Erin Keller remembers feeling a strange sense of longing gripping her heart when she and her husband Gerald first moved out of their home. She felt the need to find that stray cat she had been feeding for months before their move. Her husband had also been pondering over whose cat it really was.
Keller insisted, “But I asked the neighbors nearby, and no one recognized it.”
She told The Epoch Times, “I glanced back at the community where we used to live, then stepped out of the car. Suddenly, the once very wary cat ran towards me and unexpectedly snuggled into my open arms.”
Ms. Keller tucked the cat into her backpack, knowing that adopting this seemingly abandoned cat was the right decision. But she never expected that this decision would answer the prayers of an elderly man over a thousand kilometers away for three years.
It was in 2016, this young couple had a deep affection for this furry stray cat. However, when they took it to the vet for a check-up, they received a shocking message. The vet wanted to confiscate the cat because the microchip on the cat indicated that it already had an owner.
“This isn’t your cat, we have to keep it!” the vet said sternly.
The Kellers were both shocked and saddened, looking at each other, unsure of what to do.
At that moment, the door to the examination room opened again. The clinic staff, with a furrowed brow, told them, “There seems to be a problem, as we have found the elderly owner of the cat in the microchip database.” The staff handed them a phone, “The cat’s owner wants to talk to you.”
After a few minutes of conversation, Erin Keller and the cat’s owner, William Dorsch, were in tears because they finally understood what had happened.
The elderly man explained that three years ago, he lost his beloved cat Ladybug on a journey from his home in southern Florida to Ohio, moving closer to his family. Ladybug had slipped out of his car in a congested area near a restaurant in Tampa, Florida, where the Kellers were living at the time.
Mr. Dorsch revealed that he delayed his trip, desperately searching for his pet cat. Three days later, his hope shattered, and he reluctantly continued his journey, sadly leaving behind the 12-year-old cat. But he never stopped praying for its safety.
With tears in his eyes, Mr. Dorsch pleaded, “Do you love it?” He explained that he knew he had to move to a care facility that did not allow pets.
“Yes! We will always love it!” Erin sobbed.
Mr. Dorsch informed the vet that he would relinquish ownership of the cat, allowing the Kellers to bring the elderly cat home.
Erin Keller said, “I got chills all over my body. Mr. Dorsch mentioned that he had been praying for it for years, hoping that his beloved cat could find a peaceful place, and finding out it was still alive, he was very grateful and relieved.”
Years of correspondence began from that point on. Mr. Dorsch sent photos of Ladybug and his other cat, Will, to the Kellers. He also sent a card with a check marked “for cat food.” However, the Kellers never cashed those checks. They were placed in a box, along with letters and photos.
Meanwhile, the Keller family continued to grow. They had two daughters born subsequently. The beloved orange cat was eventually named Pusskin, playing a new role of looking after their two children.
Seven years after it was rescued, the pumpkin-colored cat now strolls dignifiedly in the Keller family’s home in Florida. It accompanies the blonde girls playing in the lush yard. When they finish their homeschooling for the day, it likes to sit on their laps. At night when the children go to bed, it goes to their bedside to check on the two sisters.
Their mother revealed, “Wherever the girls go, it follows them. When they jump on the trampoline, it jumps with them. Cats don’t usually do that. It’s more like a dog; it’s always with us.”
During a phone conversation, the Kellers updated Mr. Dorsch on the cat’s latest adventures, which made him very happy.
However, about two years ago, they realized they hadn’t received any more cards. Mr. Dorsch mentioned his battle with cancer. They tried calling him, but no one answered. After searching online, the Kellers found an obituary.
They could no longer contact his family. But they cherished those letters and photos, realizing that their effort for the stray cat had ultimately healed a kind old man’s broken heart.
For them, this connection seemed more like a divine revelation than a coincidence. The opportunity to bring peace to the elderly man was truly priceless, just like their orange cat.