Gary The Cat Review

I've never liked cats and so Gary The Cat wouldn't have been the sort of thing I'd have thought to buy, but Gary has been with us a week now and although we've not had chance to test all of the features, we've found he's been popular with pretty much the whole family.

Gary was delivered by means unknown, without so much as a note or delivery ticket, and as soon as he realised we were awake, screeched and scratched and cried at our door for an hour until we gave in, opened it and let him in.

Gary's behaviour was exceptionally friendly. He ingratiated himself with everyone immediately, purring and offering kisses and snuggles to anyone willing to get close enough. I was a bit dubious, I'm more your polite cat chat sort of person, but Gary did come with that option pre-installed.

Gary is particularly small, only weighing 2.7kg, and very fluffy. Almost spotlessly clean, and very hungry when he arrived. Google suggested Barracuda as an emergency cat food, but sadly I was all out and a bit of Cheddar had to suffice.

We wrongly assumed he was the brand new kitten variety of Gary, but a later visit to a vets confirmed he is probably a 2014 model. I like this. I've always found miniatures more appealing.

Gary is from the 'Tolerant Indoor' range, and has yet to show any annoyance. I'm very impressed. My 5 year old can be pretty full on, so this is definitely the best model for us to test out. He also refuses to go outside, thereby removing most of my cat concerns (early morning gifts, road safety, bringing friends home).

Playability is massive. So far we've mainly taken advantage of the lap-sleeping mode, which has enabled the whole family to spend time with Gary. Gary arrived pre-installed with 'under the laptop'. This is his favourite place in the world, and seems somewhat familiar to him. Once in position the 'snore' feature begins within a couple of minutes.

There are literally millions of accessories available both online and instore, and while these start at around 60p for a ball of string, they can mount up, so set a budget and stick to it. I think it's easy to get drawn in, who wouldn't want a 3-storey cat hotel, but shop around and there are bargains to be found.

It's possible to home-make accessories, but there is a bit of trial and error. We have moved on from the cardboard-fish-on-a-bit-of-string to the more complex feather-on-a-string, and for £1.25 I think it's probably worth the investment because play value is massively increased. We also invested in a plastic litter tray. Stationery box lids are great, but have limited lifespan and every wee is a gamble.

Overall I'd say Gary is value for money. So far he's cost us £12.50, but that should be good for another 7-8 days. Initial set up raises the average, but ongoing costs can be around 18p a day as standard. There is a risk of vet bills, but aside from regular booster vaccinations, these are unknown and hopefully won't be a regular feature.

Disclaimer: We were sent Gary The Cat. I'm still not a fan of cats, but yes, he can stay - unless we ever find out where on Earth he came from, and it's safe for him to return home.