“She picked me…and I wasn’t about to let her go”: Man tracks down his stolen kitten with help from friends and one lucky Facebook post

Author image for Laurent Shinar
Laurent Shinar • Writer and Editor
Aug 2, 2025 3:00 PM EDT

Cat stories are simply some of the most varied and unexpected tails that you could ever come across. If you were to open up a library you could easily fill it with the myriad of cat stories and even have yourself several genres to keep your readers informed and entertained. There is of course the "cat rescue" genre, which within it has several sub-genres - cats in boxes, cats in barns, cats in bins (you get the idea). Then you have the "my cat got lost but came back" genre, a classic heart-warmer. And then you have the "I will never get another cat because I'm so sad about my last cat passing" genre, which is just wholesomeness incarnate.

But what if we told you that the story we have lined up for you today, is literally all three of these genres rolled into one. We have no idea where the cat council would put this in their proverbial library, but we do know that it would be a classic checked out several times. So strap in for a wild ride through some of the most significant genres in the world of feline stories.
 

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  • 01
    I lost my last cat to cancer over 10 years ago. The vet said that even with surgery, she likely wouldn't live. After so much heartache and tears, I swore that I would never adopt another because losing them is so hard and no matter what,
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  • 02
    it always brought back the sadness I felt during those first few months after my mom's death. So last week my gf, who has her own cleaning service, went to a house that had kittens they were giving away for adoption.
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  • 03
    After a few texts and pictures, I finally relented and agreed. I was terrified the kitten wouldn't accept me or whatever. I think it's a safe bet now though, I've been adopted by her... And I am over the moon! So this one is for you mom.
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  • These are the moments that make us keep coming back to these heartwarming stories. Getting to hear about the moment that a person’s life gets turned around and they fall in love with a cat is simply the most wonderful thing on this planet. If only the story ended here with this heartfelt moment.

  • 04
    We go to the vet tomorrow for her shots and such. But I haven't come up with a good name. I would guess she's about 3-4 months old. So definitely looking for some suggestions about names.
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  • 05
    I literally just made a post yesterday about how excited I was about having a brand new kitten after deciding a decade ago that I would never have another one. But after my girlfriend brought one last week I fell in love all over again.
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  • 06
    About 3 hours ago I opened the door to carry the trash outside and apparently I neglected to close the door completely. As I was walking back inside I noticed that she had walked out onto the porch and was making her way down the steps.
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  • 07
    Co 5
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  • 08
    So I gently started calling her and was doing the baby talk and when I got about 5 ft from her she started walking off towards the road. I was walking behind her, still not really afraid. I was just concerned about picking her up. And as
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  • 09
    she made it to the road, I was about 10 yd behind her. A car stopped right at her and the passenger side door opened and a 40 to 50 year old woman stepped out picked her up and I immediately yelled out thank you so much. But before I know
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  • 10
    it the lady had my brand new kitten in her van and was driving off. I was in absolute shock. Initially I thought she may be turning around to bring her back but the van kept going. By the
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  • 11
    time I realized what was going on, the van was too far away for me to get any kind of license plate. Currently I do not have a vehicle so I had no way to initiate any type of chase.
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  • Good gosh, what the actual heck just happened. First off how was this kitten just allowed to continuously wander, that is a little out of line. But to just casually pull up on the side of a road and collect what is very obviously someone else’s kitten is just wild. Like do you have absolutely no moral compass?

