This is Scarlett, a nearly 6-month-old cat who lives on Monclair Avenue in the city. She has never been outside, until now of course, and her household is up in arms over her sudden disappearance.
Naturally, you are expected to keep your eyes peeled and find this feline, who by the way, was named after the fictional heroine Scarlett O'Hara and not Hollywood's Scarlett Johansson.
"She almost looks Chinese, but she's not," says her mom, Tracey Cook. (Did she mean Siamese?)
She suspects Scarlett may have darted out last night around midnight when her son, who lives happily in the basement, left to walk his girlfriend home from work.
This morning at 8 o'clock, the neighbor lady in the adjoining duplex reported seeing a slim snip of a white and gray cat on her back porch but had no idea it was Cook's cat -- since it had never been outside, until it got outside, you know.
The neighbor heretofore was only aware of Scarlett's big brother, who is neutered and goes in and out as he sees fit.
"I would've scooped her up," lamented the neighbor about the lost opportunity.
The neighbor said Scarlett was laying on the back porch. We say she was languidly lounging, oblivious, in a sunny spot before dashing off someplace in search of naughty fun.
"I'm afraid she'll get hit by a car ... we live close to Main Street," Cook wrote in her email, which also noted the prospect that someone might try to steal the kitten!
"She’s an emotional support animal and is in process of being registered as same," according to Cook.
Where's that emotional support when you need it most?
Scarlett's family and friends have scoured the neighborhood, peered up trees, beat the bushes and even went over to -- "Holland Ave," a known "hot cat spot," Cook says, to see if she wound up there.
Meanwhile, there are three "cat ladies" (they know who they are) who have been informed of this breach of security -- unauthorized access to the outside world --and they are quite skilled in cat-luring techniques.
Hopefully, it's just a matter of time. And it is ticking. Scarlett is due at the vet's in a couple days to be spayed.
An unspecified reward is being offered.
If you see Scarlett, call or text Tracey Cook at (585) 356-6082, or email: brewertracey@aol.com
Photos courtesy of Tracey Cook.
