Cat missing since May car trip is reunited with her family

Missy, who has been known as Hope by those providing her with medical care and looking for her family, has finally been reunited with her loved ones after several weeks.

Missy was traveling with her family by car from Melbourne, Australia to the Sunshine Coast region when she got out of her carrier and settled on the front seat. She got into the back, however, which was crowded with belongings, and jumped or fell from a partially opened window without anyone seeing what had happened.

Her family had no idea where Missy was when they pulled into a service area and discovered she was missing, and later described the experience and their worry for the missing cat as ‘horrific.’

Missy was injured in the fall and was underweight and dehydrated when she was rescued in Yass, a town in New South Wales. She was given medical care at Yass Valley Veterinary, where she had to have a damaged eye removed, and was also helped by the Yass Animal Shelter.

Missy’s caregivers called her Hope, and her story was widely reported and shared. The community banded together to help the stranded cat and to try to get her back home.

Yass Animal Shelter posted at Facebook : “Hope was first presented to the Yass Veterinary Hospital who examined her and found her to be severely dehydrated, very underweight and in need of urgent surgery. They then contacted the Yass Valley Council Ranger and we commenced a campaign to find Hope’s owners and raise funds to pay for her crucial surgery.

“During her surgery the vets found that her upper and lower canine on the right side were fractured. Both teeth and her right eye were removed, the vets also gave Hope’s remaining teeth a good clean.

“The response from the Yass and wider (both out of state and wider NSW) community has been amazing. We have raised enough money to cover a large part of Hope’s veterinary costs. She is a lucky little cat. We’d love to find her owners, but if we can’t – we’ve already had a number of offers of a permanent home for Hope.

“Hope is recovering well from surgery and learning to live life with one eye. Still a little unsteady on her feet her, vision is limited but she is improving each day. Hope’s foster carer says she has a delightfully loud purr and a very quiet meow.

“Service Centre staff recall a woman from Melbourne calling and asking them to keep an eye out for a cat matching Hope’s description, that her husband had lost as he travelled from Melbourne to Sydney. Unfortunately the woman’s contact details have since been lost and Hope was not micro-chipped. It is possible the cats owners were in the process of moving from Melbourne to Sydney. Melbourne Radio Station 3AW Drive shared the story extensively resulting in over 250,000 people reached via Facebook alone, however Hope’s owners are yet to be found. We are hoping to push this story more into the Sydney area so any help sharing it is appreciated.”

The 3AW Drive with Tom Elliott radio program shared kitty’s photo and story on social media in an effort to find her family, writing at Facebook on May 27: “Do you know who owns this cat? The poor thing has turned up in Yass, NSW, and the local council reckons it might belong to a Melbourne couple, who lost the kitty while driving from Melbourne to Sydney 3-4 weeks ago. It was found wearing a pink collar and a blue leash, it’s female and is desexed but not microchipped. She’s in reasonable health but her eye needs vet attention. If you know who her people are, please contact us here, the Yass Valley Council on 02 6226 1477, or the Yass Animal Shelter via their Facebook page.”

Kitty’s petmom Natalie Leeves eventually saw her missing cat’s photo online and wrote below Tom Elliott’s photo on July 3: HER NAME IS MISSY! we lost her on the way from Melbourne to the Sunshine Coast!!!”

Paul Leeves weighed in on the comment thread, writing: “Hello, my name is Paul, we are the owners of Missy or as I call her Snookster. It is hard to believe she’s alive – It was horrific the day we lost her – travelling up in the storms that flooded Caboolture. Although we had a carrier she found a way to push out constantly through the zip – she complained on the journey because she hates cars – coming into Yass she made a burst for the back of the car which was loaded to the roof – so she disappeared from sight under all the jumble. The back window was slightly open to allow fresh air into the car. As soon as the event occurred I pulled into a servo hoping she was still in the car but she was gone and nowhere to be found. It was horrific to think of the outcome of the possibility that she jumped from the car. It is very sad to see her as she is now but we are very happy to have her found. Her Buddy, Pepper the Dog will be so happy to see her again as will we all. I want to thank you all for your care and consideration and for holding out hope.”

Missy is now back with her family again.

LISTEN: Tom Elliott explains more about Missy’s reunion on the 3AW Drive radio show: