A SCOTTISH firm is selling “mini-me” cats to pet lovers across the globe.
Edinburgh-based sisters Ania and Marta Tajsiak have sold their tiny felt replicas of real cats as far afield as Germany and Australia.
Delighted cat owners have posted pictures of the £20 “mini-me” cats next to the real thing.
One Cattitude customer even had fur from their deceased pet stitched into the 5cm-high “Mini-Miaow”.
The thriving business marks a feline fightback after an Aberdeenshire knitter took the canine world by storm last year with her mini-me dogs.
Ania, 27, and Marta, 32, originally from Poland, receive pictures of their cat customers and pass them on to a craftsman in Northumberland who makes the models.
Ania said they started the business to raise money to set up a “cat cafe” – a place where humans and their feline friends can socialise together.
She said: “It’s pretty busy – people are really happy with the results. They really like the detail.
“Most of the orders are from Britain, and we’ve also had ones from Australia and Germany.
“We’ve had some unusual orders – we had one for a three-legged cat.
“We have some orders from people whose cats have died, and they wanted something to remember. One lady wanted to incorporate hair from her own cat who had passed away.”
She added: “People say the cats are really interested, but they don’t usually let them play with the Mini Meows as they could be ripped apart.”
Each model takes around 2-3 hours to produce, and is hand stitched using merino wool.
A fine needle is used to form different colours of wool into felt shapes according to the owner’s specifications.
The waiting time is currently 7-14 days, and many people send photographs of their cats with the finished products to the company’s Facebook page.
One customer, called Alana Richardson, wrote: “Just ordered 2, one of my old cat that I lost and my 18 month old cat. Can’t wait!”
Mel Roberston wrote: “Thank you for making my mini Trouble, looks the double of her.”
Last year, it emerged that knitter Gillian Brazier was doing a roaring trade and had requests from as far afield as America and Australia for her hand knitted mini pooches.
Mrs Brazier, from Aberdeenshire, creates the 6 inch pooches from photographs provided by the owners.
