Cat Sneaks Into Stranger's House Every Morning To 'Fix' Her Hair
“She has clearly chosen me as her person.”
Grey Cat seemed content living her life outside, on her own. She didn’t rely on anyone for anything — until someone new moved into the neighborhood. The stray then decided she’d become a part of that family and groom her humans as much as possible, as if to say, “Thank you for accepting me.”
“I say she is not my cat, but she has clearly chosen me as her person,” Jessica Heidelberg, Grey Cat’s new mom, told The Dodo. “She is very sweet and cuddly but does not like staying inside all the time, so I give her the freedom to choose.”
The former stray no longer visits the neighbors’ houses — and for a very specific reason.
“She clearly prefers to eat my hair,” Heidelberg said. “She also likes to lay, stand or nap on my chest. Sometimes she gently bites my face in affection. But she loves to ‘fix’ my hair any time I sit in my favorite chair.”
Cats groom for a variety of reasons, such as instincts they learned as kittens, to relieve stress or to “share” the family’s scent.
The near-daily grooming began a year ago when Heidelberg moved into the area.
“She just kinda showed up, very hungry and very friendly,” Heidelberg said. “Originally, I would feed her outside because she liked to bully my three spoiled cats and guard their food bowl from them.”
Heidelberg hadn’t thought much of it until her 6-year-old daughter regularly snuck the cat inside. The clever kitty became comfortable with the family, making it her home, too.
“Grey Cat dashes through any open door, immediately runs to hork down some food and then acts like she owns the house,” Heidelberg said.
Previously living outside means that Grey Cat isn’t content staying fully inside or outside. So, Heidelberg made a compromise.
“I let her in when it gets cold or rains, or just whenever she decides she needs a free meal,” she said. “I let her out when she’s had enough, or if she pleases. I allow her to nap, play hair stylist or play with my cats’ mouse toys, which they take for granted.”
Grey Cat now has the best of both worlds — and a new family.
“We just started calling her Grey Cat so I didn’t get attached,” she said. “But [Grey Cat] had other plans. This is her home now.”
