Scottish Independent Media

By Claire Elliot

A FRIENDLY farm cat stunned his owners when he struck up the unlikeliest of friendships - with a mouse.
 

The tiny rodent would have provided a tasty snack for most prowling moggies.
 

But friendly feline Tails put his natural instinct to kill aside when he encountered the wild field mouse at his home near Spey Bay, Moray.
 

Instead he let it clamber all over him, before the unlikely pair settled down to sleep.

Owner Sandra Gordon, 38, was amazed by the Tom and Jerry-like moment.
 

She said: "I couldn’t believe it.
 

"He’s a farm cat so it’s quite common for them to bring in mice or even rabbits - but not to cuddle up to.
 

"Tails is usually a lazy cat - but that was a big surprise. He’s a big softy."
 

Her daughters Kim, eight, and Katie, five, were also amazed by their cat’s antics, which the family managed to photograph, before releasing the mouse safely back into the wild.

The rodent had initially been brought into the house by the family’s other pet cat Duke.
 

But he got bored of playing with his prey, which managed to escape unscathed into a corner.
 

Mrs Gordon, a school dinner lady, said: "When my husband, Ross, came in from the garage he noticed that Duke was asleep and the mouse was curled up in a corner. He picked up the mouse and said I’ll give it to a real cat.

 "He put it on Tails’ head and he wasn’t a bit bothered.

 "They just cuddled up and went to sleep together."
 

The photographs clearly show the relaxed moggy happily allowing his new friend to climb all over him at no peril to its life.
 

Mrs Gordon said: "A lot of people have looked at the photos and they can’t believe it."