Alaska News

Dabs the cat, found frozen to Anchorage sidewalk, reunited with owner

Dabs, a 1-year-old cat found frozen to a Midtown Anchorage sidewalk early Tuesday morning, has been reunited with her owner. Dillon Henrie, 20, picked up his wayward pet from Anchorage Animal Care and Control Thursday afternoon, where she had been taken after a stay at a veterinarian's office.

The cat, after being found severely hypothermic and unresponsive two days earlier, may still lose part of her tail to frostbite. Henrie said the cat is headed to the vet for a follow-up appointment next week.

But Thursday, the cat seemed happy to be back with her owner. It was a big change for Dabs, who was discovered frozen to a sidewalk at the corner of Arctic Boulevard and 32nd Avenue days earlier. She was barely conscious, covered in her own feces and urine, with her tail frozen nearly solid.

Dabs was attentive and exploring a small room at the AACC shelter, where the reunion with Henrie took place on Thursday.

"She recognized me right away," Henrie said. "She came right up to the door of the kennel when I walked in."

Henrie said Dabs escaped from his apartment sometime Monday afternoon.

"I walked into the house and thought I had closed the door, but it got caught on some carpet," Henrie said. By the time he discovered the door was still open, the cat was gone.

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After searching in vain in temperatures that dipped into the single digits, Henrie went home and began posting pleas for help in finding the animal on Facebook and Twitter. Henrie said that as night fell and temperatures kept dropping, he hoped that someone had taken his cat in, even if it meant he would never see her again.

But Dabs, an indoor cat, spent the night outside. She was found almost 18 hours later, near death.

"She is tougher than me. I don't think I could have made it after 17 hours outside," Henrie said.

When she escaped, Dabs was not wearing any identification and was not microchipped. Publicity over the cat's recovery from the sidewalk, along with social media posts, eventually led Henrie to his feline companion.

The No. 1 reason wayward animals are not reunited with their owners is a lack of identification. Anchorage Animal Care and Control officials said most lost animals are never claimed by their owners, especially if they don't have a microchip or other form of current identification. An Ohio State Study showed that cats were 20 times more likely to be reunited with their owners if they were microchipped.

Henrie said the cat is now chipped and swears to make sure the information is always up to date in case Dabs decides to go on another walkabout.

On Thursday, Henrie and the cat were looking forward to going back home. And Dabs will soon have a new high-rise to commemorate her close call with the Grim Reaper. Henrie said he bought a new 53-inch-tall cat tower so she can rule his apartment in style. It will be Dabs' second home, so to speak.

"I already have a 48-inch one," Henrie said. "So I'll just combine them."

As for the happy ending to the ordeal, Henrie said it showed him that the world isn't as mean a place as he once thought.

"It's really cool," Henrie said. "It shows that there are good people left."

Sean Doogan

Sean Doogan is a former reporter for Alaska Dispatch and Alaska Dispatch News.

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