Bart the 'zombie cat' takes his first bites of food — but still isn't out of the woods (w/video)

TAMPA — Bart the "zombie cat" took his first few bites of food this week, a "very good sign of his continued recovery," according to the Humane Society of Tampa Bay.

But Bart isn't in the clear yet. The shelter said he couldn't eat enough to sustain himself and would remain on a feeding tube for a few more weeks.

The nearly 2-year-old cat was hit by a car last month and buried by the side of the road by a friend of Bart's owner. But five days later the cat emerged from the shallow grave and crawled about a block back to the neighbor's home, hungry and dehydrated.

Bart's 52-year-old owner, Ellis Hutson, dropped him off at the Humane Society for treatment. But the organization said it does not intend to return Bart to Hutson now, citing a video that calls into question Bart's preburial condition.

As of Tuesday, the Humane Society has not decided how or when it will put Bart up for adoption.