Mr No Ears, the famous Albufeira street cat and mascot of Amigos dos Gatos do Algarve (AGA) animal association, is at the centre of a legal wrangle after a young couple on holiday from the north removed him from his colony last month.
Andreia Martins and Paulo Batista have said they had no idea of Mr No Ear’s mascot status. They simply saw him “in poor condition” when enjoying their holiday, and decided to take him home with them and give him a family.
“We visited the cliff (overlooking Praia do Peneco) three days in a row and asked who took care of the colony. We were told no one,” the pair told Jornal de Notícias, adding that Mr No Name’s ears were in a bad state and “smelled rotten”.
AGA however is claiming their mascot has been “stolen”.
“A terrible injustice has been done to a much loved, no-eared, one-eyed street-cat,” it writes in a petition to bring Mr No Ear’s “home” that has received over 4,000 signatures.
The association claims the cat was well-looked after and “very happy” as the leader of the cliff’s cat colony.
AGA has thus embarked on its legal action and, as a result, Mr No Ear’s was briefly removed from his new home and taken to a Porto kennel. He is now back with the couple as all await a decision as to who should be looking after him.
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