A woman has appealed for help finding her cat after it was lost in transit to Brussels Airport last week.
Camelia, 56, flew with Dan Air from Bacău, Romania, on 17 July to return to Brussels, where she works at a hotel.
Originally from Romania, Camelia has lived and worked in the Belgian capital for years but regularly travels back home visit her daughter Patricia, 27.
As she always does, Camelia travelled with the family pet, Mishu. The 10-year-old cat reportedly flew in a transport cage in the aircraft's cargo hold, since it exceeded Dan Air's weight limit for cabin travel.
However, when Camelia went to collect Mishu after landing at Brussels Airport in Zaventem, she was handed an empty cage, her daughter told The Brussels Times.
Where is the cat?
Camelia called Patricia while still at the airport, hoping that her daughter's better understanding of French would help piece together what had happened.
“She sounded very different; she seemed shocked. I told her to be calm and that we would find him,” Patricia recalled, explaining that Mishu has been a companion for her mother since her husband died and Patricia moved abroad for her studies.
Patricia said she spoke over the phone with a man she understood worked for the airport.
After checking CCTV camera footage, the man reportedly told her that Mishu was seen jumping out of the cage while on a vehicle used to transport luggage from the aircraft to the airport.
Mishu with Patricia during his recent trip to Romania. Credit: Supplied
It is unclear what exactly went wrong or where. Patricia said the cage had previously been used to transport Mishu without any issues, and that he was properly secured when her mother handed him to staff in Romania to be loaded onto the aircraft.
Patricia said the transport cage appeared to be slightly damaged at the top when it was returned to her mother in Brussels. The damage meant there was just enough room for the cat to escape.
“I think maybe something fell on the cage or the cage fell off…I'm sure if something heavy had fallen on the cage, it's normal that he was afraid and he escaped,” she added.
‘I refuse to give up’
Patricia says her mother has since followed up on the incident with Brussels Airport, the ground handling operators Aviapartner and SkyCap, and the airline Dan Air, but to no avail.
A spokesperson for Brussels Airport told The Brussels Times that after being notified of the incident, its Customer Care team contacted Aviapartner.
“They were informed of the situation and were taking the necessary measures,” the airport spokesperson said, noting that the matter falls under the responsibility of the concerned airline as the cat travelled in the aircraft's cargo hold.
As days passed without news of Mishu, Patricia took to social media to ask for help. “My family has been desperately trying to find him,” she wrote on Facebook. “My heart is broken, but I refuse to give up.”
Have you seen Mishu?
The response to Patricia's first post, which has been shared over 900 times, has been “overwhelming", but is yet to produce any leads.
Patricia describes Mishu as a male Chartreux cat with blue-grey fur and coppery orange eyes. She warns that he is an indoor cat, meaning he could be scared to approach strangers. He has a microchip and has been neutered.
Mishu is a 10-year-old male Chartreux cat with blue-grey fur and coppery orange eyes. Credit: Supplied
Patricia has asked anyone with relevant information about Mishu to contact her via private message on Facebook.
“Mishu is not just a pet, he is a member of our family. We are devastated and desperately want to bring him home,” she wrote.
The Brussels Times contacted the airline Dan Air, the baggage handlers Aviapartner and SkyCap, and the Romanian BCM airport for comment but has yet to receive a response as of the time of publication.
