Click photo to enlarge
Essie (14), the sock thief, out and about in Musselburgh.
Photos by Peter McIntosh.
Little children who live in Rawhiti St, Musselburgh,
should be careful where they hang their Christmas stockings for
Santa Claus this year.
Chances are a dribbly old black cat called Essie might just
sneak in and drag them off; down the street to No 44.
That's where Essie, the sock burglar, lives with the Formston
family of Ian, Angela and their children Dan (23), Cam (17)
and Reuben (15).
Her nocturnal activities have presented the family with 14
socks in the past fortnight including, on one busy night,
several pairs.
Now the family have taken to pegging the stolen goods out on
their front fence for neighbours to reclaim.
"It's a bit of fun," says Ian, noting that where there were
14 socks and a gardening glove, only six socks and the glove
remain.
"People can come and pick up their socks but no-one's come to
get the big manky one."
Click photo to enlarge
A message left for those missing socks.
Midwife Angela noticed Essie's first attack of
kleptomania began when she was 4, just after she was spayed,
and that she is worse in spring.
Normally she would quietly dispose of the odd sock.
"I used to just turf them, but I can't this time, especially
when they've started becoming expensive pairs . . ." she
says.
The sign next to the socks begins: "No. You're not going mad.
Someone is stealing your socks . . ."
