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Cat's burglary spree makes him ‘a local celebrity’

Kat Steele Disco the cat has been pinching pouches of cat food from a neighbour in the Hellesdon area of NorwichKat Steele
Disco has been pinching pouches of cat food from a neighbour in Norwich

A particularly stealthy cat burglar has been on the prowl in his Norfolk neighbourhood stealing food.

The thief in question, however, is an actual moggie called Disco - a 10-year-old half ragdoll breed who lives with his owner Kat Steele in Hellesdon, on the edge of Norwich.

Ms Steele, 42, came across a stash of cat food pouches while gardening earlier this week and shared the discovery with a local Facebook group.

"It’s created a lot of interest - cheered a lot of people up and he’s becoming a bit of a local celebrity now," she said.

Kat Steele A composite image of two cats, one grey and white, one black, sitting on a sofa with a tray of biscuits in front of them and the legs of a person lying down visible behind them. The picture on the right is of a the grey and white cat sniffing a bacon sandwich which is being held in someone's hand.Kat Steele
Disco, left, with Kat Steele's other cat Blue, has always had a keen interest in food

Despite being fed dry food twice a day, Ms Steele thinks Disco has been sneaking through a neighbour’s cat flap to pinch the pouches, which are both "wet" foods.

He has successfully managed to claw his way into some of the plastic packets and, like most cats, is always hungry for more.

“He has been doing it for a while because I’d found the odd one here and there,” added Ms Steele, who lives with her partner, five-year-old daughter and another cat, named Blue.

“I’d asked my neighbour, who has cats, where [Disco] likes to frequent, but it’s not the brand they use and they’ve not had any go missing."

Kat Steele A collection of silver foil-wrapped cat food pouches lying on the ground.Kat Steele
The stolen cat food pouches found by Kat Steele in her garden, which she suspects have been taken from neighbours by Disco

"He went missing about five years ago and we only found him because food was going missing - the people who found him had noticed things like frozen sausages defrosting in the kitchen had gone," added the owner.

"He was [also] eating their bird feed to survive, so he does like to go wandering."

Kat Steele A smiling woman holds her mischievous cat who has been stealing cat food pouches from one of her neighbours.Kat Steele
Kat Steele with her mischievous cat, Disco

The "victims" of the latest spate of cat burglary are yet to come forward but as an adept hunter, who also brings home the odd mouse, Ms Steele is hoping Disco’s alternative food source is cut off soon.

"I can’t keep him in at nighttime, he’s definitely a prowler," Ms Steele added with a laugh.

"He is getting his winter coat at the moment but I did think he was maybe looking a little bit chunkier."

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