Mom rehomes daughter's cat despite protests because of financial issues, but the unhappy cat finds his way back to his forever home, and the mother realizes she made a mistake: 'I genuinely couldn't believe what I was seeing'

Author image for Mariel Ruvinsky
Mariel Ruvinsky • Writer and Editor
Feb 25, 2026 10:00 AM EST

It might be hard sometimes, but you don't give up on family - and that includes cats. 

So many times, we have come across stories of people abandoning cats when those cats suddenly became "difficult". If those cats got sick, or if the cat got prognant, or other reasons… those people decide that this is not what they signed up for and just abandon the kitties. If they are lucky, those cats get found by other kind humans and rescued from the streets. But if they're not… We'd rather not think about it.

We, at ICHC, always complain when we see these stories. We say that abandoning the cat should have been a last resort, that there are always options that are better. If you really feel like you can't take care of the cat anymore, take the cat to a shelter or find them a different home. To this mom's credit, she did do that. She saw her financial situation, knew that she and her family were about to move, and decided that the cat would be better off elsewhere, with other people. So, she found him a new home. But that doesn't mean that he had to agree with her. And he didn't. And then he took his fate into his own paws. 

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  • 01

    "One of my cats found their way back home after my mom gave them away."

    www миши
    via Neat_Toe7235
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    Cheezburger Image 10608684032
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    Cheezburger Image 10608684288
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  • 04
    Just thought I'd tell this story cuz I don't really get to tell anyone about it.
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  • 05
    But last year, my mom gave away my cats because she was struggling financially and because we were moving away shortly after. She gave them away to some guy who seemed pretty nice.
    via Neat_Toe7235
  • 06
    I was honestly very sad and disappointed. a few weeks go by and I'm still thinking about both of them so much, basically looking at pictures I took of them every da.
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  • 07
    But then, as I was coming back from school I hear a meow, and I IMMEDIATELY recognised who's meow that was. I look down and see one of my cats right there, waiting at the front door. I genuinely couldn't believe what I was seeing, I was so happy and confused.
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  • 08
    MIND YOU, the guys house was around 30 mins drive, and we've never been there nor knew him, so the fact that my cat found his way back as absolutely insane. Present day, he's still here and I'm very happy to have him back.
    via Neat_Toe7235
  • 09
    I still feel very sad about his sister that stayed back, and I wish I could see her again.(first picture is the one that returned, and the second one is his sister that stayed) sorry if I got the flair wrong, I didn't know what to put for this one.
    via Neat_Toe7235
  • 10
    Edit: I saw a few comments talking negatively about my mom, and I do agree that what she did was wrong, plus I did hate her for a little while after she gave them up. But, overtime what I realized was that she gave them up out of love and concern for them. She was only hoping to make them happy.
    via Neat_Toe7235
  • 11
    Even though her actions were cruel, her intentions weren't. So please don't be too mean to my mom. I understand where all the anger is coming from, and I do still feel a good amount of anger at her whenever the topic is brought up, but yeah, she was trying her best and ended up making a bad mistake.
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  • 12
    For cases like these, the most we can do is look at the positive things.
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  • The cat knew better, in this situation… He knew that financial issues or moves are an obstacle but not an insurmountable one. And he knew that you don't just “rehome” family. That house was not his home. The people in it were. And it seems like he was going to find his way back to you no matter where you ended up, or he would have at least done everything in his power to make that happen. The fact that you kept him simply means that he was right - there was a way to keep going with him still there, even if it meant some more financial difficulties. 

  • 13
    SuburbanSurvivor16 Nah this is funny. Your cat was like "f this guy. I'm going home"
    via SuburbanSurvivor16
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    Neat_Toe7235 OP Yeah, that's what surprised me. I remember my dad telling me a similar story and I didn't believe it but it happened to me!!! He's genuinely so sweet for coming back, I thought I'd never seem him again.
    via Neat_Toe7235
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    SuburbanSurvivor 16 Did yall take him back?
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    Neat_Toe7235 OP Yeah, he's downstairs right now
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    Tinamacht Not sure what to react to ... your cat loves you... your mom can't deal with the cats ...
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    Neat_Toe7235 OP To be honest, I think my mom was overreacting a little. I don't think she needed to give them away, but she still loved them very much. She takes care of them amazingly!!
    via Neat_Toe7235
  • 19
    CatPaws55 So, could you get in touch with the person who took the cats and get the female cat back?
    via CatPaws55
  • 20
    Neat_Toe7235 OP I asked my mom a while back. She said something about not having the man's contacts anymore. I don't have it myself the contact myself so it has to be through my mom.
    via Neat_Toe7235

  • Our heart breaks for the other cat, but more because of her separation from him than anything else. We don't know what happened to her, but we hope… we choose to believe that she is still with the person you gave her to. One of them may have run away, but that doesn't mean that the other one did as well. Maybe for her, the judgment of the mother was right, and the new place was appropriate. And as for why the person has stopped answering… There could be multiple reasons, and again, we choose to believe in the innocent ones.

  • 21
    CatPaws55 Well, I hope that by seeing this cat coming back, she might change her mind. I'm sure the other cat is missing not only you, but now also her brother. And he obviously had been missing you and now is missing his sister.
    via CatPaws55
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    Neat_Toe7235 OP Okay, a few minutes ago I asked her about it and she said that before the male one came back, she contacted the man to check up on them. Then after he came back, she wanted contact him again with the intentions of getting the female back, but he had deleted his account.
    via Neat_Toe7235
  • 23
    So what I think happened was that the man deleted his account after he realised that the male one went missing just so he didn't have to tell my mom about it since she was frequently checking in. (This was through kijij or whatever it's called)
    via Neat_Toe7235

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