Donations pour in for Bruce Almighty, the Saskatoon cat found with paws bound

On March 18, homeowners in Regina, Saskatchewan, spotted a young cat wandering into their yard. His legs and paws were tightly bound by electrical tape, which had restricted circulation and caused tissue loss and infection.

The homeowners immediately contacted the Animal Protection team at the Regina Humane Society.

According to a gofundme site raising money for the cat’s recovery:

“The cat, who had no identification, collapsed into the arms of officers late Wednesday evening and purred as they began the delicate process of removing the bands which had destroyed his limbs.”

“[The officer] said it was almost like he knew he could quit fighting because he knew we were going to fight for him,” Lisa Koch, executive director of the Regina Humane Society, said of the cat during his rescue.

The cat underwent hours of emergency surgery to save his severely wounded legs. Eight of his toes were removed. His recovery status remains “very guarded” and he may face the amputation of one of his legs in the near future.

According to the Leader-Post, the veterinary team is “cautiously optimistic” that the cat will pull through.

Humane Society workers named the cat Bruce Almighty for his “fierce determination and will to live.”

“He’s a cat with a powerful will to live and a powerful soul and we thought he needed a name to match that,” Koch told Global News.

“He’s going to have more surgeries ahead of him and hopefully this story will have a happy ending,” she added.

Shelter workers set up a fundraising site to cover his significant treatment and recovery costs, which will include ongoing wound and infection care.

“The pain and suffering he has endured is unimaginable” said senior RHS Animal Protection Officer B. Lerat. “He is fortunate that a caring member of the public alerted us to his whereabouts. The public really is our eyes and ears when it comes to reporting cases of neglect and abuse involving animals.”

Bruce Almighty’s sad story struck a chord with kind strangers everywhere. In the last five days, more than $20,000 has been raised to care for the wounded cat.

According to a recent status update, the determined kitty is responding well to his treatment, which currently includes hydrotherapy, antibiotics and pain management meds.

“Once Bruce Almighty’s wounds improve, his treatment may include paw pad grafts on his front two paws. As a patient, Bruce Almighty does great. He even enjoyed a short period of time outside of his kennel today where he showed us his ability to walk (even with large bandages on three of his legs). Given the state he was found in nearly a week ago, his progress is very encouraging,” the Humane Society wrote on Facebook.

“He continues to eat and drink well, enjoys interacting with us throughout the day and of course takes his cat naps quite seriously. Once again we thank everyone so much for their support and good thoughts!”

Money left over from Bruce Almighty’s treatment will go toward helping other animals in need.

"We’re going to see a huge influx of animals over the next couple of months who are also going to be in need of care. So the gofundme is really going to help Bruce Almighty as well as animals who are really going to need it," Koch said.

Anyone with information about Bruce Almighty’s case is encouraged to call the Humane Society’s Animal Protection Services at 306-777-7700.