Jersey felines calling for the right to cat walk

Saturday 01 April 2023

Sir Clive of St. Aubin and Sir Colin of Belcroute are on a mission to promote letting cats safely explore Jersey on leashes.

The ragdoll brothers have built up an impressive following on social media, and are now using their platform to encourage other cats to get out and about.

Cat paw-rent Cara Malorey-Vibert is the owner of Sir Clive and Sir Colin, who she originally rescued as indoor cats due to living near a busy main road.

"It was great entertainment training them during covid"

However, she soon starting training the brothers to walk on leashes to help encourage them to get some outdoor exercise.

"It was great entertainment training them during covid," she laughed. 

Sir Clive and Sir Colin both immediately loved exploring the outside world on their leashes, and Cara began sharing snaps of the handsome duo on social media.

"I actually ended up writing a guide to try and help other people learn"

"I initially set up the Instagram page as a joke," she explained.

"Suddenly, people were really interested in how I had trained the cats to walk on leashes and I actually ended up writing a guide to try and help other people learn."

After some more research, Cara discovered that walking cats on leashes is popular in countries such as America and Australia. 

"It's not that unusual in other places"

She explained: "In Jersey, everyone knows me as the crazy cat lady but it's not that unusual in other places."

 

 

 

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A post shared by Clive the Cat (@sirclivethecat)

Cara added that its a great way to meet people and make friends, as people are always stopping to chat about local celebrities Sir Clive and Sir Colin. 

She has also noticed the amount of cats being walked on leashes growing in Jersey over the past few years, but admits that it is more suited to cats with a certain type of personality.

"They're like dogs!"

"I think it helps that we started training Sir Clive and Sir Colin when they were just 12 weeks old," explained Cara.

She added that they both "love going for walks".

"They're like dogs!" said Cara. "They'll stand at the back door and meow to go out everyday."

However, exploring the outside world is not danger-free for a cat on a leash.

"Some people with dogs have horrific recall," admitted Cara. "A lot of people with cats on leashes walk them in parks as dogs have to be on their leashes there, but sometimes it's easier to be able to take them on the beach." 

However, Cara hopes that the growing presence of Sir Clive and Sir Colin on social media will help to normalise cats on leashes and encourage more owners to let their feline friends safely explore the island.