Lovelorn cat's mating calls lead to owners 'being hounded out of village by angry neighbours'

The owners of a lovelorn show cat are being forced to move home after neighbours complained about his noisy howling – as he desperately calls for a mate. Rio, a £900 Burmese stud, started whining loudly last summer when he reached sexual maturity. His neighbours have complained to the local environmental health department and made comments in the local parish magazine in Manaton, Devon.

Now his owners John Beale, 51, and wife Theresa, 44, have decided to sell up and move after "losing faith" in the local community. Mr Beale, a professional cat breeder for 24 years, said: "He was overcome with hormones when he hit sexual maturity and started shouting for girls. He's just advertising his presence to the ladies. What we're annoyed about is the manner in which the complaints were done. Nobody came to us and complained personally. All complaints are made anonymously through either environmental health or the planning departments."


Photo from SWNS.

Rio, which is short for Lothario, won best in show for adult Burmese at the West of England Show last June. But the pet, now aged 18 months, started making a noise last August when he was 11 months old. Mr Beale made a complaint to Teignbridge District Council over comments made in the parish magazine about Rio. He believes that some villagers are whispering behind his back and he has no choice but to leave. "We don't know who's making the complaints," he said.

"We feel we've lost faith in our local community so we feel we'd rather move away and start somewhere else." The couple have now put Rio "on loan" until he and his wife have found a new home and settled in, at which point they will be reunited. "We have suffered a great deal of stress over this recently." Councillor Julian Tope of Manaton Parish Council insisted that the complaints had not originated from any parish council members. He said: "As far as I am concerned, the matter is closed."