Of course, I love this photograph of Sir Keir Starmer with his family’s new kitten which we are told is a Siberian cat. This is a purebred cat. Although I must say this kitten looks more like a Ragdoll. You can see the white pointing on the face so typical of Ragdoll cats.
What I like about the photograph – which I don’t have a licence for in order to publish it here but I sincerely hope they allow me to do it – is that Sir Keir is looking admiringly at his new acquisition. And it is the family’s second domestic cat companion.
He entered into negotiations with his family about adopting another cat and the argument presented to him was that looking after a couple of cats is no more difficult looking after one cat.
I am unsure about that argument 😎 because it IS more difficult in one respect; in terms of cost and overall management but it is simpler in another respect in that the two cats, if they get along well, can entertain each other. This takes some of the responsibility from the caregiver to ensure that their cats are entertained i.e. mentally stimulated.
The other resident cat is called JoJo. This is a rescue cat adopted by the family before the election.
I’m not sure why Sir Keir’s family adopted a purebred cat if that is the case. A Siberian cat is a purebred cat. Quite a rare one actually. But like I say this little kitten, so cute, doesn’t look like a Siberian. They’ve named him Prince. A factor in Prince’s adoption may have been the rumour that this is a hypoallergenic breed. I have written about that! Click here to read the article.
Both of their cats are more or less full-time indoor cats unless they are allowed outside unsupervised as is the case with Larry, another cat living at number 10 but his is a working cat whose role is to keep down mice. You wonder how the three cats are going to get along.
It always amazes me how Larry has survived his tenure at number 10 without being run over outside where there is heavy traffic. We are not told if JoJo and Prince are strictly full-time indoor cats.
They live in the flat I believe above number 11 which is the adjoining building. This is the flat normally given over to the Chancellor of the Exchequer but historically, as I understand it, the Prime Minister occupies the flat above number 11 because it’s bigger than the one above number 10.
I wish Sir Keir and family very well in this adoption. It’s a great photograph mainly because, as mentioned, of Sir Kier’s expression which tells me that he is genuinely fascinated with his new cat and it also tells me that he likes cats which, for me, is great news.
His family obviously love cats as well so I would hope that this high-profile ailurophile (cat lover) can spread the word among all other cat lovers in the UK to treat cats well; to love your cat and to ensure that if they are indoors full-time that they are mentally stimulated which means creating an environment indoors which allows for that.
This would be an environment which is not entirely given over to human occupation but which is a compromise between the demands of humans and domestic cats.
MORE: Behavioral enrichment protects elderly dogs against dementia. Infographic.
