Tommaso, a 4-year-old black cat in Rome who was formerly a stray is now living the good life after inheriting $13 million. Not a bad way to join the ranks of the 1% group.

Tommaso’s owner Maria Assunta, widow to a property tycoon died two weeks ago at the age of 94 and had no living relatives.

The $13 million includes both cash and property located in Rome, Milan and Calabria.

Italian law forbids pets from inheriting cash and property so everything will be handed over to Assunta’s former nurse who lives with Tommaso in an undisclosed location.

It’s still unclear why Tommaso’s owner chose to give her entire estate to her cat when so many charities could use the money to feed the hungry, protect tens of thousands of animals or perform needed medical research.

Sadly this isn’t the first time we’ve seen money tied up in a single animal, Leona Helmsley left her dog $12 million and Oprah Winfrey reportedly has her dogs written into her will to the tune of $30 million. Heck even Michael Jackson left Bubbles the Chimp $1 million.

In the meantime we don’t expect to see Tommaso the cat joining the 99% in any Occupy Wall Street protests in the near future.

Do you think it’s absolutely insane to leave $13 million to a cat? Now if it was a dog that would be an entirely different story.

Cat Inherits $13 Million, Joins The One Percent is a post from: The Inquisitr

How lucky can a cat get? Very lucky, if you are Tommaso, the 4-year old stray cat that was rescued wandering from the streets of Rome.

If being rescued alone is luck enough for this cat, how about having Maria Assunta as your new owner. Assunta only happens to be the wealthy widow of an Italian property tycoon.

Okay, let’s put this a notch higher. How about getting $13 million in inheritance from Maria Assunta after your beloved owner died two weeks ago. Yes, $13 million made of cash and properties in Rome, Milan and Calabria. And you’re just a cat who used to wander the streets of Rome.

Assunta initially wanted to leave her riches to an animal welfare association or group that would commit itself to taking care of Tommaso. She was not able to find any association that would satisfy her, so she decided to leave all her riches to the cat.

There is actually another lucky individual in this story. You see, the riches were left to the cat via Assunta’s nurse Stefania. Lawyers of Assunta convinced her that the nurse is in the best position to take care of the cat.

“I promised her that I would look after the cat when she was no longer around. She wanted to be sure that Tommaso would be loved and cuddled. But I never imagined that she had this sort of wealth. She was very discreet and quiet. I knew very little of her private life. She only told me that she had suffered from loneliness a lot.”

Stefania and Tommaso are now living outside Rome. The nurse’s last name was not released for obvious reasons that… more cats might come forward asking for help?

Cat Inherits $13 Million From Millionaire; Nurse is Lucky Caretaker is a post from: The Inquisitr

The Milwaukee Animal Rescue Center has been close to the brink of shutting down for a while now but the organization may just be saved by an unlikely source, a 26-toed orange-and-white tabby cat named Daniel.

After hearing about the awesome cat and his 26 toes people from around the country have been flooding the non-profit with $26 donations to help keep the agency humming along.

The agency was recently hit with a double rent increase and needed money so they could relocate to a new facility or face going bankrupt.

Typically born with 18 toes Daniel was born with two extra extremities on each paw, just two short of beating the Guinness world record.

Thanks to Daniel’s awesomely bizarre feet the agency has raised almost $50,000.

When asked about his ability to lead a normal life the shelter’s owner noted:

“He runs and he plays and he climbs,” and “He seems to be not bothered by it at all.”

What do you think of Daniel the 26-toed tabby?

26-Toed Cat Helps Save Animal Shelter is a post from: The Inquisitr

…wants a piece of your hard-earned cheeseburger pie…

Commie cat… is a post from: The Inquisitr

I’ve known some pretty gutsy cats in my time but nothing comes close to this feline that puts a couple of alligators in their place.

Cat: 1 – Alligators: 0 [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

thanks to @karoli on Twitter for this little gem

iPads are so easy to use even cats get it is a post from: The Inquisitr

Ever seen a cat climb a vertical wall? neither had I until I saw this video.

Dubbed “spider cat” by the UK media, Charlie the cat climbs a two story wall. “If no one hears him miaowing to come in at the front door, Charlie just wanders round to the back and climbs up to the balcony to get in that way” said the cat’s owner.

Not sure what else I can say other than this isn’t something you see every day.

Spider cat can climb walls is a post from: The Inquisitr

I would have done the same…

Cat’s bitter disappointment after sneaking up on a pigeon is a post from: The Inquisitr

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No it’s a cat called Voodoo falling from his 34th floor Australian penthouse apartment balcony and walking away with barely a scratch. One life down, eight to go.

Voodoo’s owner Sheree Washington said Voodoo liked to live life on the edge. He often balanced right on the edge of the balcony.

Voodoo’s owners first noticed Voodoo was missing after they had finished dinner. They searched for him for several hours but couldn’t find him. Yesterday morning, they trekked down to the ground floor expecting to find the remains of Voodoo splattered all over the side walk. The Manx cat was expected to be manky. A flat cat, you get the idea.

Instead, they found Voodoo with nothing more than a few scratches having fallen the 34 floors. There was a cat shaped indent in a bush which Voodoo had fallen on undoubtedly cushioning the cat’s fall.

Voodoo, in what his owners believe is a Christmas miracle limped away from the incident with a bloodshot eye, a scratched ear, a cut mouth and a damaged paw.

Mrs Washington said the vet told her the record for known survival from a fall was a cat which fell 64 floors in New York. Its commonly believed that the more times cats have to adjust themselves in a fall the more likely they are to survive, which is why cats tend to be injured when falling form lower floors.

So did he fall or fellow conspiracy theorists was he pushed? The mice did it.

No word on whether Voodoo is going after the 64 floor world record.

Voodoo the Cat: falls 34 stories and lives is a post from: The Inquisitr

Millions of animals are abandoned in America each year, and sadly many of them never find new homes. Chicago cat Bubba was one of the lucky ones, but time on the streets can be traumatic.

Bubba has trust issues. Although he bonded with his new owners, after a leg amputation and being put on a special diet due to food allergies, but he doesn’t trust strangers, hiding or hissing at anyone who came along.

Bubba’s new owners turned to an animal behaviorist, who recommended training and behavioral techniques, but to no avail. Desperate, Bubba’s owners looked for help, and they turned to a pet psychic, and this was the result

Through speaking to Bubba telepathically, the psychic determined that Bubba is so shy because HE is really a SHE. Bubba is transgendered. Bubba suffers from low self-image and has been mentally distraught because she has been forced to live in a male cat body for so long.

Now Bubba’s owners need your help and are looking for donations to raise money to enable Bubba to continue his therapy sessions with the pet psychic, and to raise funds for Bubba’s upcoming gender reassignment surgery.

If you feel inclined to give, the page with all the details, including donation button is here

Save Bubba, the transgendered cat is a post from: The Inquisitr