Vladimir, Poet, Philosopher and Mathematician, resides in a cottage close to a creek in Melbourne Australia, sharing the facilities with his loyal can-opener, Nanna Duffy.

He is a domestic short hair, fully black with a distinguished sprinkle of silver, 18 years old and in prime condition although prone to occasional frequent bouts of yech breath.

Vladimir has an extensive background in making his views known. Call him forthright, call him opinionated, call him anything you wish but never call him late for dinner. These days he doesn’t travel more than a room or so away from the food bowl anyhow. In Old Cat Gossip, he presents advice and homilies straight from the moggy’s mouth.

Vladimir also writes at squidoo and you can peruse his autobiographical jottings at Vladimir’s Catography.

Vladimir suffered a severe trauma in 1994 which left him a lasting legacy in the presence of a steel pin in the back leg. On damp mornings he will not be moved from his dangerous position on top of the gas heater despite numerous pleas and the judicious placement of hot water bottles and heat pads in his basket.

When his good friend Joe, a fat and friendly tabby, crossed the Rainbow Bridge in January of 2008, Vlad courageously doubled the workload of cat care so that Nanna didn’t notice the absence.

Vlad almost crossed that Rainbow Bridge himself in the first month of 2009 when he engaged in ferocious battle with a tiger snake. After 21 days in the Veterinary Hospital, three of those days in Intensive Care, Vlad returned in triumph to his demesne. The snake died.

If Nanna had realised how close the old boy was to carking it, she would have let Vladimir slip quietly away to join his friend, the fat Joe, but – ah well – you can’t change history now.

Vladimir is still napping happily in the cottage by the creek and totally unaware that the woman will be paying the vet bill for the next six years.