Man breaks 10-year silence to tell his ex the cat they adopted together only has days left, giving her the chance to come say goodbye: 'I never thought I'd see her again'

Mariel Ruvinsky • Writer and Editor

Aug 16, 2026 9:30 AM EDT

Cats have the meowgical power of bringing people together.

The cat community online is one of the strongest and most consistent that we have ever seen. For years - decades, even - cats have been ruling the internet with funny cat memes and cute cat pictures. Everyone knows this, we all acknowledge this, and not a single one of us fights it. Because cats are good. They're purrfect and pawsitive and uplifting. Cats have been bringing people together since the beginning of time. From giant statues in Egypt to people making memes together, all the way to reuniting exes.

We always tell couples that adopting a cat together is a big responsibility. It is not something to be done spontaneously. If you're just dating, you may be having a good time now, but that doesn't mean that you will in a month or a year, and adopting a cat is a very long-term commitment. If you don't break up - fabulous. But if you do, the first one to suffer will be the cat. The cat doesn't understand relationship rules or breakups. All the cat knows that it's been adopted by two people, and then one of them is gone, and just because it's only one of the two doesn't make the abandonment any less painful.

It's painful to the people involved in the relationship too. Custody battles over cats are horrible. You never forget the feline and what it brought into your life, not even ten years later, like the ex-couple in this story proved. After 10 whole years of silence, the ex who kept the cat they adopted together reached out to the one who didn't, told her that the kitty has only a few days left until she crosses the rainbow bridge, and offered that she take a walk with the kitty and say goodbye. And the ex was ecstatic.

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via @kiesha9i
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via @kiesha9i
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via @kadereign
We agree. This isn't for him. It's for the cat. If he broke 10 years of silence for this, then clearly, he believes that this is something the cat truly wants.
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via @Viral_bhatt_46
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via @PreshySaga
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via Unsplash / Anastassia Anufrieva

Beautiful, colorful cat sitting outside.
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via @ZtDstar
Yes. We would drop anything and everything to make this trip. One last chance to say goodbye is worth cancelling plans for.
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via @storyrebuilt
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via @PressHarderbro
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via Unsplash / Heike Larson - heikelarson

Tiny fair calico kitten sitting with its paws folded.
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via @softlynia_
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via @Forte4r
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via @ABhummingbird
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via Unsplash / Laura Lugaresi - lauralugaresi

Cute fair calico cat with its ears turned back in the airplane pose.
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via @PreshySaga
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via @AyyanMalikyf7o
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via @BingliangLeo
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via Unsplash / Raychan - wx1993

Calico cat with bright orange eyes and a red collar standing outside.
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via @Sleekchick22
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via @Reliant_crypto
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via @a_trash_cant