As you may or may not know, Ernest Hemingway (a fellow author) was a MAJOR cat lover. In 1935, when he was living and writing in a Spanish colonial house on an island in Key West, Florida, he was given a six-toed cat named Snowball. Ultimately, his island residence became the Ernest Hemingway Home & Museum, and all of Snowball’s descendants have been allowed to roam free on the property ever since.Around five years ago, some spoilsports at the U.S. Department of Agriculture tried to have the cats removed, saying that the museum lacked a property animal exhibition license and couldn’t qualify for one because the cats were not enclosed. Well, to make a long story short (notice how I slipped that literary reference in there), the museum finally reached an agreement with the government… and all of Snowball’s descendants, most of whom also have six toes, will be allowed to stay and roam the grounds to their kitty hearts’ delight.
I’m quite sure Ernest Hemingway and Snowball are smiling down from the Rainbow Bridge right now!
