At the Moa Point Dog Shelter, there is a serious and hard-working colleague who rules the roost – Colin Feral, the cat.
As the live-in shelter cat, Colin has the official job of Chief Temperament Tester.
Wellington City Council Animal Control Officer Steph Simon says Colin’s presence is used to see how dogs react to him as they come through the shelter doors.
“He’s the dog tester. We figure out which dogs are cat friendly by putting him in the room. He’s pretty cruisy and doesn’t run away from dogs, so you really get a feel for which dogs like him.”
Colin was part of a feral colony, and was caught and rescued alongside his brother in April last year by an Animal Control Officer from the Moa Point Dog Shelter. The rest of his litter and his mum went to a cat rescue, and Colin was de-sexed, vaccinated and microchipped, then adopted into the shelter whānau.