Update
12:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 31
The blind cat is currently receiving vet care and will be boarded for two weeks until she can be flown to Pensacola to be fostered and adopted.
A GoFundMe has been set up to cover medical and travel costs here. In less than 24 hours, more than $600 in donations has poured in. Once the goal has been met, any additional donations will go to animal rescues in Jamaica.
Orginal story:
Adrienne Brynteson cares for cats at home, at her business, the Coastal Cat Café in Pensacola, and even on vacation.
While staying at a resort in Ocho Rios, Jamaica, this week, Adrienne and her husband, Taylor, were prepared to hunker down as Hurricane Melissa made impact. What they didn't prepare for was trying to rescue a cat.
Stray cats are common around resorts in Jamaica, and Adrienne noticed several during her stay. But one in particular made her jump into action.
"We heard a cat meowing," she said. This was Tuesday, just one day before Hurricane Melissa made landfall as one of the strongest storms in the Atlantic basin. "We crawled through a fence and found a blind cat."
>>> Watch the Jamaica kitty get trapped
The multicolored cat has blue eyes completely clouded over, Adrienne said. They got the cat some food, but didn't want to leave the cat in the elements, especially after a security guard told them the spot floods regularly.
"I went to the front desk and asked if we could keep the cat in our room, but they said no," said Adrienne. "I kept pestering them. Eventually, they set up a trap. I can't imagine being outside and not being able to see in a hurricane."
The makeshift trap staff set was with a milk crate and a rake. And no bait. With the staff's OK, Adrienne and her husband intervened and successfully trapped the cat.
"They let us put him in the conference room (in a crate) with two parrots from the resort," she said.
Resort guests were on lockdown as the hurricane came through. Adrienne couldn't stop thinking about her feline friend.
"I was super worried about him and kept asking staff to check on him. I asked 'If it floods, can you move him?'"
Adrienne said she didn't feel much of the storm inside the concrete building they were in. It was mostly loud. Outside, there are "a lot of demolished trees."
Flights back home have been canceled for days. Right now, the soonest they may leave is Sunday, Adrienne said. She wants to get back home to her cats and her feline friends at Coastal Cat Café in Pensacola, which is home to adoptable cats from local rescues.
The cat, which doesn't have a name yet — though Adrienne is leaning toward Melissa if it's female — is still safe inside. She said a resort staff member is interested in keeping it, and she's working to get the cat medical attention while she's still there.
"My husband and I would like to pay to get the cat vet care and get it fixed," she said.
The stray cat population has been an ongoing issue in Jamaica. Adrienne and her husband even encountered stray dogs and gave them a ride while bamboo rafting. In a 2023 article, the managing director of the Jamaica Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (JSPCA) said cats are the "single biggest problem" next to crime for the area. More resorts are now working to trap, neuter, vaccinate, and release (TNVR) cats to help reduce their population.
"TNR is important because it helps prevent endless amounts of breeding and helps control the cat population," said Brynteson. "It ultimately helps as a whole with community resources and shelters for cats."
Ironically, their trip was supposed to be in September to celebrate their one-year wedding anniversary, but was delayed after one of their cats at home got sick. Adrienne believes this is how her trip was meant to happen.
"We were supposed to find the cat," she said. "I don't think it would've survived."
To support the animals impacted by Hurricane Melissa, Adrienne suggests these organizations: The Animal House, Montego Bay Animal Haven, and Jamaica Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
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