A man killed himself after being overwhelmed by grief when his cat died, an inquest has heard.
Michael McAleese, 44, slept with the body of tortoiseshell Sophie for three days after she had a stroke and passed away in his arms.
He also posted a moving video tribute to the 13-year-old pet online. He wrote: �This is in her memory. She was such a wonderful little cat.
�This is a montage tribute to my beloved Sophie cat. I loved her so much and still do.�
Michael�s body was found eight days later at his home in Poole, Dorset.
His sister told Bournemouth Coroner's Court how he threatened to end it all.
Juliet Willmore said: �He even told the man who came to cremate the cat that he was going to kill himself.�
Toxicology tests showed he had normal levels of a sedative in his body and pathologist Dr Sherie Haider could not confirm the cause of death.
Sophie had belonged to his landlady, Adriana van Dijk, who gifted her to him after he grew to love her.
She told the hearing: �As soon as Michael saw Sophie he seemed to fall in love with her.
�I was away a lot so he looked after her. She had the sweetest nature and they totally clicked. She was like a child to him.
�He was devastated when she died and phoned me in the middle of the night.
He slept with her for three days until he couldn�t stand the smell any longer.
�I tried to persuade him life was more than a cat, but in his case it wasn�t.�
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