Pet cat reunited with family in Dubai after 8 years

Dubai - The cat was stolen from its owners in 2010.

A Dubai-based Dutch family's new year revelries were extra special as they celebrated the return of their 11-year-old cat Nognix. Meaning 'nothing yet' in Dutch, Nognix, a white albino cat with blue eyes was stolen from Wido Dijkstra and his family in 2010 after he had lived with them for close to two years. After eight years, the family had given up hope of ever finding Nognix again.
However, thanks to Lena Elena, a cat rescue activist and the cat's microchip, he returned home to his family in March 2018, and now the Dijkstra family is close to celebrating a year of living and loving the now 11-year-old Nognix. Highlighting the importance of microchipping your pets, Elena shared the cat's story on The Bin Kitty Collective Facebook page.
"It was a miracle we found his family again. He was deaf and was abandoned in the Sharjah Bu Tina area. Survival is impossible for a deaf cat, that's the only reason I picked him up," Elena told Khaleej Times.
In Nognix's case, she is very happy to have found his family. Dijkstra, his wife Marien, and their children Daniel and Leonard have been residents of the UAE for 13 years.
The telecommunications professional had adopted the cat from Satwa. "We decided to name him Nognix, which means 'nothing yet' in Dutch. Back then, he was a little bit of a nothing cat. He was skinny, had a bad skin disease, but we thought he was a beautiful cat," Dijkstra told Khaleej Times.
"We looked around for him a lot. He was deaf and such cats have lesser chance of survival. Nognix was also an active cat, and would keep going out of our apartment in the Greens often," he explained.
After searching for a long time, the family thought maybe someone took him away.
Speaking about their almost one-year of interaction with the cat, Dijkstra believes that the cat remembers them. He said: "I think he remembers us as he did the same tricks as before. He is a little bit older and healthier now. He goes up to my older son's door at 5.30am to 6am to look for food. My kids' have bonded with him very well."
The family also said that the entire episode has taught them the importance of microchipping their pets. Dijkstra said: "It is very important to microchip your cat, and look after him. Cats are very independent animals, and in this case, we were just very lucky to have him back."
dhanusha@khaleejtimes.com

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