Screenshot: KITV
When Hillary Sutherland and her family moved from Hawaii to Michigan more than 19 months ago, they left behind more than year-round tan lines and fresh pineapple. The family’s Siamese cat, Bogie, somehow escaped his kennel in the United Cargo hold at Honolulu International Airport. Despite the best efforts of the airline and its employees, Bogie couldn’t be found and, after almost two years, the family had started to accept that maybe he was lost forever. Sutherland told KITV:
Weeks went by. Months went by and, you know, pretty much we’d given up hope.
But while the Sutherlands were wondering if they’d ever know what happened to their pet, Bill Antilla was trying to befriend an unusual looking cat that he’d seen near the Honolulu Airport. Antilla, an animal shelter volunteer who spends his spare time feeding feral cats, knew that the purebred Siamese didn’t exactly fit with the other strays he looked after. Antilla wondered if the cat could be someone’s missing pet, so he borrowed a microchip scanner and discovered that yes, the animal had been ‘chipped by his previous owners. Antilla worked with the Hawaiian Humane Society who traced Bogie to the Sutherlands, almost 4,500 miles away. Bogie was then safely (and securely) flown to his “ecstatic” family in Detroit.
In a statement to KHON, a United spokesperson explained the circumstances around Bogie’s disappearance.
Our agents were working to secure the door of the kennel with plastic ties to ensue Bogie’s safety throughout the flight. However, during this process the cat escaped from his kennel. Our teams searched for the cat and put up posters in the surrounding areas. We are overjoyed that Bogie has been reunited with his owner.
According to statistics from the Department of Transportation that have been compiled by aviation attorney Jol A. Silversmith, between May 2005 and May 2015, domestic airlines have lost 52 animals: 37 cats, 13 dogs and two birds. Three of the dogs and 1 cat were reported as being recovered and, thanks to one well-meaning volunteer, Bogie can be added to that list too.