Person rescues injured 6-month-old kitten, two years later, someone claiming the cat is theirs demands it back, the cat owner finds a lawyer, finds out the whole thing was a scam for money, and now, 'My cat now has a no contact order'

For over two years after rescuing this 6-month-old cat, everything was fine. And then, someone showed up and claimed that the cat is theirs. Everything about the situation was suspicious and a little scary, and apparently, there was a reason for it, because the whole thing was apparently a scam for money.

When you rescue a stray cat, adopt it, care for it, bond with it, one of your worst dreams is someone showing up and claiming that the cat is theirs. Of course, you do your due diligence. You post 'lost cat' posters, you make posts online, you look for the owners before getting too attached. And you return the cat to their owners because it's the right thing to do, no matter how difficult it is.

But you should not always give the cat back. If the cat was abandoned outside and required care, there was a reason for that. There was a story there. Sometimes, it really is an accident, and the owners looking for their cats are the happiest people in the world to get their cats back. Other times, something fishy might be going on, and you, as the new protector of this cat, have to do your due diligence in the other direction as well and make sure that the person you're giving the cat to is the right person.

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"[Am I wrong] for refusing to return a lost pet?"

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$At that point I didn't intend on keeping him and planned to find him a home when he was healthy. After his abscess healed he was still limping and we discovered his hind leg had been fractured and healed poorly. I spent several thousand to fix it and he just sort of slipped into the family.$

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"Had my cat for 3 years, stranger now claiming he lost cat as a kitten and is threatening to sue for return"

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"I 'stole' an abandoned cat; situation has escalated and person knows my address"

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^{Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.}
^{cute crows hanging around in nature}
Picture of a cute calico cat.
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"LA was right...it was a cat scam (update to pet theft accusations)"

via Unsplash / Juan Pablo Jou-Valencia - jjouvalencia

^{Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.}
^{cute crows hanging around in nature}
Picture of a cute calico cat.
As if you haven't gone through enough with this cat. Honestly, we love that you stood up for yourself so quickly and so fiercely. We don't know what would have been our immediate reaction had we gotten a call with someone claiming that our rescued cat was theirs, especially if they had pictures. We would like to believe that we would have responded like you, but we don't know. And then on top of all of that, to be so afraid - for yourself and for your cat - to worry constantly, only to find out the whole thing was a scam for money? We don't know if we would have been furious or crying furiously over all the stress we had to go through. Good on you for keeping your head on your shoulders the whole time. And shame on the scammers.
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"(Update) The exceptionally stupid ending to the cat scam saga-cat now has a no contact order"

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All through it all, all the stress you went through, all the worrying, the most important thing was still exactly as it should be. And that is that your cat was home, safe, with you, unaware of any of it. He doesn't know that you might have saved his life through this thing. And it's a good thing that he doesn't. You're a great cat mom.
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Person rescues injured 6-month-old kitten, two years later, someone claiming the cat is theirs demands it back, the cat owner finds a lawyer, finds out the whole thing was a scam for money, and now, 'My cat now has a no contact order'

"[Am I wrong] for refusing to return a lost pet?"

"Had my cat for 3 years, stranger now claiming he lost cat as a kitten and is threatening to sue for return"

"I 'stole' an abandoned cat; situation has escalated and person knows my address"

"LA was right...it was a cat scam (update to pet theft accusations)"

"(Update) The exceptionally stupid ending to the cat scam saga-cat now has a no contact order"

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Trending Now

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'We moved into a new house and it came with a cat': Outdoor neighborhood cat slowly earns family's trust, moves in for winter, and becomes the one extra cat they swore they wouldn’t get

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Grandmother crosses the rainbow bridge and wished only for her cat Sanji to have a furrever home when she's gone, her grandson adopts him to keep her memory alive: 'Everything happens for a reason'

Person opens their front door for one meowment, and a pregnant cat comes screaming inside, looking for a warm place to hide and a midwife to help her: 'It almost feels like this cat was domesticated and abandoned'

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Person rescues injured 6-month-old kitten, two years later, someone claiming the cat is theirs demands it back, the cat owner finds a lawyer, finds out the whole thing was a scam for money, and now, 'My cat now has a no contact order'

"[Am I wrong] for refusing to return a lost pet?"

"Had my cat for 3 years, stranger now claiming he lost cat as a kitten and is threatening to sue for return"

"I 'stole' an abandoned cat; situation has escalated and person knows my address"

"LA was right...it was a cat scam (update to pet theft accusations)"

"(Update) The exceptionally stupid ending to the cat scam saga-cat now has a no contact order"

Tags

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Melancholy shelter volunteer decides to make his day brighter and help one precious tiny kitten find a furrever home: '​Sometimes the best way to deal with [it] is to show up for others'

'We moved into a new house and it came with a cat': Outdoor neighborhood cat slowly earns family's trust, moves in for winter, and becomes the one extra cat they swore they wouldn’t get

25 Sleepy Memes of Cats Purrsuing Their Dreams One Nap at a Time

Grandmother crosses the rainbow bridge and wished only for her cat Sanji to have a furrever home when she's gone, her grandson adopts him to keep her memory alive: 'Everything happens for a reason'

Person opens their front door for one meowment, and a pregnant cat comes screaming inside, looking for a warm place to hide and a midwife to help her: 'It almost feels like this cat was domesticated and abandoned'

Handpicked for You

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Melancholy shelter volunteer decides to make his day brighter and help one precious tiny kitten find a furrever home: 'Sometimes the best way to deal with [it] is to show up for others'