- Joined
- Aug 16, 2022
- Messages
- 4
- Purraise
- 12
Hello everyone, I have never joined an online community or even posted a thread before, but this is a special circumstance. I've lost my beloved cat nearly three weeks ago and my life has been a swirling mess ever since. I am unsure if I'll ever see him again, but I feel like telling my story will make me feel better somehow.
As a background, I am a medical student studying on St. Kitts Caribbean island. I've been here for about 8 months and brought my Cat "Kovu" with me, as he is my rock and I couldn't imagine not bringing him with me. I live on a very steep street with multiple houses around and forests. There are also a few dogs and small monkeys around.
Day 1
I typically had a routine every morning. I would get up around 7 am, feed Kovu, let him out in the front yard, & study for about an hour. On a normal day, he would just sit on the porch and walk around a bit, and he would typically come back in 20-30 minutes (only the odd time he would be gone for 1-2 hours). However, on July 31st after my 1-hour study session I noticed he hadn't come back, I thought nothing of it and continued with my day taking, a shower, breakfast, etc. In my head I thought "he'll be back soon." Another two hours passed by and I grew a bit more concerned, but I continued with my studies because I had exams the next day. The longest he's ever been gone was around 6 hours, so I wasn't too concerned because I thought he would always come back. Around 5 pm was when the panic started to creep in, but I was in denial. He always had his dinner at 6:30 pm and I thought for sure he would return, as he never misses to let me know it's time for dinner. As 6:30 turned into 7 and 7:30, I knew without a shadow of a doubt something was wrong and my heart sank. I stopped my studies and took to the street. I looked everywhere, screaming his name, asking my landlord, and checking every bush. After about 2-3 hours of searching, I came back home and sat on my couch with my front door open. I sat there for another two hours just praying for him to burst in and start meowing like he usually does. The feeling of seating there in silence was nothing like I'd experienced before. Shame, guilt, anger, and sadness, I remember thinking to myself "Why did I let him outside unsupervised?" "People told you not to let him outside or he might get lost, but you didn't listen." I left the door open all night and slept for about 2-3 hours in total, I spent the majority of the night looking at the ceiling and googling "what to do if your cat goes missing."
Week 1
After my exams I rushed home ready to put a plan into action, I printed a flier and took to the streets again. I asked every person outside and went door to door asking to search their properties; I looked in every bush and hole; I screamed Kovu the entire time; I walked around with open tuna cans; I put up multiple lost posters. As the day turned into night, I busted out my flashlight and continued my search. But after about 8 hours of nonstop searching, my body couldn't take it and I had to return home. I was sunburnt, exhausted, and unbelievably numb with physical and even worse emotional pain. I couldn't believe I actually lost my boy Kovu. It was as if a part of my heart was gone and nothing else mattered. I sat on my couch that night waiting in silence going through negative thoughts and scenarios in my head. I attempted to go to bed that night, but after about 3 hours of looking at the ceiling, I had enough. Around 2-3 am I went out again until the sun came up in search of my boy. As the days passed I continued to search and search, not eating, not sleeping, just searching. I had done everything google told me to do, but still no Kovu. I was a broken man and honestly still am.
Week 2
My semester was coming to a close and final exams were quickly approaching, but the only thing on my mind was my boy. Fortunately, I have an unbelievably loving family and my mom and sister came to search for me, so I could focus on my studies. They stayed for about a week to continue the search. One day they came home after being out and I heard a meowing, I remember thinking "THEY FOUND HIM!", as I turned around I saw a small kitten. They adopted a small girl for me to help me take my mind off everything. At first, I was a bit hesitant about having a new kitten, but I quickly changed my mind as "Keva" and I had an instant connection. Days before they left they had a major lead. A man who lives in a fenced property about 8-minute walk away (near the bottom of the steep street) feeds around five cats every morning & night, on Friday 12th he was pretty positive he saw my cat with a group of others he fed. We headed back there the next day to ask if he had seen him again, but he hadn't. We searched his entire property but didn't see any cats.
At this point I still feel numb with sadness, but I know I've done everything I could to find him. The school semester is over and I am on a 2-week break, I had plans to return home, but chose to stay here in case Kovu came back or someone spotted him. I am supposed to move housing on September 2nd into a much nicer place, but now I'm thinking of staying at this house in hopes he will return.
