Susan Finden - Casper the Commuting Cat - The True Story of the Cat Who Rode the Bus and Stole Our Hearts

Casper was an extraordinary cat, while at the same time he was a very ordinary one. His adventures made people smile, and they were a novelty, but they were also not so far-fetched that others couldn’t imagine their own cats getting up to similar naughtiness. This, I believe, was Casper’s charm. Everyone could love him, and everyone could remember their own cats – past or present – getting up to all sorts just like him.

As I settled into the new house in Poole Park Road, all of this was ahead of me – and him. I had no way of knowing that bringing Casper to Plymouth was going to be a match made in heaven and that Plymouth would take Casper to its heart. I unpacked boxes, kept an eye on the cats, met new neighbours and had no idea what was around the corner.

I managed to get a job working in a nursing home with elderly people. I still couldn’t drive but luckily there was a bus stop directly opposite our new house. I noticed that Casper was all too keen on crossing the busy road, but there was only so much I could do about it. If I had a day off, I would try to keep an eye on him and make sure he was close to me, but on the days I worked, he was left to his own devices. Given that I was never able to keep him in against his wishes, there wasn’t much I could do to force him to stay indoors all day, but I did usually try to get him in before I left.

I’ve always kept up a running commentary with my cats and I would give Casper rules every day in the hope that he might finally pay attention to them. Now, Cassie,’ I would chide, ‘that’s a very busy road out there and it’s also very new to you. I don’t want you going out there at all, but I know that you’re going to ignore me, so I hope that at least you’ll try to be safe. Look out for traffic, and only go across when it’s all quiet.’

He always had a way of looking at me as if I were quite ridiculous – not to be talking to a cat, but to be considering that he might follow my instructions. He was a cat of leisure and a cat who wandered where he pleased. Why on earth would he be restricted because that was my preference? Still, I persevered with my words of warning in the hope that one day he would take pity on me and do as he was told.

One day in the summer of 2009, I was running a little late. Things had taken longer than usual that morning and everything had resulted in me being in rather a hurry. I gathered my things together and prepared to rush off to work. I knew that my bus was due, but I couldn’t get Casper indoors. ‘Casper! Casper!’ I shouted outside, knowing full well that he was darting under bushes and shrubs every time I looked for him ‘Come here, now!’ I was getting more and more desperate for him to come in, as I was worried that, should he see me leave, he would follow me.

It was no use. He wasn’t going to come indoors and I was going to have to leave him outside for the day. The clock was ticking and I would miss my bus at this rate. Indeed, as I closed the front door behind me, I could see the bus I needed coming up the hill towards the stop – but I could also see Casper with his beady little eyes on me. It was a constant mystery to me how he could keep himself hidden until it was too late for me to take him back in, and he’d done it yet again. I was torn, but knew that I had to decide between going for him (and watching as he no doubt managed to evade me yet again), missing my bus and being late for work or heading off. I chose the latter. Casper watched me closely as I ran across the road.

I jumped onto the bus that had just arrived and breathlessly said to the driver, ‘Can you go quickly, please?’

‘Why, what’s wrong?’ he asked.

‘I’m a bit worried about my cat,’ I told him ‘He’s a terrible one for crossing roads and I can see him watching me. It would be a nightmare if he came over here while I was getting on the bus.’

‘Is that right?’ he smiled.

‘Yes,’ I answered, ‘so, please, do hurry.’

With those words, I sat in the seat behind the driver but on the other side. It was very close to him and I could see him clearly. He didn’t seem in any rush to leave, despite what I’d told him, and he was still smiling. I couldn’t quite believe what he said to me next, as I looked anxiously out of the window for Casper.

‘The only thing you’ve got to worry about,’ he laughed, ‘is that you’re sitting in his seat!’

He must be joking, I thought.

‘What? You’re having a laugh, aren’t you?’ I asked.

‘No,’ he replied, although he was still grinning. ‘You live across the road there?’ I nodded. ‘You’ve got a fluffy black and white cat?’ I nodded again. ‘Well, I’ve got news for you – he likes buses, and he particularly likes that seat you’re in, as that’s where he naps pretty much every day when he goes on his jaunt!’

I had to get this straight.

‘My cat – my Casper – comes on the bus? He jumps up onto a seat? He lies there, asleep, while you drive around? And I knew nothing about this?’

‘No, not really . . .’ he said, as I waited for the punchline. ‘He isn’t always asleep – sometimes he looks out the windows, sometimes he sits on a lap or two, sometimes he sits up the back.’

‘And what do the other passengers say?’ I asked.

‘They accept it. Why wouldn’t they? He’s no bother – he’s a lot easier than some of the people I get on this bus,’ he chuckled. ‘Never pays his fare though!’

I still thought he was having me on. I’d know if my cat was travelling on the bus – wouldn’t I?

I spent the rest of the journey to work in a bit of a spin. I was torn between thinking this was just a joke but also knowing that Casper did like vehicles, he did cross the road a lot and he did disappear for hours on end. Could this possibly be true? Was my cat really a day-tripper?

My head was full of what the driver had told me, and I had no idea what to do. By the end of my shift, I had a clearer idea, but how was I to know what I was about to unleash?

CHAPTER 13

Casper the Travelling Cat

I went to work but spent the rest of the day in a real state. The bus driver had seemed genuine. If he’d been spinning me a tale, I don’t think he would have kept it going. Surely, once he thought I’d fallen for it, he would have let me in on the joke and admitted he was messing about? He didn’t seem to have any malice in him; he appeared simply to be passing on some information that I didn’t know I didn’t mention it to anyone at work, and decided to wait until Chris called that evening to try to figure out what was going on.

When he rang from his stopoff point, my words sounded bizarre even to me. I told him what the driver had said and asked him what I should do. ‘Well, do you believe him?’ he questioned. ‘Do you think Casper is getting on the bus, just as he says?’

That was the odd thing: the more I thought about it, the more I could see it was plausible. ‘I think he might be doing exactly that,’ I confessed. ‘He’s always crossing that road and I’ve seen him hanging about the shelter. He disappears for hours on end, and despite me trying to call him back or dangle turkey roll, he never appears. Then, all of a sudden, there he is. Chris, I think the driver might be telling the truth.’

Saying the words made it seem much more real. As I thought it all through and verbalized it to Chris, I could see, in my mind’s eye, Casper getting on the bus, sitting there, napping and coming home when he felt like it. When I finished talking to Chris, I looked at Casper lying on the sofa, watching me with one eye open. ‘Is that what you’re really up to, Cassie?’ I asked him ‘Are you leading a double life? I don’t suppose I’ll ever know,’ I concluded.