  • 12
    I immediately broke down and was a combination of crying my eyes out and playing out a scene from John wick and prepared to go hunt them down. Unfortunately I would not. know where to begin. I am a 38 year old man and I am absolutely and
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  • 13
    emotional wreck right now. I don't know what to do. I notified the police department but they made it abundantly clear that this was very low priority and they would send someone over at
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  • 14
    their first available chance but that more than likely there's nothing that they can do. I don't have any cameras or anything to identify the kidnappers. All I have is a vehicle description. I was so
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  • 15
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  • 16
    worried that my girlfriend was going to be angry but she seems to be more concerned with my well- being than anything. She really is my rock. What is wrong with people? Why would you do this? They absolutely
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  • 17
    saw me and knew that the kitten was mine and that I was walking after her. I never meant for her to get outside. It was a mistake. But I can't help but beat myself up because if I had only taken two more seconds to make sure the door
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  • 18
    was closed this wouldn't have happened. So now I'm lying in this bedroom all by myself wondering where my kitten is. She must be so confused. She must be so scared. One reason my girlfriend did get the kitten for me was because I recently
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  • 19
    reached 18 months of sobriety from a 20-year ad- on. It was somewhat of a congratulations gift. And I loved that cat so much. I literally only knew her for a week and I feel like my heart has been ripped from my chest.
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  • 20
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  • 21
    So first thing I did was contact the police which I believe I mentioned in my original post. They were absolutely no help. The dispatcher originally told me that a deputy would be by to take a report, however it was low
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  • 22
    priority it and may be the following day before anyone would come by. Needless to say, I never received a phone call or visit from my local sheriff's office. Can't say I'm that I'm really surprised.
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  • 23
    Next I contacted a friend who is pretty active on several social media sites and asked him to post whatever he could about the incident and not to mention any type of reward but to include details of when and where it happened and
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  • 24
    the description of the vehicle and woman that I saw. I was not really hopeful that we would see any results, but doing nothing wasn't going to Bear any fruit either so this was better than nothing.
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  • 25
    About 8:00 this morning my buddy calls me basically screaming into the phone that he thinks he's found my cat. Someone recognize the post on his Facebook and recognize that someone fitting that description had also recently posted a
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  • 26
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  • 27
    picture of their new kitten that they had adopted. When he sent me the picture of the kitten that this mysterious person had posted, it was my F****** kitten! Oh my God I have never been so happy but so furious at the same time. So as
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  • 28
    mentioned before, I don't. have a vehicle right now, so my friend who put the post up came and pick me up and through some networking and subscriptions to records websites we managed to get the address of the woman that posted the picture of her new kitten.
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  • 29
    As we pulled up I began to cry. The house was dreadful. I'm talking chickens and roosters in the yard cats and dogs, in the back there was a small pen with a couple of goats, there was a mule that was extremely emaciated. There were
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  • 30
    just abandoned children toys everywhere, tires that were stacked up everywhere, a lot of those 55 gallon barrel drums here and there, and to top it off, despite the poor condition of the mobile home, they still had Christmas lights up that were flashing at
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  • 31
    11:00 a.m in the morning. And these weren't the tiny lights, they were the big bulbs like you see in the Lampoon's Christmas movie. I pulled myself together and my buddy and I walked up to the door
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  • 32
    it holding my f****** cat. She was holding my f****** cat. And she looked at us as if she was thinking, what do you want? I politely looked for dead in her eyes and said ma'am I recognize you from yesterday when you
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  • 33
    picked up the cat that you have in your hands from in front of my yard as I was yelling at you and before I could catch you you drove off. She initially tried to give some song and dance about I was mistaken but think that she could see the rage
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  • 34
    and the tears in my eyes and finally said that she thought the cat was abandoned and was trying to give her a good home. She handed the cat over and profusely apologized and my buddy and I just
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  • 35
    simply walked away. I wanted to say so many other things to her but at the end of the day my goal was accomplished. The only other thing that I did turn around and ask was, how many children live here? She looked confused and asked me
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  • 36
    why I was asking. I made up an excuse that I knew where some other kittens were if she was interested if she had children that may want another one. That's when she told me she had three children between the ages of two and eight that lived with her.
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  • 37
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  • 38
    I thank her again and told her that I would check around to see if I could find any others for her and would be glad to send them her way if I could find any. My buddy and I got in the car and proceeded to haul ass out of there. Before we can
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  • 39
    make it to the stop sign I was already googling the number for child protective services for my county. The condition of this house, the condition of the woman, and the overall smell of ammonia that came from inside the house was absolutely rancid. Frankly I don't
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  • 40
    make it to the stop sign I was already googling the number for child protective services for my county. The condition of this house, the condition of the woman, and the overall smell of ammonia that came from inside the house was absolutely rancid.
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  • 41
    I'm grateful to my friends that help me to get my cat back. I gave her a good bath once we got home still have her vet appointment in 2 weeks to get spayed and chipped. I don't think that anything could have happened to her in a
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  • 42
    negative way in those two missing days, but I am glad that she had just been wormed. So my lesson has been learned. I will definitely make sure
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  • 43
    to keep the doors closed at all times. I just hope that those children in that house can find a safe atmosphere as well.
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