It is not surprising that in the Western culture, animals are treated with dignity and respect (as they should be) than in African culture, and this ca be said in the case of the late fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld, as it has emerged that he has left some of his $200 million (Sh20b) fortune to his cat.
The German designer, who was the creative director for Chanel and Fendi, died in Paris on Tuesday.
The designer became a devoted cat owner and lavished attention on his pet after Choupette was given to him in 2012.
Lagerfeld told French magazine Numero last year that he had named the birman cat as one of the heirs of his estate.
In the interview, he said Choupette was in his will, “among others”. But he added: “Don’t worry, there is enough for everyone.”
Choupette already has a substantial fortune to her name, having earned $3m (Sh300m) doing adverts for a German car firm and a Japanese cosmetics brand with Lagerfeld.
In a separate interview with Numero, Lagerfeld revealed he employed two maids to look after the pampered animal who, he said, has “four different dishes prepared for her” each day “served in fabulous bowls”.
He also made Choupette a social media sensation, with her own Twitter and Instagram accounts that have a combined following of about 200,000.
A tribute to the designer was posted on the cat’s Twitter account on Tuesday.
She is also the hero of a book, Choupette: The Private Life of a High-Flying Fashion Cat, for which she was photographed in arms of supermodel Linda Evangalista and snuggling with the model and actress Laetitia Casta.
The book includes recipes for her favourite meals prepared by some of the best restaurants in Paris.One typically lavish meal is a mixture of king crab, smoked salmon and caviar.
Choupette’s help was sometimes sought by those trying to persuade Lagerfeld to adopt their ideas.French actress and animal rights activist Brigitte Bardot wrote her a letter in 2015 asking her to “purr in the ear” of her owner so he would “stop using fur in his collections”.
Chanel duly became the first major fashion house to go fur-free.