Miracle on Rd. 34 brings kitty home

By Mark Ribble

Yes Roberta, there is a Santa Claus, at least that was the case for a wayward kitty and her owner right before Christmas.

Allie, a five-year-old long-haired white cat, went out for her usual business on December 14 and refused to come back in when called.

Roberta Adlam, who has three rescue cats including Allie, became concerned when Allie didn’t appear at her Queens Avenue door for the next three days.

She decided to have posters printed on day four and set out to spread the word about her missing feline.

“I was calling people and going around looking for her,” says Roberta. “Everyone was incredibly awesome.”

Roberta said that several people offered to put the poster on social media for her.

After putting out the posters, she had a knock on her door from a neighbour she hadn’t met before.

The lady said she had gone to Leamington’s Giant Tiger the previous day and as she turned into the parking lot there, she heard a thud.

In her rear-view mirror, she saw a large white cat scamper across Talbot Street.

Roberta then set her sights on the Talbot Street East area for the next several days — making visits to the area and calling for Allie — with no luck.

On the morning of December 20, which was day six for the missing pet, she walked into the Southpoint Sun office to place an ad in the paper.

“Time was running out,” she said. “I knew there was a storm coming.”

The missing cat ad got into the paper on December 21 with the hope that someone had seen Allie and would make the call.

With a massive storm set to hit the area, Roberta wasn’t feeling optimistic about Allie’s chance of survival through the storm.

However, on Wednesday, December 21, her fortunes changed. She had parked her car on Talbot Street near downtown and walked a fair distance to the area of the Superstore in a last ditch effort to find her kitty.

“I had just passed by the creek (on Talbot East) and made my way into the yard of that big white house, shaking a box of treats to make some noise,” she said.

All of a sudden Allie popped her head out from under a pile of wood in the yard.

“I nearly had a heart attack,” she said.

Allie came out and she was reunited with her companion just before the temperatures were supposed to plummet.

She took Allie straight to the Southpoint Sun office next door and waited there until a friend was able to come pick both of them up.

“The best Christmas present I’ve ever had,” she said.

Allie is none worse for the wear, although Roberta thinks she lost a little weight on her adventure.

“She got a free ride out there and was fortunate to survive,” she said.

Allie is not street-smart and Roberta considers it a miracle that she was able to get across the busy street after falling out of the underside of her neighbour’s car.

“She must have been under there to keep warm and was lucky to get out unscathed,” she said.

All-in-all, Allie had an eight-day adventure and was safely back home in time for Christmas and avoided being out in the storm.

As for Roberta, she is grateful to the community for all their help.

“Everyone was so helpful and positive and I just want to say thank you,” she said.

Roberta Adlam with Allie after spending a quiet Christmas at home. Allie was on the run for over a week and was found just before the big storm hit. SUN photo