I feel like there's not much else I can do at this point but wait and pray for someone to spot him or for him to return. But if anyone has any suggestions, it would be much appreciated.
As a background, I am a medical student studying on St. Kitts Caribbean island. I've been here for about 8 months and brought my Cat "Kovu" with me, as he is my rock and I couldn't imagine not bringing him with me. I live on a very steep street with multiple houses around and forests. There are also a few dogs and small monkeys around.
Day 1
I typically had a routine every morning. I would get up around 7 am, feed Kovu, let him out in the front yard, & study for about an hour. On a normal day, he would just sit on the porch and walk around a bit, and he would typically come back in 20-30 minutes (only the odd time he would be gone for 1-2 hours). However, on July 31st after my 1-hour study session I noticed he hadn't come back, I thought nothing of it and continued with my day taking, a shower, breakfast, etc. In my head I thought "he'll be back soon." Another two hours passed by and I grew a bit more concerned, but I continued with my studies because I had exams the next day. The longest he's ever been gone was around 6 hours, so I wasn't too concerned because I thought he would always come back. Around 5 pm was when the panic started to creep in, but I was in denial. He always had his dinner at 6:30 pm and I thought for sure he would return, as he never misses to let me know it's time for dinner. As 6:30 turned into 7 and 7:30, I knew without a shadow of a doubt something was wrong and my heart sank. I stopped my studies and took to the street. I looked everywhere, screaming his name, asking my landlord, and checking every bush. After about 2-3 hours of searching, I came back home and sat on my couch with my front door open. I sat there for another two hours just praying for him to burst in and start meowing like he usually does. The feeling of seating there in silence was nothing like I'd experienced before. Shame, guilt, anger, and sadness, I remember thinking to myself "Why did I let him outside unsupervised?" "People told you not to let him outside or he might get lost, but you didn't listen." I left the door open all night and slept for about 2-3 hours in total, I spent the majority of the night looking at the ceiling and googling "what to do if your cat goes missing."
Week 1
After my exams I rushed home ready to put a plan into action, I printed a flier and took to the streets again. I asked every person outside and went door to door asking to search their properties; I looked in every bush and hole; I screamed Kovu the entire time; I walked around with open tuna cans; I put up multiple lost posters. As the day turned into night, I busted out my flashlight and continued my search. But after about 8 hours of nonstop searching, my body couldn't take it and I had to return home. I was sunburnt, exhausted, and unbelievably numb with physical and even worse emotional pain. I couldn't believe I actually lost my boy Kovu. It was as if a part of my heart was gone and nothing else mattered. I sat on my couch that night waiting in silence going through negative thoughts and scenarios in my head. I attempted to go to bed that night, but after about 3 hours of looking at the ceiling, I had enough. Around 2-3 am I went out again until the sun came up in search of my boy. As the days passed I continued to search and search, not eating, not sleeping, just searching. I had done everything google told me to do, but still no Kovu. I was a broken man and honestly still am.
Week 2
My semester was coming to a close and final exams were quickly approaching, but the only thing on my mind was my boy. Fortunately, I have an unbelievably loving family and my mom and sister came to search for me, so I could focus on my studies. They stayed for about a week to continue the search. One day they came home after being out and I heard a meowing, I remember thinking "THEY FOUND HIM!", as I turned around I saw a small kitten. They adopted a small girl for me to help me take my mind off everything. At first, I was a bit hesitant about having a new kitten, but I quickly changed my mind as "Keva" and I had an instant connection. Days before they left they had a major lead. A man who lives in a fenced property about 8-minute walk away (near the bottom of the steep street) feeds around five cats every morning & night, on Friday 12th he was pretty positive he saw my cat with a group of others he fed. We headed back there the next day to ask if he had seen him again, but he hadn't. We searched his entire property but didn't see any cats.
At this point I still feel numb with sadness, but I know I've done everything I could to find him. The school semester is over and I am on a 2-week break, I had plans to return home, but chose to stay here in case Kovu came back or someone spotted him. I am supposed to move housing on September 2nd into a much nicer place, but now I'm thinking of staying at this house in hopes he will return.
I feel like there's not much else I can do at this point but wait and pray for someone to spot him or for him to return. But if anyone has any suggestions, it would be much appreciated.
I am sorry that there's no resolution. Kovu is so gorgeous, it's quite possible that someone took him in. We must all keep praying for the best 
