Jack The Cat Gets Lost At JFK Airport
Back in August, Karen Pascoe was flying to California from JFK Airport with her two cats, Jack and Barry, who were each in separate carriers. Shortly after clearing security and saying goodbye to her boys, Pascoe experienced every cat owner's worst nightmare when she was informed that Jack had escaped, and was now missing.
After an exhaustive search, and the support of a Facebook community of thousands, Jack finally emerged in October, nearly two-months after he originally disappeared. Sadly, the joy of him being found was short lived, as the trauma he sustained from his time away caused him to succumb to his extensive wounds less than a week later.
Friends of Jack believe that the cat's death will not be in vain, hoping that the incident will help people understand the risks of putting an animal in cargo, and spur change in the industry to prevent this kind of situation from happening to anyone else.
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Judy had already found two of her three missing cats after a tornado ripped through her Tuscaloosa home, but nearly a month later, her 10-year-old cat Cadie was still missing.
Miraculously, while surveying the damage with a local news reporter, Cadie appeared out of nowhere for an unbelievable reunion that had cat lovers everywhere in tears.
When Willow went missing from her Colorado home after a contractor left a door open, the Squires family assumed she was gone for good. Never in their wildest dreams did they imagine that the sassy calico would turn up five years later and over 1,800 miles away, in the city that never sleeps.
When she was returned to NYC Animal Care and Control in September, staffers called the stunned family after a microchip scan revealed her true origins. After a photograph confirmed her identity, The Today Show flew the entire Squires clan to New York to reunite with the lost feline, where they embarked on a media tour, touting the benefits of having your cat microchipped.
British cat Charlie was dubbed "Voldemort" because of his uncanny appearance to the Harry Potter villain. The 14-year-old cat got his unique look when he lost the tips of his ears and his nose after a sunburn caused him to develop skin cancer, a common ailment in white outdoor cats.
The Blue Cross shelter where he was being housed feared he would be unadoptable because of his unconventional appearance, but their worries were unfounded, as a viral campaign quickly resulted in him finding the purrfect forever home.
At 12-years-old, Frank & Louie earned the Guinness World Record for being the longest living Janus cat in the world, a term coined after the Roman God with two faces.
The rare cat was adopted by a veterinary nurse named Marty, after a breeder brought him to the veterinary school where she was working at the time. Instead of allowing him to euthanized, she decided to give the day-old kitten a home instead.
Frank & Louie has one head and brain, two mouths, two noses, two seeing eyes, and one non-functioning eye that sits in the middle of his head like a cyclops. Marty tells the Worcester Telegram and Gazette that while people are initially taken back by his unusual look, "he's just so affectionate and sweet he usually wins (them) over."
In the wake of the devastating earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan in March, many people were concerned about the fate of Tashirojima, otherwise know as "Cat Island." The small island in Ishinomaki City, Miyagi Prefecture, was home to around 100 elderly residents, and many more cats. Luckily, several sources confirmed that its inhabitants (both human and feline) were safe after the magnitude 9 quake, however nine months after the disaster, The Conscious Cat reports that cats in Japan still need our help.
Shortly after Daniel was rescued from Animal Control by Milwaukee Animal Rescue Center owner Amy Rowell, the organization found out that they were about to lose their lease. Not one to sit around twiddling his thumbs, Daniel, a 26-toed polydactyl cat, lent his paw to a capital giving campaign that encouraged patrons to donate $1 for each of his toes, which resulted in over $50,000 worth of donations.
An Italian kitty named Tommaso once again proved that black cats are anything but bad luck, after the fortunate feline, and former stray, inherited his mistresses' estate worth $15.6 million, consisting of cash, shares, land, and a "property empire" with homes in Rome and Milan.
Business Week reports that Tomasso is now the third richest animal in the world, falling behind a German Shepherd named Gunter worth $140.4 million, and a Chimpanzee named Kalu at $62.4 million.
Thanks to Whoopi Goldberg, what almost ended up as another tragic tale of animal cruelty turned into a fairy tale ending for a kitten who was reportedly tossed out of a car window on New York City's Verrazano Bridge early this summer.
After being rescued by an Animal Care and Control officer that happened to be driving by at the time, the kitten's harrowing story went viral, even landing him a fateful guest spot on "The View." It was clearly love at first sight for the pair, or should I say first cuddle, and while 140 people vied for the opportunity to give the tiny survivor a forever home, Goldberg eventually was granted the honor.
"Kitler" as she was dubbed by the media (her real name is Luminus), was found near death on a busy street on July 22nd, and brought to Wood Green Animal Shelter, where staffers initially thought she was only four-weeks-old because of her small size.
The "furry Fuhrer" made headlines when the shelter claimed she was unwanted because of her supposed "uncanny resemblance" to Adolf Hitler, but after the story went viral, over 500 people called and emailed the U.K.-based shelter to adopt her.
Larry stepped into his role as "Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office" in February, after he was adopted from the Battersea Dogs & Cats Home and brought to the British Prime Minister's residence to take care of a reported rodent problem. A spokesperson initially described his qualifications as being a "good ratter" and as having "a high chase-drive and hunting instinct," however his prowess was called into question when it took him over two months to make his first "kill." The four-year-old tabby was making headlines as soon as he arrived at 10 Downing Street, when he scratched a television reporter upon his arrival.
In addition to his mousing duties, Larry is often photographed looking very cute (as seen here, preparing for the Royal Wedding), and even received a pat from President Obama when he met with PM David Cameron back in May. 
The Biggest Cat News Stories Of 2011
is available now on Amazon.
