VISTA, Calif. — There is nothing quite like the pain of having your pet run away from home or the joy when they return. In this Zevely Zone I met a grateful cat owner and two Good Samaritans in Vista.
"I love that cat," said Jen Kraus. Her cat Ozzy ran away in December from her home after the cat heard a neighbor's cat howling in heat. "Jumped the wall and took off," said Jen. Ozzy is an indoor cat who escaped the condo and was suddenly on his own. "It's horrifying I mean honestly it's like losing a child," said Jen.
Jen was determined to find him and launched an exhaustive search. "I combed the neighborhood, drove the neighborhood, walked the neighborhood trying to find him," said Jen "Posting on Next Door posting on Craigslist, contacted the Humane Society."
Six weeks went by and just when Jen had all but given up on the other side of Vista. "I suddenly heard a cat deep in the bushes just howling as though it was injured or maybe lost," said Rebecca Reeder.
She and her neighbor Shelby Greene are animal lovers who discovered Ozzy hiding in a bush. "He was scared, he was scared and upset," said Rebecca. Shelby then added, "You could tell he wanted to trust us which was super sweet that is the best part about pets."
Ozzy refused to come out of the bush so Rebecca and Shelby baited him out with you guessed it a cat toy and that's when they had a pet carrier waiting. "He ate four cans of cat food for dinner," said Rebecca "You could feel all of his ribs, he was in bad shape he was starving to death."
Rebecca transferred the cat into a larger cage and spent the night spoiling him. "Played with him in the cage, loved him, rubbed his belly rubbed his cheeks," she said. The next day Shelby took him to the Humane Society and thankfully he was mirco-chipped. "Amazing, literally brought me to tears," said Shelby.
They called Jen Kraus with the good news. "Amazing," said Jen. Ozzy was in rough shape with pads were worn down to the nubs. "I don't know what he was doing, six weeks," said Jen.
I drove in the direction Ozzy traveled, five miles in all crossing train tracks and Highway 78.
Ozzy is named after Ozzy Osbourne and not even the famous rocker ever spent six weeks in the wild. "They did a remarkable thing they didn't just walk away and let him go," said Jen. Ozzy is home and safe and sound.
He's a lucky cat alright with nine lives and two new fans. "They are going to be lifelong friends with me I just can't not say enough about how much effort they put in retrieving him and bringing back to me," said Jen who gave the two Good Samaritans a big hug. "Yay, group hug there we go," they said.
The Humane Society says this is another good example of how micro-chipping your pet can lead to a happy homecoming.