She’s known as Ming to the Alexander family.
But the Smiths call her Cleo.
Ming/Cleo has been living a secret life. And now the cat’s duo existence has caused a rift between the two families that love her and want her.
Cleo/Ming is special to the Smith and Alexander families and now that affinity for “their” cat has caused a decades-long battle between former neighbours.
The Stuff.co.nz reports that the undisputed original owner Is Alice Alexander.
She bought the pedigree Siamese cat home in 2000. He had a habit of mingling and that’s why he was called Ming.
He’s ended up in strange homes before, once taking a nap in a dump truck and traveling to another suburb.
“Everyone knew Ming and I would often get calls saying he was in someone’s house.”
It seems Ming is quite the two-timer.
The Alexander family put a microchip on him but he still ended up disappearing for periods of time, living with other people.
During a long period of absence, it turned out that Ming had been living next door in the home of the Smiths.
They lived down the hill from the Alexanders and when the moved away, the cat they had picked up as a stray and named Cleo moved away with them.
Years later, they returned home to their original house in the same neighbourhood where the Alexander family lived and that’s when the cat’s other family was discovered.
Neither family wants to give up their cat.
Glenda Smith says Cleo loves her family.
Cleo is part of the family and been with us for nine years, we can’t just push him away now. It’s emotional for us too, he loves us and always come back.”
It’s not known how the case will be resolved. The families contacted the SPCA and the police but were told neither agencies could help them resolve the matter.
Cleo/Ming is 15. Both families say they just want the cat to be happy.
Photo credit: Stuff NZ, supplied
