Florida is no stranger to unusual stories, but this one might surprise even longtime locals. It wasn’t about gators crossing golf courses or iguanas falling from trees during a cold snap.
Instead, it was about a group of cats, twenty-three, to be exact, living on a boat tied to a pier, waiting for someone to notice their plight.
It all started when concerned residents near the King Fish Boat Ramp in Manatee County noticed something strange. A boat anchored close to the dock didn’t just hold fishing gear or supplies, it held cats. A lot of them.
Reports were quickly made, and local police and rescuers from Manatee County Animal Welfare (MCAW) arrived to investigate. What they found was heartbreaking.
Inside the cramped boat were twenty-three cats ranging in age from one to seven years old. The space had no proper ventilation, the air was thick with the smell of waste, and the animals had clearly been struggling in harsh conditions…