Curious Lenny finds himself in a tight spot in Luton hotel

Curiosity didn't kill the cat in a Luton hotel last week thanks to an RSPCA officer who was on hand to rescue the puss from a rather tight spot.
Lenny between the doorsLenny between the doors
Lenny between the doors

The RSPCA was contacted by staff at Premier Inn on Wednesday morning (March 28) over concerns the cat was stuck between the two doors.

The charity’s animal collection officer (ACO) Kate Wright rushed to the scene to help the stricken puss.

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She said: “He had crawled into a narrow gap between the two automatic glass doors and plonked himself down.

LennyLenny
Lenny

“I’m not sure whether he was actually trapped or whether he was just trying to find someone safe to rest.

“He was soaking wet and freezing cold and had been trying to find somewhere warm and dry to curl up - unfortunately he chose a rather hazardous spot!”

ACO Wright managed to carefully pull the cat out of the gap and took him to the vets for a check-up. He had scuffed claws and some cuts on his chin so was kept in overnight for observation.

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The unneutered Tom cat - grey and white in colour - has been nicknamed Lenny by RSPCA staff.

LennyLenny
Lenny

“It’s not clear whether he’s a stray or a lost pet and, unfortunately, he isn’t microchipped so I’ve put up posters in the area to see if we can find an owner for him,” ACO Wright added.

“He’s a lovely cat and, thankfully, appears to be in fairly good health.

“We believe he was trying to get into buildings in the area in the hunt for somewhere warm and dry.

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Premier Inn assistant operations manager Phoebe Nyatsambo was on the morning shift when she spotted the small cat.

Phoebe, who has worked for Premier Inn for seven years, has welcomed hundreds of thousands of guests from all over the world but this was a first.

She said: “I was on the morning shift at front desk getting ready for guests to start filing down to breakfast when I spotted a small cat outside the sliding doors. It was raining quite heavily and he looked a bit cold and wet, huddling to take shelter in the covered area outside.

“I’m a big cat lover – I grew up with lots of cats around me so I wanted to help as it struck me he looked lost. I went to look up the RSPCA number to get their help but when I went back outside the little cat had managed to get wedged in between the glass doors which was quite a surprise.

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“Immediately, I went to take a closer look and thankfully I could clearly see that while the cat was in a bit of a pickle, there was plenty of room for him to move and he wasn’t in too much distress.

“The little cat became the star of the hotel – all the customers were commenting on him, joking he must have wanted to check in and curl up on one of our warm beds, but we were just so glad he was doing okay.

“Thankfully, the RSPCA were able to send someone down and they did a wonderful job of getting the cat out quickly. He is a beautiful little creature and I hope he finds a really lovely new home.

“It’s certainly been the talk of the hotel – we welcome hundreds of thousands of visitors from all over the world and you think you’ve seen everything but this is definitely a first for us. We want to say a massive thank you to the RSPCA – they were absolute superstars.”

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Lenny is now in private boarding while the RSPCA waits for a space at a rescue centre to open up. If no-one comes forward to claim him as their own then he will be rehomed by centre staff.

To help the RSPCA continue rescuing, rehabilitating and rehoming cats like Lenny please donate by visiting www.rspca.org.uk/give.