We Are Famous
Cat accurately predicts deaths of nursing home residents
Oscar, a hospice cat at the Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Providence, R.I., walks past an activity room at the facility earlier this week.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Oscar the cat seems to have an uncanny knack for predicting when nursing home patients are going to die, by curling up next to them during their final
hours.
His accuracy, observed in 25 cases, has led the staff to call family members once he has chosen someone. It usually means they have less than four hours to live.
"He doesn't make too many mistakes. He seems to understand when patients are about to die," said Dr. David Dosa in an interview. He describes the phenomenon in a poignant
essay in Thursday's issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
"Many family members take some solace from it. They appreciate the companionship that the cat provides for their dying loved one," said Dosa, a geriatrician and assistant professor of medicine at Brown University.
The 2-year-old feline was adopted as a kitten and grew up in a third-floor dementia unit at the Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. The facility treats people with Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease and other illnesses.
After about six months, the staff noticed Oscar would make his own rounds, just like the doctors and nurses. He'd sniff and observe patients, then sit beside people who would wind up dying in a few hours.
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Morris
The most famous cat in America, was a fourteen pound orange tabby charmer who was rescued from a Chicago animal shelter, by Bob Martwick, a professional animal trainer. Morris became spokes-cat for Purina’s 9 Lives cat food in 1969, and eventually became honorary director of Star-Kist Foods, with veto power over any cat food flavor he didn’t like. President Nixon invited Morris to co-sign (with a paw-print) the National Animal Protection Bill. Up until the time he died in 1978, Morris lived with Bob in a Chicago dog kennel where there was never any question who was top cat.
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Garfield
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Fritz the Cat - (from Lambiek.Net)
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Socks
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Tom - (from Tom and Jerry Online)
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