A Fort Hall family is $5,000 richer after recently finding a slender, black cat with green eyes, named Panther, in the Tyhee area.
Dakota Worrell, of Pocatello, announced a $5,000 reward for the safe return of the female cat, which went missing on the night of May 20. Worrell and his girlfriend, Hannah Green, are the owners.
Worrell said he and Green personally investigated about 30 leads before receiving the call at 8:15 p.m. Sunday that led them to be reunited with their beloved pet.
Worrell also had the staff of his company, DW Investors, combing the area for the cat, with help from several community volunteers.
“I knew every day that went by the chances of finding her decreased substantially,” Worrell said, adding that he can always make more money, but there’s no way to put a price on the bond he and Green have with Panther.
Worrell is especially pleased that the family who claimed the reward was in need of a financial break. The father explained to him that Panther had approached his daughter and placed her head in her lap. The father initially thought she was a feral cat, before seeing the photograph in an Idaho State Journal article about the reward.
Worrell asked the man if he had any big plans for the reward money. The man assured Worrell that he needed cash to get caught up on car payments and household bills.
Worrell said he began searching for the cat when Panther didn’t come in for breakfast on May 21. He knocked on several doors throughout his neighborhood and one person who saw a photograph informed him that a woman had been trapping cats, including Panther.
Worrell went to the woman’s home, and she confirmed she had, indeed, trapped the cat and dumped it in the Ross Park area. Worrell is skeptical that she identified the actual dumping location, based on the considerable distance between Ross Park and Tyhee, where the cat was ultimately found.
Josh Heinz, director of Pocatello Animal Services, said the city recently suspended a program through which residents trap feral cats and the city spays or neuters them and re-releases them. He said the program was placed on hold based on the lack of available veterinarians.
However, Heinz said residents may still trap problem cats on their property. The law requires anyone who traps a cat to turn it over to animal services. Heinz noted that having an animal at large — regardless of whether it’s a dog or a cat — is against city code.
Failing to turn over a trapped cat to the proper authorities is also grounds for a misdemeanor citation punishable by up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine. Heinz said people may place food in their live traps but are prohibited from seeking to lure cats into their yard by using a trail of bait. Poison is also prohibited. Anyone who sets out a trap also must monitor it regularly.
Efforts to reach the woman who reportedly trapped the cat were unsuccessful.
Worrell said he and Green were moved by the support from the many community members who braved the rain and cold to help search for his cat.
“I have lived in so many communities, and I can’t think of one place where that would have happened,” Worrell said.
