Last week at the cats only boarding facility, we had two guests make a break for it within the same day.
The first escape artist was a pudgy grey cat named Tee. Miss Tee waited until everybody went home for the night and then snuck out. She managed to squeeze her way out the sliding glass door that separates the main boarding room from the rest of the facility.
I can only imagine how Tee entertained herself all night long. Frolicking in the waiting room on the veterinarian side? Exploring the surgery room? Investigating the storage areas? One of the vet techs found her on Friday morning (and got the scare of her life — out of the corner of her eye, she saw some grey, shadowy thing moving around the hallway).
We were all glad that Tee didn’t get hurt or stuck somewhere — she had her adventure and came back safe and sound.
You’d think one cat escaping would make us all extra-careful, right? Before we finished the morning shift, we checked ALL the cages. Every one was closed and latched. We checked the sliding glass door. Securely closed. Nobody was getting out. Right?
Wrong.
That very afternoon, clever Mister Hawkeye managed to get his condo door open! Again, one of the vet techs stopped in and caught him before he got too far. Over the weekend, we caught Hawkeye trying again — batting and pawing at the latch.
I’ve had cats make a break for it once in a while. Somebody will sneak out the door of the condo while I’m changing water, cleaning, or picking up dirty dishes. Once in a while, a cat will squirm free while I’m trying to weigh him. But this is the first time I’ve had guests breaking out of their cages! I hope it’s not the beginning of a trend.