Just wanted to share this with people - I cat-sit for neighbours when they're away, sibling cats 11 years old, Popo and Petl. (not a typo - it's from the volcano, Popocatopetl). Back in June when I was cat-sitting, I spotted that little Petl was fitting, so I rushed her to the vet, and when my neighbours came home they did likewise, and had just started her on a regime of meds as she was fitting 2 or 3 times a day. Then suddenly, after a few days, Petl just vanished. She'd never been one for going out for long, so this was very unlike her. We just assumed that she'd fitted and died somewhere, or been carried off by a fox, or something like that. She's very tiny - looks like a kitten despite her age. This was completely out of character for her - she was never out for more than a few hours, and more recently much less than that. They did all the usual things -searched all our gardens and sheds, put up notices, etc etc, but nothing. Janet and I were just discussing this morning how different Popo has been just rather sad and quiet, since Petl left.
Well...... Mark rang this afternoon to say she's turned up at a local rescue centre!!
Thank heaven for microchips!! She'd been found on an estate not that far from us, across the field at the back, and a small railway line. We don't know any more at the moment, but someone must have been feeding her, as she couldn't have survived that long on hunting and scavenging round here, particularly not with her medical condition. It might be that her condition left her confused and she wandered off? They'll be picking her up as soon as they can, but will have to reintroduce her carefully, as I doubt Popo will recognise her (he's a gentle soul though so should be ok), and the new hamster will have to be put out of her way for a while of course.... They'll also have to manage the cat flap situation for a while, but well, what lovely lovely news. Feeling very happy!
