LisaCC Posted April 4, 2013 Share Posted April 4, 2013 (edited) http://aww.ninemsn.c...aspx?id=8637137 It's a tale familiar to millions of broken families around the world: one party walks away from the family home and moves in with someone else, leading to a bitter, time-consuming and costly court battle. But the star of this story is not a cheating husband or wife, but a small black and white cat called Brandy. Brandy was just one week old when she was given to UK woman Senka Besirevic as a gift. Two years later, Brandy disappeared from Senka's home. The teaching assistant searched for her feline companion for weeks, plastering her neighbourhood with missing posters, but to no avail. Senka assumed the worst but Brandy wasn't dead — she'd just relocated to another home 1.5km away. Karen and Carl Green found Brandy sleeping in the greenhouse of their new home when they moved in in 2007. They thought she was a stray and took her in, naming her "Smelly" because she was filthy when they found her. Karen and Carl adopted Brandy/Smelly and they lived happily together for five years until a fateful vet visit in 2012, where a routine microchip scan revealed Senka was the cat's real owner. The vet called Senka, who was overjoyed to hear her pet was alive. She called Karen and Carl to thank them for looking after her and to arrange to collect Brandy, but they refused to hand her over. "I was given the telephone number of the woman who had cared for her so I phoned her up and said I wanted my cat back and offered to pay her for her trouble," Senka told the UK's Daily Mail. "She said she was sorry but her husband didn't agree, they were going to look into their legal rights." Senka also looked into her legal rights and decided to take the couple to court. She launched a civil suit at Birmingham Country Court last year which went on for nine long months, only ending this January when Karen and Carl claimed the cat had gone missing again. One week later, it was anonymously handed in to an RSPCA centre and returned to Senka. "Luckily, I found a solicitor who had been through the same thing and took on my case," Senka said. "It was a huge battle, I felt like I had lost her for a second time." I know of too many people that have been abused by others for taking a stray animal to a shelter where it can be scanned and it's owners hopefully relocated when "they could of provided a better home for it". I hope stories like this make people aware that not everyone that loses a pet have dumped the animal and don't want it back. Edited April 4, 2013 by LisaCC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RiverStar-Aura Posted April 4, 2013 Share Posted April 4, 2013 I can't help but wonder if the couple who took the cat in have anonymously dropped if at the RSPCA or if a neighbour, who's learned about the court case has cat-napped Brandy and dropped it off. What kind of people would name a cat Smelly and then fight to keep her? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LisaCC Posted April 4, 2013 Author Share Posted April 4, 2013 Yes I thought the same thing, possibly realised they were losing the court battle and dropped her off at the RSPCA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clyde Posted April 4, 2013 Share Posted April 4, 2013 What kind of people would name a cat Smelly and then fight to keep her? I think Smelly is a cute name. Ive named pets far worse and would fight for them! I think it's really unfair of the original owner to claim the cat back after the current owners have had her 5 yrs. Surely if she could have seen they were good owners she would have acted in the best interest of the cat and let her stay where she was. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
megan_ Posted April 4, 2013 Share Posted April 4, 2013 IF someone took my pet without reporting he rto the pound and legally adopting them I would fight tooth and nail to get them back. You can't just take animals off the street and claim them as your own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Are You Serious Jo Posted April 4, 2013 Share Posted April 4, 2013 If they'd taken the cat to be scanned in the first place none of it would have happened. A good reminder that you just can't keep an animal you find because you tell yourself it wasn't wanted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katdogs Posted April 5, 2013 Share Posted April 5, 2013 Shouldn't have read this. Now I've got the Friends 'Smelly Cat' son in my head! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
megan_ Posted April 5, 2013 Share Posted April 5, 2013 Shouldn't have read this. Now I've got the Friends 'Smelly Cat' son in my head! I shouldn't have read this post, because I do now too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sagittarian Posted April 5, 2013 Share Posted April 5, 2013 Shouldn't have read this. Now I've got the Friends 'Smelly Cat' son in my head! It's okay... it's not your fault. :laugh: Sags Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Wildthing Posted April 5, 2013 Share Posted April 5, 2013 (edited) edited Edited April 7, 2013 by Wildthing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katdogs Posted April 5, 2013 Share Posted April 5, 2013 Shouldn't have read this. Now I've got the Friends 'Smelly Cat' son in my head! It's okay... it's not your fault. :laugh: Sags BLARGH Sags you cow, now the earworm effect is worse than ever! Thanks so much :rollseyes: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katdogs Posted April 5, 2013 Share Posted April 5, 2013 What were they feeding her? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LisaCC Posted April 5, 2013 Author Share Posted April 5, 2013 (edited) What were they feeding her? Damn it! You guys are terrible Edited April 5, 2013 by LisaCC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linda K Posted April 5, 2013 Share Posted April 5, 2013 its not your fault Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WreckitWhippet Posted April 5, 2013 Share Posted April 5, 2013 If they'd taken the cat to be scanned in the first place none of it would have happened. A good reminder that you just can't keep an animal you find because you tell yourself it wasn't wanted. or neglected or belonged to an owner who didn't deserve to have it. I'd sue the pants off someone if they kept an animal of mine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Akayla Posted April 5, 2013 Share Posted April 5, 2013 It makes me so angry. I presently have a cat thats been taken. Im waiting/hoping he is scanned for his chip one day and I can get him back. My eldest talks about him constantly. Of course Id take him back! Really its a good reason to keep cats indoors or a secure run that only you can open. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpha bet Posted April 6, 2013 Share Posted April 6, 2013 If they'd taken the cat to be scanned in the first place none of it would have happened. A good reminder that you just can't keep an animal you find because you tell yourself it wasn't wanted. or neglected or belonged to an owner who didn't deserve to have it. I'd sue the pants off someone if they kept an animal of mine The cat wandered in - for all the couple knew the cat might have stayed from the previous owners. 7 years ago many didn't even know about microchipping and even now it is not compulsory thruout most countries or states... 5 years of care says this couple had strong reason to believe the cat was theirs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Are You Serious Jo Posted April 6, 2013 Share Posted April 6, 2013 We are only talking 5 years, microchips were not some brand new Tom Cruise witchcraft. They clearly didn't do the right thing because if they were clueless they should have asked the council who would have suggested getting the cat scanned. Ignorance is never a defence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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