The cat came back – 54 days later!
Posted August 27, 2022 10:43 am.
Last Updated August 27, 2022 11:39 pm.
It’s a purr-fect reunion story!
Messy, a 13-month-old cat, is back home with his family in Markham after nearly two months on the run in Scarborough.
A Canada Day picnic at Bluffer’s Park turned to panic when everyone was packing up to leave and realized their young cat was gone.
His rescuer, Judy Wilson told CityNews 680 she first heard about “the very handsome solid grey cat with striking yellow eyes” in early July.
Photo of Messy the cat, the pet missing for 54 days. (Scarborough Bluffs Feral Cats/ Facebook)
“I saw a posting on Pet FBI, which is where people put pets that they’ve lost or that they’ve found, saying that he was lost in Bluffer’s Park. I’m familiar with the park because I go there every day. So I contacted the owner to see if I could be of any help,” she said.
It was initially thought that Messy was missing from the west end of the park however, Judy later learned the family had actually been in the east end.
“I got to the point that I thought something bad must have happened to him because there was never any sign of him, no sightings,” she explained after spending a month looking in the wrong part of the park. “I alerted the park supervisor and he let his park workers know, the marina staff knew, my friends that go down there know. We were all looking but just couldn’t find him.”
On the verge of giving up, she got a reply to a Facebook post about Messy that gave a more accurate location.
She finally saw him one night but he was running scared. Judy returned on the morning of Tuesday, August 23rd and spotted him again. She put out a live trap, placed a smelly can of tuna inside and it was just enough to attract the famished feline.
Judy thinks it’s a miracle Messy survived.
“There’s coyotes, foxes, and mink which can be quite vicious.”
The part of the park where Messy appeared to have been living for nearly two months is also a busy part of the park so it’s possible he managed to get by on food scraps left behind.
Messy is now back with his family where he’s getting extra head scratches and cuddles.
This story is not only one about a resourceful and resilient cat but also a determined cat lover!
Judy is also behind the Scarborough Bluffs Feral Cats volunteer group. She goes down to Bluffer’s Park at the base of Brimley Road every day to feed the feral cat colony.
