Man searching for his cat discovers retired neighbour without food for six days after fall The neighbour had fallen while upstairs and had been unable to get help

A man’s search for his cat led him to discover a neighbour who had not eaten for a week after having a fall in his house.

Matt Ware, 49, was forced to door to door in his area after his cat, Tigger, failed to return home for more than 24 hours.

On reaching the pensioner’s house, he saw no sign of Tigger – but heard cries for help coming from within the house.

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Mr Ware said: “On Tuesday night, quite late, I suddenly realised I hadn’t seen the cat for about 24 hours, which is unlike her.”

The next morning, he called in next door.

“I rang the doorbell, and that’s when I heard him call.

Six days

“He said he’d had a fall and couldn’t open the door. I asked him how long he’d been there and he said six days.

“I asked if he’d eaten and he said no.”

Mr Ware, who lives in the village of Brundall, Norfolk said he immediately phoned the police and ambulance service, who quickly arrived and forced their way into the house.

A spokesman for the East of England Ambulance Service confirmed they sent a crew to the address at 11.25am on Wednesday.

The man, in his 60s, was rushed to Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, where he is believed to be in a stable condition.

Mr Ware said: “I spoke to the police officer who said he was okay.

“He was upstairs. He had fallen and had not been able to get down. He had managed to get himself into the bathroom, which is how he got some water.”

Might not have made it

Mr Ware found Tigger a few hours later locked in a garage close to where he made the unexpected discovery.

He said: “But for the fact the cat went missing and I decided to go round to his house and knock on his door, he might not have made it.

“He doesn’t appear to have many visitors and I was the first person to have rung that door bell in six days.

“There’s a possibility he could have been there for a lot longer and it could have been a very different outcome.”

However, the married father-of-two said he was just pleased his neighbour got the help he needed, and said it was thanks to eight-year-old Tigger.

He added: “Did she have the sixth sense? It was her actions that led to me going round there.”