Cat lovers see no humour in adoption ad
A Craigslist post offering a free “evil Satanic’’ cat to a good home was removed Friday afternoon, after cat fanatics missed the joke.
David Seigel posted the ad for Izzy, a five-year-old black foster cat, on Feb. 1: “We’re not going to lie to you …. She’s probably as close to pure evil as you can get.”
The humorous ad listed Izzy’s numerous offences, including locking Mr. Seigel’s girlfriend and dog out of the house; breaking into the fridge and eating a block of cheese; breaking numerous plates and glasses; and being “angry, miserable and vindictive.”
Mr. Seigel said he and his girlfriend are animal lovers and they were just trying to be funny, but Craigslist took down the ad automatically Friday after too many users flagged it. He said it was also posted on Facebook and received some negative comments from users.
The couple adopted Izzy into their home north of Toronto two years ago. They’ve fostered several cats and dogs and would never dream of giving her up for euthanasia, he said. They’ll keep Izzy until she finds the right forever-home.
Mr. Seigel told the National Post that it wasn’t one particular stunt that caused him to post the ad, but Izzy’s most evil feat was locking the rest of his family out of the house.
He was washing up for bed one night while his girlfriend was letting the dog out in the backyard when Mr. Seigel heard a pounding on the sliding-glass back door.
The cat had managed to jump a few feet off the ground and pull down the lever that locks the back door, trapping his girlfriend and their Schnoodle dog in the freezing backyard for two to three minutes.
And the block of cheese? His girlfriend was home alone one day when she heard a clunk coming from the kitchen, he said. She went downstairs to find the cat “face down eating a block of cheese” straight out of the fridge drawer.
“Just going to town on it,” Mr. Seigel said. He didn’t know what kind of cheese it was, but said it was probably cheddar.
They haven’t received any serious offers so far, but they’ve received a few notes from people who appreciated the post and a few who were concerned they’re the reason the cat is so evil.
“They think that we’re torturing this poor cat and of course she’s evil, you’re terrible,” he said, noting that one woman wondered if Izzy had ever been to a vet because she’s not spayed.
Mr. Seigel said he and his girlfriend were aware the cat should be spayed and did not plan to adopt her out without having the procedure done.