Sheriff to rule on the cat in the spat

THEY both loved him, made him part of their lives and were heartbroken when he strayed.

Della Macdonald was thrilled when a new male companion, Oscar, came into her life and became part of her family for six months.

But just half a mile away, Oscar it seems had another life, and another woman, who knows him as Smudge.

Now, with neither woman willing to give way in the tug-of-love over the sought-after cat, a sheriff is to decide: whose feline is it anyway.

Mrs Macdonald has raised an action seeking the return of the young black and white cat from chef Nickie Dempster.

Mrs Macdonald said the cat turned up at her house in Stornoway, on 6 March “very sick and very weak” and she decided to take it in. In her statement to the court, she said the cat was “thin and hungry – he was an emaciated kitten”.

She kept the cat in a basket in her greenhouse and put out appeals for its owner on local radio, in a newspaper and on supermarket noticeboards, but no-one claimed him.

She contacted the local Scottish SPCA inspector, who took the cat away but then returned it when Mrs Macdonald said she was heartbroken and worried what might happen to it.

Oscar then continued to live in her Morrison Avenue home. “We’ve cared for him ever since and he became a family pet,” she said. “With patience and care, Oscar’s health and trust improved. We couldn’t find the owner, but as he got bigger he just stayed here.”

Her claim says Oscar was a great comfort to her and her husband, Neilson, a former marine engineer who is disabled.

However, on 31 August Mr Macdonald let the cat out and he disappeared. Mrs Madonald said she conducted lengthy searches of the streets without finding Oscar, and appeals through adverts similarly drew a blank.

She was then alerted by a friend to a message on Facebook from Ms Dempster, saying she had been reunited with her cat – Smudge – and thanking whoever had looked after it.

Mrs Macdonald said she went to Ms Dempster’s house at Cearn Ronaidh but she refused to hand over the cat. She said: “After six months of having Oscar and her not trying to find the cat, she picks up the cat thinking it’s her own and takes it home. I think it’s a disgrace.”

Her court papers say Mrs Macdonald is heartbroken, cannot sleep well and has other health problems that she associates with the stress of losing Oscar. Her dog, Hamish, who she said was not a cat lover until Oscar’s arrival, is “inconsolable”, according to the court papers.

Mrs Macdonald claims she should have the cat permanently because she looked after Oscar for longer than Ms Dempster. Attempts at an out-of-court settlement have collapsed. It is understood that a request by Mrs Macdonald that she has access to the cat for two hours each week has been rejected.

She said: “This case is not about money. I am probably entitled to money for feeding Oscar and for vets’ bills for the six months we had him here but I just want the adorable cat which we raised back in our lives. Life is not the same without him.”

Ms Dempster said she bought the cat in September last year. She reported it missing to Cats Protection in March, but in August found it on her way home from work. She said she and her partner look after the cat and denied it was unhappy: “He has never been thin and has most certainly never gone hungry.”

The case is due in Stornoway Sheriff Court next month.