3-legged cat inspires Vancouver Island man with trio of tricks
Adam is cuddling with Mister Gibbles — a cat with three legs, who can do a trio of tricks.
“The saying says, ‘You can’t teach an old dog new tricks,’” Adam smiles. “It doesn’t have anything to do with cats.”
Mister Gibbles' routine begins with a fist-bump of sorts. Adam offers his fist and the cat returns the gesture by head-butting it.
“You show off,” Adam smiles, and rewards the cat with a treat.
Adam says the next trick begins when he wiggles two of his fingers.
“Then Mister Gibbles needs to give me one of those Lucky Cat Statue paws,” Adam says, demonstrating how his cat should wave, before a sound on the balcony above us interrupts him.
“That looks like Half-Beak.”
When I look up, I see a crow missing part of the top-half of his beak.
Adam says the bird visits him and Mister Gibbles daily.
“What Half-Beak has that none of the other crows has, is bravery,” Adam says, before adding that watching her courageously lead the other birds, despite her challenges, is inspiring.
“A beautiful bird,” Adam smiles at the crow. “Another survivor.”
“Another” because Adam and Mister Gibbles also receive regular visits from a mother deer missing the bottom of her back leg.
“Two of the little fawns will come up and start nursing. But (when they’re finishing) she can’t get away because she has no leg,” Adam smiles. “So she has to jump over them and it’s really cute.”
And it really gets one wondering — is it just a coincidence that so many animals with so many challenges are surrounding just one person?
“My idea of a higher power is serendipity,” Adam says. “Coincidence.”
Adam starts explaining his belief by revealing how he’d been struggling with his mental health and asked for help.
“I looked up and I said, ‘OK universe! Here’s your chance. Surprise me!'”
Adam says the animals started appearing after that, showing him how they were overcoming their adversity. But when I ask more about his story, a lawnmower across the street starts interrupting.
“The universe doesn’t want talk about pain today. The universe wants you to tell a happy story,” Adam says, before smiling. “We know there’s been hard times. But let’s laugh instead.”
Let’s return to Mister Gibbles.
“He’s never looked at me once and gone, 'I can’t do that; I’ve only got three legs,'” Adam laughs. “He wouldn’t do that.”
Instead, the cat performs his grand finale. Adam wiggles his fingers. Mister Gibbles waves his left paw, followed by his right. Adam beams with pride. And you realize the pet’s most impressive feat is how he fills his person with hope and positivity.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.