A Givealittle page in honour of famous Wellington cat Mittens' brother Latte, who died last week, has raised more than $6000 for the SPCA in just five hours.
Mittens is a Turkish Angora who rose to fame wandering around Wellington CBD. There is a Facebook group dedicated to sightings of him and in 2020 he was nominated for New Zealander of the Year.
Mittens' dad Silvio Bruinsma shared the sad news of his brother Latte's death to the 'Wondrous adventures of Mittens' Facebook group on Saturday.
"We are devastated," he wrote.
"Latte had such an energy around our house being a homebody. He may not have lived the same public life as his brother but his impact on our family for over a decade was profound."
Bruinsma created the Givealittle page after Mittens' fans asked if they could contribute to a good cause on his late brother's behalf.
More than $6000 has been raised in one evening for Wellington SPCA who Bruinsma says do "wonderful work, looking after animals who don't have a loving family and community like Latte did".
In his post, Bruinsma reflected on a cat who was "very relatable for a lot of us who are comfortable at home".
The white, fluffy feline was "vocal" and loved demanding food.
He says Latte was "especially close" with his "young children" and "better half" and his death has been "hard for them to comprehend".
Bruinsma has requested people not ask what happened to Latte and to instead focus on his "best memories".
More than 200 cat-lovers have already donated to the SPCA in Latte's honour via the Givealittle page which can be found here.
