A US Navy officer is hoping to be reunited with her cat, who is stranded in Bahrain where she rescued it while on assignment, with the help of an NGO.
Dawn Patterson, a master-at-arms in the Navy, had rescued “Mr Grumpuss” and nursed it back to health during her fourth deployment overseas.
Ms Patterson, who has been in service for 17 years, was told at the last minute before returning home to Virginia that she would not be able to take her pet due to “unavoidable logistical complications”.
The officer reached out to Paws of War, a non-profit organisation that assists military personnel and their pets, to ask for help facilitating the cat’s return.
One of its members “rushed to get the cat”, and it now is being looked after by foster carers.
Ms Patterson said she would not feel at peace until Mr Grumpuss, named for its grumpy-looking face, was back with her.
“His little grumpy face is always looking up at me when I walk in the door after a hard day at work. His Grumpy face always makes me smile. He is my security blanket,” the officer said.
She added: “I will be so appreciative if Paws of War can help bring him back to me. My baby must be lonely and confused, so I know he will be just as thrilled to see me.”
The organisation is raising funds to bring the cat to the United States and handle the logistics.
Robert Misseri, co-founder of Paws of War, called the situation a “nightmare” that “nobody who has pets would want to experience”.
“We were lucky to have someone to foster the cat while we work to raise the funds and make the arrangements to safely get Mr Grumpuss home and reunited with his Navy officer,” he added.
More than 1,300 supporters have so far donated to help bring the cat back home.
