Benjamin Ashford|'Truffles is just like me:' How a Pennsylvania cat makes kids feel proud to wear glasses

Truffles is Benjamin Ashfordanything but a regular housecat, working full time at a Pennsylvania-based optical shop to make a child’s first experience with glasses “more memorable.” And she wears glasses herself.

The “super smart” kitty’s unofficial employment at A Child’s Eyes in Mechanicsburg, a borough 8 miles west of Harrisburg, began in 2017, not long after owner and pediatric optician Danielle Crull made a then-stray Truffles part of her family. 

Truffles proved to be “something special,” mastering all of the tricks Crull threw at her with ease. One day Crull wondered if she could get Truffles to wear glasses, deciding to fit her with a pair of pink glasses made for premature babies.

Turns out, Truffles didn’t actually mind wearing glasses. 

Crull began to call on Truffles whenever kids would come in for a consultation, which helped alleviate any fear or nerves by showing them that if Truffles can proudly rock her glasses or eyepatch, then they could, too. 

“I think kids just kind of feel like they relate to her and, ‘Oh, Truffles is just like me.’ And it really boosts their confidence and self-esteem,” Crull said.

While Truffles' journey may have begun at A Child’s Place, her reach has extended far beyond the borough, helping children all over the world through non-profit Truffles The Kitty Organization and educational social media videos.

Truffles uses her fame for good, owner says 

Crull didn’t mean for Truffles to become internet famous, it kind of just happened.

She thought Truffles could help her “teach kids a few things” about eye-related topics, including proper eyeglass care and wear. Crull has also ventured out, making videos to highlight unique vision issues children face like Amblyopia and color blindness. 

“(Truffles) is very good at demonstrating and showing kids that things are OK. My initial thing was like, ‘I’m just gonna make a couple videos of Truffles showing kids how to take care of glasses.’” 

The videos didn’t really begin to blow up until one of her patient's posted about their experience with Truffles in a Facebook group. That’s when things started to get “crazy,” Crull said.

“It was just to teach kids a few things, not to go viral or anything like that. I thought it’d be kind of handy,” Crull said. "And she was very smart. I even taught her how to point to pictures on the eye chat and recognize different symbols."

Truffles' first taste of fame came in 2019, when Crull posted a video of the feline “embracing her new green glasses.” That video helped “spark a whole bunch” of momentum, inspiring Crull to make more videos and use Truffles' new-found popularity on the internet to start the non-profit.

It’s “pretty hard” to estimate how many kids Truffles has helped over the last seven years, but Crull says it would have to be in the thousands at this point.

“The non-profit organization really just helped Truffles reach out and encourage kids far beyond our office, our state, even our country,” Crull said. 

A typical day at the office 

Not much has changed for Truffles, who continues to work at A Child’s Place, despite her celebrity status. 

She can still be found wandering around the office, rocking any one of the 25 pairs of glasses she owns and helping Crull with patients. 

“Sometimes I just call her and then she comes out or sometimes she’s like ‘Hey, what’s going on?’ if there’s some commotion. It just depends. She’s free to roam around the office and go anywhere she wants. But if I need her, I’ll call her,” Crull said. 

Crull has decided to make the office an even safer place for kids, choosing to add another kitty to the mix to help assist and keep Truffles entertained. The newest office mascot is named Gumdrop, a very energetic orange cat. 

“You can imagine a lot of people come in requesting to see Truffles. Now, she has a little brother, Gumdrop, who wears glasses too,” Crull said. “So, between the two of them, we definitely have kitties in the office to help kids feel more comfortable."

Crull also has a couple of other animals at the office, including hermit crabs and a bird, working to “keep kids busy.” But Truffles and Gumdrop are the only office mascots in history to wear glasses. 

“Toys are great, but also having animals there are just another thing to keep them busy. The most things you have for them to look at is really fun, especially when they’re trying on glasses for the first time,” Crull said. 

Truffles gets to sit in on an “amazing moment,” in a kid’s life, actively working to make that experience even “more special and more memorable," she said.

“Truffles wants kids to feel empowered to walk out there and be like, ‘Yeah, I wear glasses,' or 'Yeah, I wear an eye patch just like Truffles.'"