Questions Remain, But Willow The Cat Headed Back Home To Colorado
NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- The mystery of Willow the calico cat from Colorado that turned up in Manhattan may have been solved.
Gothamist.com said the feline may have been adopted by a New Yorker on a Colorado ski vacation, thinking she was a stray. The two then flew back to New York, where Willow stayed the next five years.
The cat was found this week on East 20th Street in very good shape and brought to a city animal shelter. Julie Bank, with the city's Animal Care and Control, said the most important part of the story is that Willow will now get to go home.
"The great news is that we're going to be able to get her home to her rightful owners in Colorado," Bank told 1010 WINS. "The bottom line is it's still great news for Willow, because Willow got into our care.
Bank said that microchip in the cat helped officials start the process of getting Willow back to her "loving, responsible owners."
The story of Willow also provides an important lesson for pet owners, according to Bank.
"The message is A. microchip your animal, B. keep that microchip current with current address information -- so if an animal does get found, it can get returned to you and C. if you do find an animal -- whether you're on vacation or even just near your home -- there might be somebody looking for that animal," she said.
City officials still want to talk to the person who found Willow, but so far that person has not been located.
"We have tried to reach out to the person who turned in the animal to us to see if we could hear more about this story from their perspective, but haven't really heard anything," Bank said.
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