Dog mom saves cat who was thrown out of parked car, scooping her up from her frightened flattened state on floor, but finds out cat can’t continue to live with them: ‘It breaks our hearts to ask for this, but I committed to doing the best I can for her’

Author image for Laurent Shinar
Laurent Shinar • Writer and Editor
Jun 25, 2026 5:30 PM EDT

It is not all too often that canine pawrents find themselves at the center of a cat rescue, but that is exactly what happened to this dog lover when coming back to her car after a walking in the park with her pup.

Reddit's r/cats subreddit is a place full of fun feline stories. However, the story of feline rescue we have for you today contains multitudes of emotions and gives a very realist view of what can happen when taking on the challenge of saving an abandoned cat. There are so many hurdles to overcome and just when you think that you have completed them all, a new one rears its head to keep you on your toes. And that is very much how this pawticular story unfolded. At first the cat was very sweet, allowing her rescuer and vets to handle her with ease and without aggression. This is already a giant pawsitive step towards success, especially considering how frightened this poor feline must have been.

But that is when things took a turn for the worse. For when this 10 year old cat was brought home, it immediately had to find its spot amongst the two cat siblings and one dog sibling present in her new furever home. A task which her rescuer understood would be tough, but held out hope for success nonetheless. But as fate would have it this is where things went pear shaped, and the cats simply could not get along. And instead of subjecting the rescued feline to a life of arguments and fights, her rescuer did the right thing by the cat and worked towards finding her the purrfect furever home. It just goes to show that you cannot always have it all in the feline rescue game. But as long as you do your utmost to help the cat in need, that is all that matters.

 

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    "She will carry socks and toys into the hallway to ask for attention, she is so adorable."
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    returning to my car after my taking my dog to play in the river, there's just one other car in the lot by the boat ramp. I see the passenger door open and close, then the car backs
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    out and pulls away. sitting there in the spot is this poor cat, flattening herself to the ground and frozen still
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    i load my dog into the car and walk over, shes st frozen and flat with huge eyes. I ask "are you okay? Do you need help?" and she starts immediately yowling and crying.
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  • Oh goodness, this is a good place to stop for a moment so that you can run and grab your box of tissues. Because if you are anything like us then you are going to need some support to get through this part of the story. How tragic it is to see a cat in such a state. Even in their most stressed you would be hard pressed to see a cat flattening themselves to the floor. Sure, they might hide in a corner, tuck their tail between their legs. But to go full flat mode, that is a full on panic attack. We are just delighted that this sweet cat child was able to ask for help and not run away in fear. 
     

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    Cheezburger Image 10640942848
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    I crouch down and after just a few seconds she slinks over and hides under my knees, still crying, but she starts rubbing her face on my leg in between yells
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    I enlisted the help the next person to pull up to the lot since I had my dog in the car. we brought her to the vet to get scanned for a microchip, but found nothing
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    the vet thinks she's around 10 years old, she had fleas but all her bl work and other tests came back fine.
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    super sweet, she tolerated everything the vet did, and she hasn't hissed or growled once at us, she's just so scared. She found a spot under the futon in the home office, so she
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    now has a bed and litter box there. Its only been a few days, but we've been able to keep the door open and our two other cats have given her space though they know she's in there and will occasionally
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    go in there for a Quick Look before running off. i didn't get a license plate from the car that left her, but I don't think it
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    matters as I doubt anything would come of it. She was so scared but trusted me right away. I hate that this happened
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  • Ok, well that is a whole lot to handle all at once. What a sad story this is, to have a fully healthy cat who is just dumped potentially because of their age is abhorrent. Especially when the cat is so sweet and loving. We could perhaps understand why it would be tough to live with a cat who is getting grumpier with age, but a sweet feline who just wants love and affection? That is pure insanity. Nonetheless, it seems as though this feline sweetheart is in a good place for the time being, even if it might not be her final furever home. It is certainly better than the parking lot she was left in.
     

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    to her, at least I'm the one to find her I guess, I had no issue covering for all her vaccinations and tests, and if we discover anything else then I'll help her with that too
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    Cheezburger Image 10640943104
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    I was blown away by the kind of support Reddit offered when I made the first post. There are so many kind people here, so I'm posting again hoping I can find
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    someone to help me help this cat. we did post all over and keep an eye out in case she was a victim of DV, but I don't think anyone
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    has been looking for her. While I don't need any financial support, we are looking for a permanent home for her. She is the sweetest cat and just wants to cuddle all the
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    time. She will carry socks and toys into the hallway to ask for attention, she is so adorable. She gets along well enough with our 6 month old male cat, but she has
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    Share ° Edit 5:52 Apr 21 8:50 PM 37 & 5 Ask + Add to 目 Trash
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    shown territorial a on towards our 2 year old girl, and it has escalated beyond a level that provides a safe home for either of them. Despite our efforts to provide everyone with the
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    space they need (plenty of high spaces, cat caves and secluded cubbies), the best thing for her seems to be a home without another adult female cat (or maybe a larger colony).
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    We named her Celeste. It felt very fitting. She is fully vaccinated and tested negative for FIV, leukemia, etc. We also microchipped her. I'm not looking for any of that to
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    be covered (over $1000 total), I just want to find her a safe home. It breaks our hearts to ask for this, but I committed to doing the best I can for
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    her and still believe I'm doing so by reaching out to this community to find her a forever home. We're in Eugene, Oregon.
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