Popeye – One-eyed, FeLV positive, and still waiting for someone to love him like he’s whole

Every day, he sits quietly, head tilted, watching each passing stranger.
One eye missing. One eye shining with hope.
He came within hours of euthanasia for having FeLV. But more painful than death… is being forgotten. And Popeye has never been chosen.

He’s only a year old. But Popeye’s one eye speaks of lifetimes waiting.

Rescued from a high-intake shelter moments before being euthanized for testing FeLV-positive, Popeye had everything going against him.
Sick. Small. One-eyed. Unwanted.

His eye had to be removed due to severe trauma. But even that didn’t dim his spirit. Every day, he presses his face to the kennel bars, watching people walk past. No meowing. No pawing. Just quiet hope.

“Will someone love me—even like this?” his gaze seems to ask.

People fear FeLV. But these cats don’t know they’re sick. They play. They cuddle. They make you laugh and feel loved like no other.

Popeye doesn’t know he’s different. He doesn’t understand the judgment. He only knows he’s still here. Still waiting. Still choosing to believe in people.

At the rescue center, they adore him. He’s gentle, patient, never complains when handled. He doesn’t beg for attention—he leans into it. Like it’s all he’s ever needed.

FeLV isn’t contagious to humans. It doesn’t stop a cat from living. Sure, life might be shorter. But every day they’re loved, they live it to the fullest.

Popeye deserves that kind of life.
He deserves someone to call him by name. To wake up with him purring beside them. To kiss the empty space where an eye once was—and see not brokenness, but bravery.

He may not have 20 years left.
But the time he does have? It could be magic.

Because when you love a cat like Popeye, you don’t just give them a second chance.
You get something rare in return: unconditional trust. Loyalty. And the kind of love that sees past scars—and straight into the soul.

And that… is the most perfect kind of love there is.