Traveling cat found on the tarmac at Toronto’s Pearson Airport 3 days after it went missing

Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a three-day ordeal while lost at Pearson International Airport earlier this week.

The gray British Shorthair cat arrived on an Air Transat flight from Glasgow, Scotland, on Sunday morning, but when the cat’s owner went to pick him up at the baggage claim area, Kevin was nowhere to be found. .

“It was a huge heartbreak,” Whitby resident Jackie Winterfield told CP24.com.

“We had no idea if he was alive or dead.”

The feline in question belongs to Winterfield’s daughter Emily, 22, who had been living abroad for the past three years.

Winterfield said that once she got off the plane, Emily went to look for her cat in the baggage claim area, but “found (the carrier) empty on the baggage carousel.”

For the next six hours, Winterfield’s daughter scoured the airport looking for Kevin, but ultimately returned home empty-handed and distraught, she said.

Then, early Wednesday morning, the family received a call from the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA), which runs Pearson: Kevin had been found and turned over to the Canada Border Services Agency.

It’s unclear where the cat spent the previous 72 hours, but Winterfield told CP24.com that an agent informed him that the animal had been found on the tarmac.

Winterfield said Kevin was returned to them hungry, thirsty, tired and covered in black soot, but noted that after a good bath, a long nap and some food and water, he appears to be fine.

“It’s a mostly happy ending,” Winterfield said.

In a statement provided to CP24.com, Air Transat said they “regret the unfortunate mishap that occurred during Kevin’s journey from Glasgow to Toronto.”

“Air Transat takes the care and safety of all pets transported very seriously and we deeply sympathize with the distress this has caused Kevin’s owner,” spokesperson Bernard Côté wrote in an email.

“We want to assure you that our team did everything possible to locate Kevin once we were notified of his escape.”

The problems started before takeoff: mother

Winterfield said his problems with Air Transat began before the flight left Scotland.

Whitby’s mother said her daughter had done everything she could to ensure the cat returned safely to her home in Canada, even going so far as to purchase a special soft-sided carrier and pay in advance for the pet to travel with her. in the cabin.

However, on the day of the trip, he said the airline refused to allow the animal into the plane cabin, citing “a problem with the carrier.”

Instead, Kevin was offered a spot in the cargo bay, he said.

Winterfield said his daughter’s partner had to hastily purchase a new, rigid aircraft carrier for Kevin before the flight took off. They were also charged an additional £200 at the time, she said.

“It was so ridiculous,” Winterfield said.

“It’s just shocking to see how negligent this airline can be.”

The family says they have since spoken with an attorney and are considering legal action.

According to the GTAA, “traveling pets” are welcome at Pearson.

Spokesman Fabrice de Dongo offered the following advice to owners:

“While their transportation is the responsibility of each airline, we remind passengers that, for their safety and comfort, pets must remain inside their carriers at all times. We also ask travelers to inform their airline, when booking their flight, that they plan to travel with their pet,” he wrote in a statement provided to CP24.

“With all the necessary information at hand, each airline will be able to advise on the size of airline needed, as well as the travel documents required. …Once again, Air Transat and/or the individual airlines are in the best position to discuss their policies and guidelines.”