Why Trump and every cat-hater need Sparkles in their lives

April 9, 2026 — 11:30am

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I don’t much like cats.

I have told myself this for more years than I’d care to count.

Always been happier around dogs. Dogs are loyal, full of character and, if trained properly, are particularly useful around sheep and cattle, if you happen to have a farm.

But cats. They’re loyal only as long as you keep feeding them, and they’re a menace to birds and small native creatures. They’re useful, I was long convinced, only if there’s a mouse problem.

But then came Sparkles, the homeless ragdoll.

She wandered our street with such haughty elegance, it was quite a while before we realised she was an actual street cat.

She was fond of sprawling on the bonnets of parked cars, choosing vehicles that had been driven recently. It meant the bonnet was nice and warm.

She’d close her eyes and give every impression of taking a lazy, contented snooze. From such a handy throne, she opened an eye as you walked past, apparently decided you were beneath her regal interest and resumed dozing.

She never came to the door yowling and begging to be fed.

Someone, we figured, must be feeding her, and therefore, she must have a home.

Hotels are increasingly welcoming pets – as long as it’s not a cat

But then we discovered she crept under our house each night, and sought shelter there when it........

© Brisbane Times