Have you heard of an adopted cat rescuing another cat? Mohana Sunthari has.
Kabali came in through the back door of Mohana’s house during the early days of lockdown to take shelter from the rain. After getting a treat of raw fish, he decided it would be his home.
Unbeknownst to Mohana, Kabali loves to share. Not long after, the cat brought over his own mum and a large group of feline friends to be pampered by Mohana’s family.
But while Kabali’s companions have to leave at the end of the day, the magnanimous moggy gets to sleep by Mohana’s mother’s bed.
“My mum wakes up to Kabali’s endless nudges at 5am,” Mohana tells FMT. “If his nudges to Amma’s feet don’t work, he moves closer to her face to get her attention.”
Mohana’s mum Visalatchi named Kabali after a character from a movie where the lead actor was a feared gang leader.
“Kabali gets into fights with the rest of the cats from the alley,” Mohana explains. “Mum delays his meals on purpose to teach him a lesson for fighting. He seems to accept the punishment as he doesn’t dare meow as loudly as he would at other times.”
She suspects that Kabali either chooses to be submissive, or has his humans wrapped around his little kitty paw and is manipulating them by pretending to acquiesce.
“He doesn’t resist regular baths, either,” she elaborates. “He knows this is a prerequisite to a special seat next to Amma.”
Kabali gets two large meals of raw fish and little cat treats, while his visiting mates get only kibbles. Visalatchi also leaves the window slightly open throughout the night to allow Kabali to come and go as he wishes.
“He is the only family member who is oblivious to the house SOPs,” Mohana jokes.
She recalls one morning when Kabali demonstrated, again, that he is a generous soul with a heart of gold. “He arrived one morning with a guest – a scrawny kitten that was too afraid to step into the house.”
He nudged the kitten into the house and encouraged it to feel at home. “Seeing him care for the lost kitten was a wonderful sight,” Mohana says, adding that Kabali became the voice for the little one, who remains unnamed.
“If the kitten makes a small sound, Kabali amplifies it to get Amma’s attention. He really loves that kitten.”
The population of cats that show up during mealtimes has continued to grow thanks to Kabali’s open invitations, but this has not fazed Mohana’s family.
“Amma would feed the sparrows and pigeons in the earlier part of the morning, and now her routine has changed slightly, but she does look way happier to feed more strays,” Mohana says.
“We also have dogs who don’t seem pleased with all our feline visitors, but Amma reminds them not to be greedy – they get their fair share of kibble, too!”
TELL US ABOUT YOUR PET: FMT Lifestyle readers are invited to send in pictures (landscape format) and a short video (if any) of their furry, scaly or feathery friends to [email protected]. Don’t forget to include details like your pet’s name, age, breed and a short story about them.