Cat Plays Postman Leading To Pen Pal Fun Between Neighbors

By: Kelli Brinegar
For more than five years, Kelli Brinegar has been using her ability to write and her passion for research to tell the tale of what cats are thinking and why. She has provided care to more than 30 cats in her lifetime.Read more
| January 18, 2021

Who needs social media when you can have cat mail with purrsonalized service?

Not Zack King and his girlfriend Olga or their friendly neighbors!

Thanks to Zack and Olga’s cat Billy, they found an old-fashioned pen pal exchange without the help of anything electronic. All that was needed was some creativity, a few colorful pens, and four little paws that enjoy wandering.

And Billy certainly had the wandering paws part of the formula down with his regular neighborhood roaming. As Zack told the Dodo, his boy Billy is “inquisitive, feisty and confident.” All the things which make an intrepid adventurer!

“He loves to relax and when he sleeps, he sleeps. But usually, he’s in and out of his cat flap all day coming to say ‘hello’ before going off to play and explore again.”


@zacharyking/Twitter

His adventures may have been unknown to his humans, but one day, a curious attachment to Billy’s collar shed some light on one of the tuxedo cat’s destinations.

Contact Made

When Billy returned from his roundabouts one day, Olga noticed something on his collar. It was a note, wrapped in cling wrap. Channeling their cat’s curiosity, the couple opened the note and found greetings from a neighbor:

“Your cat likes to come visit us when he is outside. He will sit at the door and meow to be let in. It’s actually hilarious and we love him! We have no idea where he’s coming from. What’s his name? We call him Billy. From your friendly neighbors!”

Zack and Olga loved the discovery, sharing they had never thought to do such a thing, but the cat parents were “really pleased to receive such a cute note just to let us know that Billy likes to hang with other human friends and is well-liked.”


@zacharyking/Twitter

The couple penned a response right away and were delighted once more when another note arrived via Billy post. The neighbors dubbed Billy “a carrier pigeon but cuter,” and also assured the black and white cat received plenty of “chin scratches and love” whenever he visited.

Colorful Notes and Recipe Shares Via Cat Post

The contact didn’t end there though. With the country of England in lockdown, the two households found plenty of time for passing notes and Zack reported, “We’ve shared TV and Netflix recommendations, podcast suggestions and home cooking ideas.”

On Twitter, Jack shared pictures of the note exchange, along with his own personal thoughts urging folks to try wasabi mash and to remember “less is more with truffle oil.”


@zacharyking/Twitter

And Olga stepped up the notes with the addition of colorful pens!


@zacharyking/Twitter

Billy got so practiced in his deliveries, the neighbor even “sorted him out with a proper mailbag.”


@zacharyking/Twitter

The identity of their pen pal remains unknown, and Zack explained, “We have no idea who or where the neighbor is. We could ask for details but [there’s] no need — it’s nice to have some mystery sometimes.”

And what’s also nice is the experience of something positive in a year that’s been tough on the whole world. But, as Zack put it, Billy’s surprise role as post cat “was something unexpected, intriguing and very welcome indeed!”

We agree!

H/T: www.thedodo.com
Feature Image: @zacharyking/Twitter