Video stars are Cats of the Year
It’s time to meet the next winner of our Mirror People’s Pet Awards with Webbox. Our team went through thousands of nominations to produce a shortlist for the judging panel, who chose which incredible animals and animal lovers should receive a trophy. We’ll be revealing them every week on this page – today it’s our Cats of the Year, Thumper and Smooch.
They were born with a long list of deformities caused by inbreeding, yet charming kittens Thumper and Smooch capture the hearts of everyone they meet. Not only are the adorable pair, who were adopted last year by Helena Abrahams from Bury, Greater Manchester, thriving in their new home, they’re doing their bit to highlight the importance of spaying and neutering.
“Thumper and Smooch are such special cats, they never deserved the challenges they were born with,” says Helena. “They’re doing so well considering everything they have to deal with, and already, before they’ve even hit their first birthdays, they’re tagged regularly on social media when people are talking about spaying and neutering. The deformities they’ve got are very severe – and crucially, they could have been avoided.”
While Smooch was born with a significant split between his mouth and nose, all of Thumper’s legs are deformed. He has two club feet at the front, half an ear on the left, and his tail isn’t fully formed.
“As well as the problems with his front legs, Thumper has had to have one of his back legs amputated, and we’re raising money for his treatment,” says Helena, who runs Gizmo’s Legacy, a campaign pushing for a change in the law so all cats killed on roads must be checked for microchips.
Helena learned about Thumper and Smooch through her Gizmo campaign, which began back in 2016 when her beloved cat Gizmo was disposed of after being hit by a car, with no attempt made to reunite Helena with her pet. It now has 1,000 volunteers across the country.
Alongside her work with the campaign, Helena now shares pictures and videos of 10-month-old kittens Thumper and Smooch on social media, along with her seven other cats who she calls the Crazy Gang. She says she’s committed to highlighting the importance of spaying and neutering.
“I’m delighted they’ve been chosen as winners in the Cat of the Year category at the People’s Pet Awards,” she says, “as it reflects the seriousness of this issue, and recognises just what special little cats Thumper and Smooch are as they continue to thrive.
“They look alike, but Thumper and Smooch are not biologically related and they came to me a few weeks apart. That just shows how common this is.
“They’ve got huge personalities, they’re just the biggest characters and people love to watch them doing the silliest things. One video of Thumper turning over a water fountain got 98,000 hits online.
“So despite their problems, this shows that with love and care, any cat can live a happy and fulfilling life.” To contribute to the fund for Thumper’s treatment, visit gofundme.com/f/thumper-thedeformed-kitten
■■Don’t miss next week’s Pet Club for another heartwarming winner
They both have a long list of deformities caused by inbreeding