Community Says Farewell To Beloved Tiger The Cat, The Mayor Of 6th Avenue And 11th Street

If walking by the corner of 6th Avenue and 11th Street is a regular part of your day, you are aware that something has gone missing. The pavement, the homes, the businesses, and the passing traffic all remain. But one vital part of the neighborhood has left us: Tiger the cat.

Tiger was put to sleep on Thursday, October 1 after his health deteriorated to the point that he was in great pain. He had been diagnosed with both Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) and lymphoma earlier this year. His kidneys were also failing him.

Since then, the community has put together a memorial created by neighbors, children in the area, and passersby.

Neighbor Tracey McNeil is one of the neighbors that took care of Tiger. “No one knows where Tiger came from or when exactly he came to us. Some suspect it may have been around 2010 that he first appeared on 11th Street.”

Since then, Tiger the cat has been taken care of by a series of neighbors. While some of those people have died since Tiger’s arrival, other neighbors would step in to take care of him.

Although McNeil took a significant role in feeding and caring for Tiger, she explains that, “Tiger did not belong to me. He did not belong to anyone. Or rather, he did. Tiger belonged to everyone.”

McNeil tells us about how the relationship between Tiger and the neighborhood began. “A retired postal worker named Danny, who has since passed, used to feed him and convinced my former landlord, the late Gino Parez, to build Tiger his home on 6th Avenue (between 11th and 12th streets).” explains McNeil. It was Gino who gave him his name, Tiger. Together, Danny and Gino would feed Tiger, along with others in the neighborhood.”

“Tiger’s favorite spot to reside was on top of his perch on the corner of 11th Street and 6th Ave[nue]. He would often be found there in the mornings watching everyone on their way to work or walking their dogs, eager to receive chin scratches or pets upon the head,” says McNeil. “He was a very friendly cat, except when it came to dogs. Tiger did not like dogs. Dogs walking by him would have to walk around Tiger. Tiger would stand in the middle of the sidewalk and arch his back, ready to guard his turf.”

In addition to the neighbors, various writers at South Slopes News (this writer included) and neighbors would often take photos of Tiger the cat. He was one of the most commonly used photos of the day that we post on our site.

Neighbor Danielle West tells us, “I have to say, one of my favorite things about having Tiger around was hearing the little kids in the neighborhood ask if he was there and if they could see him. I know he will be missed by many.”

Tiger was known to be an outdoors cat who rarely ventured inside. This challenged neighbors to come up with methods in order to keep him comfortable. “Tiger survived many brutal New York winters and Superstorm Sandy and refused to go inside,” explains McNeil.  “Every winter, Gino and his sons would work hard to ‘winterize’ Tiger’s home. This meant installing siding all around the outside of the home and wrapping it with a tarp and holding it down with cinder blocks. It was a very laborious process that Gino insisted be done so that Tiger was kept warm and protected from the elements.”

When the building was sold that housed Tiger’s home, McNeil wanted to make sure Tiger would continue to be safe. McNeil explains that she created a Facebook page for Tiger, “because I feared that the new landlord may not let him keep his home. The page also helped a concerned neighbor, Michael Hearst and I to raise over $1,500 in less than a week for Tiger’s veterinary care. Money leftover will be donated to Sean Casey Animal Rescue and also put towards a commemorative plaque for Tiger.”

McNeil took some time to reflect on one of her last memories of Tiger:

“One of my favorite memories of Tiger is of recent. It was the night of the Super Moon. Last Sunday, I was coming home in the evening and wanted to make sure Tiger was fed and check to see how he was doing. I didn’t see him in any of his usual spots on 6th Avenue, so I walked up 11th Street calling his name. Finally, when I got about halfway up the block, I saw him come running down the sidewalk towards me. He stopped when he got to me. I pet him and then together we walked home. As I crossed the street, he followed by my side and continued walking toward our home. A neighbor saw us and said, ‘You have restored my faith in humanity.'”

Tiger’s passing calls attention to something more than this animal’s life. It’s about what makes a neighborhood important, and how our communities are threaded together.

And on behalf of the entire community, we say rest in peace, Tiger.