Taxi Driver Online

UNFARE EXCHANGE - A CAT FOR A CAB FARE

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HERALD REPORTER

12:00 - 12 August 2005
This lonely cat is looking for a new home after being abandoned by its owner - in the back of a taxi. Cabbie Ken West was taking eight-year-old moggy Socks and her owner on a two-mile trip when the man asked if he could stop to 'pick something up'.

But when he had not returned 45 minutes later, Ken realised Socks had been traded for the £10 fare.

Ken, 62, said: "I couldn't believe it. I have been a cabbie for 35 years and had people use all sorts of excuses to get out of a fare. But I've never seen someone try to pay with a cat.

'"Normally I don't let animals in my cab but this cat seemed like a nice little one. I quite took to her.

''He told me he had to pop into an address en route. But after half an hour he hadn't returned and the cat just sat quietly on the back seat."

Ken, who lives with his wife Sheila in Plymouth, picked the pair up from a phone box in the city's Devonport district and took them two miles across the city to the Stonehouse area.

He chatted with the customer as Socks sat purring on the back seat, before making the unscheduled stop.

But as the meter ticked on and the man still hadn't returned - Ken realised he had been duped.

He said: "The poor cat was just sitting looking at me from the back seat. She looked as if she would pay the fare if she could."

Kind Ken took Socks to his local RSPCA centre, and she was transferred to nearby Elm Cottage Veterinary Surgery for a check-up.

RSPCA Officer Jackie Mayling said: "The cat was fit and healthy and even had a name tag on it. It had obviously been well cared for.

"Hundreds of cats are abandoned every week. People usually just drive them somewhere and leave them but this is the first time I have heard of a cat being used as a fare.

"Once Socks has been checked over we will re-house her as soon as possible."

Vet John Parkinson, who treated Socks, said she was in good condition and is a 'very happy and friendly cat'

Anyone who could offer Socks a home should call the RSPCA helpline on 08705 555 999.