Top cat Tara miaows off Best Pet competition (From Swindon Advertiser)

Top cat Tara miaows off Best Pet competition

6:00pm Thursday 6th September 2012 in News By Scott D'Arcy

TARA the cat took winning the Adver’s ever popular Pet Of The Year competition in his stride as he fought off rivals, including horses, lizards and a ferret.

The winner was announced yesterday at Petshed, off Hay Lane, and owners Margaret and Sarah Moloney were overjoyed when they learned their Persian Chinchilla, one of four cats they had entered, won the annual prize – beating hundreds of other entries.

The six-year-old cat won £100 in vouchers for Petshed, this year’s competition sponsors, and 35-year-old Sarah said the cat would expect to be pampered.

“We gave him extra Dreamies, which are his favourites, after we found out,” said Sarah, of Kingshill.

“We didn’t think we would win it and we only entered again this year because the Adver were going to print all the pictures.

“We entered our four cats and we are so happy Tara won.

“It was a bit of a shock when we found out.

“He’s a really friendly cat and he can be a little scruffbag but he’s a cute little scruffbag.

“We got the neighbours and friends to vote for her and they are all happy we won too.

“He’s boy but we called him Tara because we took in a stray Persian Chinchilla ages ago and called her Tara, until the vet noticed four years later he was a boy too. When he died we got another and the name sort of stuck.”

Morag Blackburn, a nutritional adviser at Petshed, said: “The competition has been a big success and our congratulations to a worthy winner.

“This is the second year we have sponsored it and we wanted to be involved because we like to get to know our customers and their pets and I think they appreciate that.”

The Adver’s Louise Fernandes said she was pleased with the level of entries.

“We had a great response this year and everything from cats and dogs, to horses, lizards and horses,” she said.