4 months after their cat ran away, desperate owner finally finds "their cat", only to realize the new feline is not theirs, and although they remain sad but hopeful about their own cat, they gladly give the friendly impawster a forever home too

Author image for Mariel Ruvinsky
Mariel Ruvinsky • Writer and Editor
Jun 28, 2026 2:15 PM EDT

What would you do if you found your missing cat and then realized that it wasn't yours? 

Having your cat run away is one of the world's worst feelings. We've felt it ourselves. The worst 24 hours of our lives were when we lost our cat. She came back. We were lucky. But those 24 hours were enough for us to learn our lesson for the rest of our lives - make sure that all doors are closed and all windows have nets on them. They don't run away because they are unhappy. Our cats are happy, but they are also curious creatures. Our cats are spoiled as heck. We know it, but they don't. Most of them don't know anything different, and they can't help but be curious about the outside world. 

It takes one second - one moment of turning your back with the door open behind you, and your cat could slip off if they wanted to. And then, whether you find them or not is up to them. We know how well cats can hide. Back when our cat ran away, we were out on the streets, shaking bags of treats and calling her name, and for all we know, she could have been hiding in a bush behind us the whole time, choosing not to be seen. 

Of course, the elation of having her come back was even greater than the pain of losing her. And that is what Shaquille_oatmeal_88 on r/cats must have felt when "their cat" came back to them after four months. They noticed immediately that the kitty was a little different than before, but he wasn't very different. And they were too happy to have her back to pay those tiny differences much attention. Until they couldn't ignore it. They knew that the friendly and loving cat that they thought was theirs actually wasn't. 

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