Posted: March 11, 2009, 3 a.m. EDT
Ugly Bat Boy has drawn international attention because of his looks. |
I love the news business. You never know what story is going to interest, inspire or incite people until it runs. That’s what keeps the job so interesting.
Last week on CatChannel, we ran a
photo and story about an unusual-looking cat who lives at Exeter Veterinary Hospital in Stratham, N.H. He is named Ugly Bat Boy, and his looks are quite unique, to say the least. He garnered the attention of the national and international media after a visitor at the clinic snapped Ugg’s picture (that’s his nickname from the clinic staff) and passed it on to friends. Soon Ugly Bat Boy was seen all over the Internet, usually with headlines reading along the lines of “World’s Ugliest Cat...”
CatChannel’s story had this headline: “‘Ugly’ Cat a Media Sensation,” paraphrasing what was being said about him. Some of our readers took exception to this.
Sadie from New York wrote: “That cat is not ugly! No cat is ugly! I am a huge cat fan and I don’t want to wake up in the morning to see that my favorite cat website is calling a cute cat ugly! I think that cat is adorable.”
Along those same lines, Jennifer from Connecticut wrote: “There’s no ugly cats in the world. There’s just ugly people! The cat has style!!!”
Now, I would never call any cat ugly — or any animal, for that matter. Corny though it may sound, every animal really is beautiful in its own way. Just as our mothers told us to find the good in everyone, there is beauty to be found in every living thing, a sentiment shared by Sharon of Missouri: “So he isn’t the handsomest or the prettiest, but God made him the way he is, and inside he is still a cat who now ‘owns’ a vet clinic.”
What is great about CatChannel readers — and cat lovers in general — is their whole-hearted devotion to cats. I have no doubts that if Dr. Stephen Bassett hadn’t taken in Ugly Bat Boy, another cat lover would have — and would have made him the king of the castle.
I think Dr. Bassett sums up Ugly Bat Boy best of all: “There are people who say he’s ugly. But it’s all in the eyes of the beholder. He looks pretty nice to me.”