A story of loyalty

Now for a bittersweet story that I just read in an online article (in Italian): https://bit.ly/2ROsUVd

When you think of loyalty, you associate it with dogs, not with cats. And dogs love their owners…cats do not. Right?

Indeed, a common (superficial and truly annoying) assumption, which I have always fiercely disputed, is that cats are selfish, unfeeling creatures.

Well, today’s story is similar, in many ways, to the well-known story of Hachiko, the Japanese dog who waited for NINE YEARS at a train station for his deceased owner to return home.

Except that this is the story of a cat named Lilla, and we’re in a different part of the world–the Republic of San Marino, a small State completely surrounded by north-central Italy.

Like Hachiko, this San Marino cat, an 11-year-old female, has been waiting patiently every day, all day, in front of the supermarket where she used to go with her owner…who unfortunately died months ago.

Lilla was adopted by her owner’s granddaughter (Note: I’m translating from Italian, and in Italian “nipote” is both granddaughter AND niece, so this could be her niece).

But Lilla is still looking for her previous owner, the woman with whom she spent most of her life and to whom she was completely devoted. And so she waits for the supermarket doors to open…and for her owner to come outside…

Now who is going to tell me that cats don’t care for their human friends?