Daily Mail, UK 6/21/11. "He’s been caught stealing hundreds of
items from homes, so you’d have thought police would have locked up
this prolific burglar by now. But the strange thing about Dusty is not that he’s only aged five years old. It’s that he’s a cat. The feline from San Mateo, California, has stolen gloves, towels, shoes and many other items from households since owner Jean Chu adopted him from the Humane Society.
Experts say Dusty's predatory instincts have gone astray, leaving him hunting for other people's items. The cat's thieving has made him a minor celebrity. Neighbours were mystified for years as their possessions went missing and had feared they were being targeted by a real criminal. It's extreme, but it's absolutely adorable,' cat behaviour expert Marilyn Krieger said. She told the San Francisco Chronicle he has a 'form of OCD' and neurological problems. Ms Chu's husband Jim Coleman said Dusty something brings home 'expensive' things. 'I get a little worried about that,' he added.
It is estimated Dusty, a brown-and-white moggy, has stolen more than 600 items - and once even pulled an incredible bounty of 11 household items from nearby homes in a single evening. Neighbours keep a watch for the cat but his victims do not intend to file police reports. They say that when something goes missing they simply visit Dusty's owners. His crime sprees emerged when The Animal Planet television show 'Must Love Cats' installed a camera outside the house and captured his nightly forays for a week."
ABC News 5/21/11. Dusty achieves fame "Grand Marshal of San Mateo Pet Parade.
San Francisco Chronicle, 6/19/11. Dusty, the local report.
Posted by Kathy Meeh
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