Mum has cried herself to sleep for 8 weeks over her lost, possibly stolen, snow Bengal cat

NEWS AND COMMENT: The story is a reminder that people who live with glamorous purebred cats really have to keep them indoors all the time. And because of that they should also seriously consider building a catio or a garden enclosure for their full-time indoor cat. The story concerns an 18 months old snow Bengal cat called Meeka. She has been lost since August 21, 2021. This post is dated October 19, 2021.

Snow Bengal cat lost for weeks and owner cries every night. Photo: Asia Sattar.

It seems that the owner, Asia Sattar, 51, and her family including her 20-year-old daughter Mariyya allowed Meeka to go outside unsupervised. That is quite unusual for a snow Bengal cat because they really are striking in appearance. They are bound to catch the eye of anybody who notices them. You're going to get somebody who perhaps isn't a thief but who is predisposed to being a thief being provoked into stealing this cat. That may be what has happened.

Meeka and Mariyya. Photo: the family.

It is unusual to have professional cat thieves roaming around your area but you will have ordinary citizens and neighbours who suddenly want to possess this wonderful looking cat and they can't resist it. And then when they keep the cat inside all the time you are never going to know where she's gone to.

Sattar believes that Meeka has been stolen. The presumed theft was reported to the police on August 28 but they did nothing as far as I can tell and they have closed the file. That's another problem in the UK at the moment. The police are sitting on their hands. They do not get off their bottoms for this sort of crime.

They don't do anything for a whole range of crimes including thefts up to thousands of pounds. They simply wash their hands of them. The criminals know this and they know that they will not be caught. This promotes criminality. The police are in acute dereliction of their duty at this present time. It is shameful behaviour and citizens like myself and this lady who has lost a cat are on our own. We have to deal with things without the support of law enforcement in the UK.

Asia's father was very close to Meeka and he still searches for her. He still puts up posters and they have offered a £1,500 reward. Judging by the length of time that the cat has been missing I think we can be very confident that they will not get their cat back unless something big changes.

They might seek the assistance of the cat detective. There is one in the UK who is pretty successful. I am surprised that they haven't contacted him. Sometimes cats do come back after a very long time. Perhaps she hasn't been stolen and is just wondering, having become a stray cat living in the wild. Sometimes domestic cats do that. But I doubt it.

And this, I think, is one of the downsides of owning a purebred cat especially the glamorous ones. You have to keep them in. A lot of people would say you have to keep all cats inside but in the UK it is not the default position. She got to build a catio if she has not done so already, and you've got to leash train your purebred cat if you want to take them outside unsupervised. There are extra things to do and extra responsibilities when you own a snow Bengal cat.