DUBAI: A British woman has been reunited with her black cat after it went missing from her villa in Springs 14 six months ago.
“Our Arabian Mau Vampi escaped from our house in May this year. We had adopted her from a friend and she had only been staying with us a few days before she disappeared,” said the resident Linda Timothy.
She said she launched an extensive search for the two-year-old cat by posting flyers on cars, near people’s homes and supermarkets and sharing her details on 30 Facebook groups. “I left no stone unturned in my search and even advertised in local newspapers to try and find her.”
Facebook alert
Timothy’s efforts paid off in November when a Meadows 9 resident sent her an alert on Facebook saying she had seen a black Arabian Mau in the area. “I rushed to the community and could not believe my eyes when I saw Vampi.
“She was wearing a collar with her name tag on it. I brought her home but had to keep her away from my other two cats as she seemed scared of them. I realised she needed time to regain her strength and confidence. Gradually, she came out of her shell and is now back to being her old self.”
Timothy said, “Sharing information about a lost pet is key to finding it. In July, I helped a young girl reunite with her ginger cat two years after it went missing. That was truly an incredible reunion. The girl had posted pictures of the cat on findmypet.ae, a pet registry site that helps reunite lost pets with their owners. I re-posted the message on various Facebook groups, including the Arabian Ranches group. A flurry of messages later, the cat was located and reunited with the girl.”
Find My Pet is a free UAE-wide microchipping registry where pet owners notify their animal’s microchip number and owner details. The website also provides listings of lost and found pets.
Peta Witting, founder of the site, said: “In the last year since the website was launched, we have helped many residents find their lost pets.”
She said the case where the young girl found her missing cat after two years showed how social media and efforts by the community can do wonders to make such reunions happen.
