Cat at center of Wake County custody battle to be returned to owner in Kansas

FUQUAY-VARINA, N.C. (WNCN) -- A cat at the center of a custody battle across several states will be returned to Kansas, Wake County Animal Center officials say.

The cat was brought to 5-Points Animal Hospital in Fuquay-Varina a few weeks ago after being found outside. When the cat was scanned for a microchip, veterinarians found the cat was registered to an owner, Carol Holmes, in Wichita, Kansas.

Holmes said ten years ago, the cat, which she named Bob, got outside and went missing. It’s around that time when Alexandra Streight said the cat, who she renamed Maui, showed up on her property in Kansas.

Streight said she took him in and has been caring for him for the last decade. When her family moved to Fuquay-Varina, the cat came along. Streight said she never got the cat microchipped, and she did not know he already had one.

Since being found in Wake County, Streight and Holmes have both claimed ownership of the cat. On Monday, the Wake County Animal Center worked with the County Attorney’s Office to decide that the cat should be returned to Holmes in Kansas.

In a statement, Animal Center representative said: “Ms. Holmes has confirmed that she is the cat’s owner, that she had no intention to abandon the cat when it disappeared from her property, that she wishes to reclaim the cat, and that she has the means to make arrangements for the cat to be transported back to Ms. Holmes’ home in Kansas.”