If you live in Cromwell, you might want to keep your wardrobe under lock and key.
A local cat has been sneaking into people’s homes and swiping whatever catches his eye — and lately, it’s been pink Crocs.
The 4-year-old ginger cat, named Marlin, initially started out taking odd items from a nearby area. Now, he’s developed quite the penchant for footwear, particularly Crocs.
Marlin’s owner, Elise Jaunay, told Checkpoint that his nighttime activities have been ongoing for about three and a half years, but it’s only recently that his thievery has become an issue — specifically with shoes.
“It’s always at night. Normally on Monday nights, but he’s been doing it for about three and a half years now,” Jaunay explained. “It’s only been a problem recently because he’s started bringing people’s shoes home.”
According to Jaunay, Marlin has a habit of dropping his “finds” at the front door, making sure to announce his return.
“He does his classic meow, saying ‘I’ve got something special.’ Normally, cats bring home mice or birds, but not Marlin. You wake up, and there’s one pink Croc. You put it to the side. Then you wake up the next morning, and there’s the other one,” she said.
So far, Marlin has brought home three pairs of children’s Crocs and two adult-sized pairs.
“At first, he would bring home plastic rubbish from roadsides, and I thought, well, that’s nice, he’s doing something for the community. But then he started bringing tools, bolts, and nuts from building sites,” Jaunay said. “That’s when we realized people would start noticing things missing.”
Jaunay believes Marlin is a small cat with a surprisingly strong mouth. She suspects he’s drawn to the texture of the Crocs, as he also enjoys steel wool pads and towels.
“I think he likes the texture,” Jaunay said. “He really seems to go for anything with a certain feel to it.”
Jaunay first adopted Marlin alongside another cat, who he used to hunt with. After the other cat passed away last year, Marlin’s “hunting” behavior intensified.
“I adopted them together, and they were best buddies. After the other cat died, he became more serious with his hunting,” she said.
To reunite the Crocs with their rightful owners, Jaunay has posted pictures of the stolen shoes on a local community Facebook page.
“At first, we just kept them because we didn’t know where they came from,” she said. “But I felt bad — people are going to miss these, especially the kids’ ones.”
Marlin has become something of a repeat offender, returning to the same houses to steal the same Crocs.
“We’ve tried leaving them on the verge in front of houses, hoping the owners would come by and see them,” Jaunay said. “But no, he keeps bringing them back. That’s why I had to post on the page, saying ‘Come get your Crocs,’ because otherwise, the cat will keep bringing them back.”
Jaunay jokingly thinks Marlin is trying to send her a message.
“Every pair he brings back has been pink. We own yellow and blue Crocs, but not pink. Not many people own pink Crocs, and I’m pregnant, so we don’t know the baby’s gender yet. I think Marlin is trying to tell me it’s a girl.”
If Marlin had a dating profile, Jaunay imagines it would go something like this:
“A one-man band. Anti-social, but works hard for the right person.”
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