Cats staying at the NC State Veterinary Hospital can feel more comfortable away from home now, thanks to a generous donation by a longtime supporter of the college’s feline research. A gift from Beck Hallmann, a Seattle resident and owner of two sphynx cats, enabled NC State’s Feline Health Center to buy four blocks of cat condos that have been installed in the veterinary hospital’s ICU and other service areas.
The new mobile units can be wheeled where they’re needed within the hospital, decreasing transportation-related stress for cats and their vet teams. Their feline-friendly infrastructure, including quiet-closing doors, internal shelves for perching and separate litter box areas, help cats feel more secure in what can be a stressful environment.
“I hope this donation helps cats and their owners while bringing awareness to the veterinary world that feline health is important,” Hallmann says. “The research and the care that NC State provides are going to improve feline care everywhere, because the college’s work exponentially spreads.”
Hallmann has supported the College of Veterinary Medicine for nearly a decade, initially stirred by NC State cardiologists’ efforts to uncover the genetic cause of sphynx hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a life-threatening heart condition. Though neither she nor her cats, Lady Prunella Knucklesnude von Wrinklebothum and Miss Dottie Elbowswide von Wrinklebothum, have ever set foot on NC State’s campus, Hallman’s coast-to-coast connection to the university is profound.
“When I donate to NC State, I can see where my money has done good,” she says. “It’s created positive change in the world. It feels great that I can help move the world in a positive way, even though I’m not a vet or a health care worker or even in North Carolina.”
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