Lyrics:

Meow, meow, meow

Now, just like everbody, you've got troubles of your own
But let me tell you, mister, of the sorrow I have known
I had an old, gray cat that I couldn't bear to keep
He spent the nights a-howlin' and he wouldn't let me sleep

So I put him in a box and I tied it up quite well
I had some fellas help me and I paid them not to tell
They put it in a boxcar, the westbound 710
The train pulled away and was never seen again

But the cat came back the very next day
Yes, the cat came back and he wouldn't stay away
Meow, kitty. Meow, so pretty
Meow, such a pity, but the cat came back

We took him to the harbor and we put him on a ship
We bid him, 'Bon voyage,' for that oceanic trip
The captain was obliging and glad to help us out
They tied him to the anchor so that there could be no doubt

Well, we heard the sad report of that mighty storm at sea
And, though it may sound heartless, I was happy as can be
The paper said the ship went down beneath a heavy gale
And not a single soul was left to tell the awful tale

But the cat came back the very next day
Yes, the cat came back and he wouldn't stay away
Meow, kitty. Meow, so pretty
Meow, such a pity, but the cat came back

Then we gave him to a scientist destined for the moon
The cat was used for ballast in an outer space balloon
I guess you know what happened, that balloon is up there still
And early that next morning, guess what came across the hill

Meow, that's right

Now, everyone in town was sworn to shoot that cat on sight
With that crazy cat around, you couldn't sleep at night
We even formed a posse just to hunt that critter down
You could hear the guns a-blazin' as we ran him out of town

But the cat came back the very next day
Yes, the cat came back and he wouldn't stay away
Meow, kitty. Meow, so pretty
Meow, such a pity, but the cat came back

Here's the moral to our story: When looking for a friend
If you get an old, gray cat, he's yours until the end
You'll never drag him off, no matter what you do
Bear in mind this dreadful tale that we have told to you

Yes, the cat came back the very next day
Yes, the cat came back and he wouldn't stay away
Meow, kitty. Meow, so pretty
Meow, such a pity, but the cat came back

Meow!