Cat with finer taste treats pal to stolen steak

Nathan Fletcher said his cat Smudge and dog Charlie wasted no time polishing off the stolen rump steak

A cat owner has apologised and offered to replace a stolen dinner after his "naughty" pet came home with a full rump steak.

Nathan Fletcher, of Stanground, Peterborough, said he was left embarrassed after eight-year-old Smudge opted to forego a tin of cat food in favour of the succulent takeaway.

Mr Fletcher said Smudge - and his dog Charlie - together wasted no time on Sunday polishing off the stolen treat.

He and his partner Ellie have now launched an appeal to the rightful diner, saying: "If this was you and your evening was devoid of steak on account of our cat's naughtiness, we humbly apologise."

Nathan Fletcher says Smudge is now grounded

He added: "We raised her better than that, she has been grounded."

The post received hundreds of reactions within an hour of going live, with other cat owners sharing stories of their pets stealing toast, sausages from frying pans, and even a marinating rabbit.

Mr Fletcher, 31, an AA patrol man, said it was not the first time Smudge had been "naughty".

“When we lived in Ramsey a few years ago, there was The Old Factory shop - a homeware store," he said.

"Smudge would wait by the door until a customer opened it and would run in and sleep on the beds.

“The store manager had me on speed dial and eventually just got fed up."

He said Smudge emerged through the cat flap with the stolen meat and shared it with the dog.

"I didn’t get a chance to take a picture though," he said.

“I want to say sorry to whoever was devoid of their juicy, rump steak."