Palm Court Shopping Centre’s regular customers were astonished to see that the cat kennel was gone.
The kennel, which belongs to the black cat, Ms Kitty, used to be placed in the centre’s corner part of the parking lot. The cat is said to have been staying at that spot for more than 10 years.
It is understood that the new centre manager had the kennel moved to the back of the centre, which upset a lot of residents.
Local resident and regular shopper at the centre Lara Kilian says, the cat has been part of their lives. “We all love Ms Kitty, she’s a harmless cat and never annoys anyone.”
She also questions how the cat will know where its kennel has been moved to. Another point she raised is that the kennel is placed in a filthy area at the back part of the centre. “The aircons this side are also making a noise, how will she sleep in such a noise?”
According to Killian, regular centre customers buy Ms Kitty food which is stored at the pet shop in the centre. The car guards, who work at the centre, feed the cat and also make sure that its surroundings are always neat. “That is why I fail to understand why the centre manager had the kennel moved,” retaliated Killian.
Jessica Tinaklei from the pet shop at the centre said, she was very upset with what the manager did. “It’s upsetting when human beings abuse animals like this. The cat cannot defend itself in this situation.”
Another resident, Giselle van der Merwe said the first thing she noticed when she arrived at the centre was the fact that the cat’s kennel was not there. “I asked the guards and they told me that the kennel is at the back; that cat belongs here at the parking lot and not at the back of the centre.”
Efforts to try and reason with the operations manager of the centre, Michael Davis, proved fruitless, according to Killian.
Killian says she approached the operations manager of the centre, Michael Davis but all she received in return was arrogance and ruthlessness from the manager.
“He told me that it is his centre and he can do what he wants to do with it,” explained Kilian. She also mentions that the manager told her that he does not care about the cat and it can go and eat at the back of the centre.
Click here to read the response from JHI.
