Humane Society cat could stand in for Morris the Cat

Robert isn’t your average 5-year-old stray cat.

For one thing, he’s an orange cat who makes his home at the Mower County Humane Society. For another, he is a Morris the Cat look-alike.

Morris is a decades-old celebrity mascot for 9Lives cat food. The original Morris made his debut in Robert Altman’s “The Long Goodbye” as a cat who disappeared when main character Philip Marlowe doesn’t give him the food he likes.

Since then, Morris has been known as the “world’s most finicky cat,” since he only eats 9Lives food. The current Morris is owned by Rose Ordile, who runs Animals of a Different Color LLC, the animal grooming and coloring business responsible for plenty of animals seen in commercials and movies. Ordile’s work can be seen in movies like “Little Nicky,” “Meet the Fockers,” “The Princess Diaries,” “Memoirs of a Geisha” and more.

Ordile contacted MCHS last week asking about Robert, as he could be made into a Morris look-alike for nursing home visits and possibly even a few commercials, according to MCHS volunteer Kelly Rush.

There’s no word yet from Ordile, but Rush and other volunteers aren’t sure of Robert’s chances, given his medical history. Robert was found one wintry morning in 2009 after spending the night with his nose frozen to the glass front door of Echo Lanes Bowling Alley.

Robert’s nasal cavities are scarred, according to Rush, and he has had several surgeries to repair his nose and remove some teeth. Robert is pretty normal otherwise, but he has the occasional sneezing and snotty nose flare-up.

“I was very honest with her,” Rush said. “The doctor said he’ll most likely have flare-ups for the rest of his life.”

That doesn’t necessarily mean Robert is out of the running, but there’s been no word from Ordile since.

A new home for Morris?

Robert is one of many cats who have made the Humane Society their home for a year or longer. The humane society has adopted out six cats this month, which is about average for this time of the year. The humane society is looking to raise funds for a new, expanded shelter but has yet to announce an official campaign. Volunteers are meeting to figure out what the building would look like and have raised more than $150,000 in funding, along with donated land outside the city limits.