BETTENDORF, Iowa (KWQC/Gray News) – A cross-country trip, a car repair shop and a loving family all played a part in reuniting a girl with cerebral palsy with her beloved cat, who had been missing for a year and a half.
The story begins in June 2023 when a couple traveling cross country stopped in Bettendorf, Iowa. They heard faint meowing from their truck but were unable to locate the sound’s source. So, they took the truck to Ace Auto Doctor & Repair, KWQC reports.
“They knew something was going on. They couldn’t find the cat, so that’s what brought them here. They just Google searched us and found us,” said Niki Dahl, the main service advisor at the shop.
Dustin Goff, the shop manager and owner, discovered the cat trapped in the truck’s frame.
“She was in the back passenger corner of the car, kind of on the fuel tank, and she did not want to come down. It took a couple of us to get her out of there,” Goff said.
After freeing the cat, Goff couldn’t bear to send it to a shelter.
“It was so friendly. I just didn’t want to send it to the Humane Society because once I got it out of there, it kind of cuddled up with me and wouldn’t leave me alone… I decided I was going to take it out to my farm, and it was going to live with me,” Goff said.
Months later, during a trip to the veterinarian, a microchip revealed the cat’s connection to a family in Montana.
The cat belongs to the family’s little girl, Neji, who is living with cerebral palsy and had been without her best friend for over a year and a half. Her cat had gone missing from her grandfather’s home in Nebraska, where it had been staying while the family was on a short trip to New York.
“It’s kind of special for me because of the bond my granddaughter has with the cat. To come across it after that long, I was just beside myself. I couldn’t believe it, and I couldn’t get in the car fast enough,” said Neji’s grandfather, Richard Tolsted.
Tolsted traveled to Bettendorf to pick up the cat from the auto shop Friday. He initially didn’t tell his granddaughter about the find, wanting to surprise her.
In photos, Neji can be seen beaming with joy Sunday night after reuniting with her long-lost cat.
“Being able to give the cat back to the little girl, I think that’s my favorite part,” Goff said.
“Just puts tears in my eyes,” Dahl said. “I love it. It’s so cute.”
Neji’s family adopted the cat at an event in Salt Lake City, where nearly 400 other pets also found homes. They named her Utah after the state.
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