart melted from the very first second.
Sandra admits that she had no plans to get a pet: her apartment lease stated ‘no pets allowed.’
Nevertheless, she came to the shelter just to meet Bruce. In person, the cat looked even more miserable than in the photo — the girl had to leave after a couple of minutes because it was too hard to look at him.
But she couldn’t forget about the ginger stray. Sandra began to visit the cat regularly, hoping each time that on her next visit she would see a sign on his cage saying ‘adopted’. Weeks passed, and Bruce remained unwanted.
Finally, after a month, the girl made up her mind: she talked to the landlord and managed to convince him to make an exception. So Bruce got the chance for a home he had been waiting for his whole life.
‘The next day, I took him home with me,’ says Sandra. ‘In just a couple of hours, he changed from the saddest cat to the happiest. He purred all night and didn’t leave my side.’
The first year of living together was not easy — the cat was very ill for the first few months, and they had to visit the vet frequently. But step by step, Bruce overcame all his infections, grew stronger and finally became a healthy, contented house cat.
Now this former stray looks completely different: soft fur, a calm face, relaxed poses on the sofa and endless cuddles with his beloved owner.
The photos of Bruce and Sandra show the main thing — they are both immensely happy that they found each other.
‘He is the most wonderful and charming cat,’ Sandra admits. ‘I am so glad that I didn’t walk past that photo one day.’
