Most people aren’t aware of this, but an alarmingly large number of cats die of leukemia every year. To raise awareness about the plight of these suffering cats, Maria Torero has converted her own two-story, eight-room apartment into a feline hospice. The 45-year-old nurse from Lima, Peru, currently has 175 patients residing with her, and spends over $1,500 a month just to care for them.

Maria has been caring for the diseased cats for the past five years now – she brings unwanted strays into her home and nurses them as they slowly succumb to their deadly illness. The mother-of-three doesn’t distinguish between her own children and her cat-patients. In fact, she says that she considers it her duty as a nurse to take in creatures that no one else wants to care for.

She spends her time feeding the cats, treating them for parasites, giving them their medicine, and even knitting them shirts and jumpers to wear when it’s cold. Her apartment is filled with little bunk-beds for the moggies to sleep in, but they end up sprawled over every piece of furniture in the house. The place is also cluttered with cat litters, food and water bowls, which leaves very little room to even walk around. It always smells of urine, in spite of using strong deodorants.

Even though Maria’s friends have suggested that she care for healthier cats instead, she feels that she’s doing the right thing. “That’s not my role,” she insisted. “I’m a nurse. My duty is to the cats that nobody cares about. People don’t adopt cats, especially if they are terminally ill.” As long as their disease isn’t contagious to humans or other species, she doesn’t mind taking any sort of cat into her care.

Maria said that she only takes in adult cats to avoid spreading the disease to new generations. She finds them on the streets of Lima and has them tested for leukemia. Unlike humans, leukemia in cats is usually transmitted through direct contact, mutual grooming and the sharing of litter boxes, food and water bowls. “Bringing a kitten here is condemning it to death,” she explained.

Although she has several cats in her home, Maria has taken the time to get to know each one of them and has even given them names. She dresses them according to their personality, in small shirts and jumpers. She cares for the cats until they die naturally, because she doesn’t have the resources to have them put down. “My best gift of love and respect I give them in life,” she proudly declared.

Photos: Facebook

Sources: El Comercio, Infobae