Dexter: The Mouse Hunter

Some cats nap all day. Dexter apparently has a full-time job.

His owner came to me with quite the introduction: Dexter had caught 38 mice in an hour. The portrait needed to capture that same slightly unhinged energy.

The reference photo already had plenty of it. Paws reaching forward, mouth open, and eyes locked on his next target. I kept that stretched-out pose and pushed the expression further with bright green eyes, a tongue sticking out, and pink spiral cheeks.

Then I added a tiny mouse underneath him. A little extra storytelling, and perhaps Dexter’s favourite detail.

His owner loved how much personality came through and planned to hang the portrait beside his bed. Every hardworking cat deserves an employee-of-the-month photo.

Dexter was a hit on TikTok, too, with over 81,000 views and 8,400 likes. Not bad for a cat whose résumé is mostly mice.