A plumber was left blushing after bringing a cat into his client’s house – only to discover it wasn’t actually his pet.
Scott Mckendry, 47, from Winchester, was called to work at Emma Pickering’s home in Hampshire earlier this year and was given strict instructions not to let her cat Bertie outside.
During the job, the plumber panicked when he realized he had accidentally left the front door open.
However, he was relieved when he saw a black cat wandering outside.
Hilarious footage from Emma’s doorbell shows how Scott slowly approached the cat shouting Bertie’s name.
Pictured: Plumber Scott Mckindry, 47, seen desperately trying to bring home a cat he believed belonged to his client.
He then quickly grabs the big black moggy and runs back to the house, only to find the door locked.
While struggling with the lock, the cat begins scratching and biting Scott, while the plumber desperately tries to calm him down.
Luckily, a neighbor witnessed Scott’s struggle and managed to open the door.
But when he goes to put the cat inside, the couple is shocked to see the real Bertie sitting at the bottom of the stairs and looking at them.
As he continues to fight the ‘double’, Scott shouts, ‘Oh no, that’s not Bertie!’
The couple then become hysterical and the plumber immediately releases the cat, who he later discovered was Alfie, from the street and “doesn’t like to be picked up at all.”
When Emma arrived home 10 minutes later, the cat’s 26-year-old owner was horrified to find Scott covered in scratches.
She explained: ‘Bertie was inside, lying face up on the floor. He is the calmest cat ever.
Pictured: Scott’s client Emma Pickering with her cat Bertie, who was sitting at the bottom of the stairs when the plumber finally opened the door with Alfie.
Emma said of her plumber: ‘Scott is a lovely person. I think it’s a true testament to his character. He could have easily let Alfie go, but she kept trying.
‘I handed Bertie to Scott once we knew what had happened and Bertie just froze in his arms. There was no way that cat was Bertie.
‘I’ve done a couple of double takes when I was in my kitchen and saw Alfie out and about. But Alfie is much bigger and Bertie has a bit of white on the front.
After Scott returned to work, Emma realized the fun moment would be caught on her Ring doorbell camera, prompting the plumber to share it on his Facebook business page.
Emma said: “I looked at the pictures and I can’t even explain how much I laughed.” She was almost on the ground.
‘My husband was exactly the same when he came home. We still find it a lot of fun.’
Discussing the differences between Bertie (left) and Alfie (right), Emma said: “Alfie is a lot bigger and Bertie has a bit of white on the front.”
After Scott returned to work, Emma Pickering (pictured) realized the fun moment would be caught on her Ring doorbell camera.
However, Emma says she wasn’t surprised at the lengths the plumber went to to “rescue” her cat.
Emma said: ‘Scott is a lovely person. I think it’s a true testament to his character. He could have easily let Alfie go, but he kept trying.
Scott said: ‘I did my best to protect Bertie. It’s early in my and the client’s relationships, so I really didn’t want to lose the cat.
Detailing his failed ‘refuge’, Scott said: ‘I had put my teeth through my upper arm. He was glued to me. He had scratches all over his head, scalp and all over his arm. He had bite marks on his arm.
Scott said he didn’t really want to be responsible for the loss of Emma’s cat since it’s “at the beginning” of their working relationship.
‘Luckily I had gloves on and it’s winter, so I put on a thick jumper. If it were summer I probably would have dropped the cat!
“Turns out, speaking to the actual owner, Alfie doesn’t like being picked up at all.”
Afterwards, Scott felt so bad about what happened that he asked Emma to check with Alfie’s owner to see if the cat was okay.
Scott added: “The impostor was absolutely fine and appears to suffer no ill effects from the entire experience.”