Inver couple who lost cats in car crash in France reunited with one of their pets

The Underwood family home in Drumfin, Inver, had a lonely Christmas when their family pets were absent after they escaped from their car while on a trip through France in October.

But the New Year has brought some joy with the news that one of the four treasured cats was located in the south of France and this week is being reunited with his owners.

David and Heather Underwood have been living in the Underwood family home and about three years ago after they moved into the house, a stray cat appeared.

David's sister, Pauline, tells the story: "They had no children and I don't think they ever had a pet.

"But they took to this cat and she was pregnant. She had four kittens in the house. We were all concerned and we wanted to find homes for them. But they wouldn't let any of them go. They wanted them all.

"They kept them and they adored them. Then on a couple of occasions when they went to England and Spain, they took the cats with them and back by car. The cats were vaccinated and had everything that they needed for travel.

"They were back and forth quite a bit. And then in October, they were heading back again to Spain. The mother cat had left the family home, so they had just the four kittens, who were now bigger.

"They were travelling through France near the Spanish border at Béziers on the motorway when they were hit from behind by a car. It turned them around and the car was a write-off. The cages in which the cats were came apart and the cats escaped. They weren't hit on the motorway and ran into the greenery at the side."

David and Heather were heartbroken and hung around the area for a few days with no car. They started putting posters up everywhere, in the woods and the general area. 

"Of course, we thought they were a bit daft, but that's what they did," said Pauline. "They went back to Spain when they got a 'phone call a few weeks later from a lady called Gabriella who felt she had found the black cat Sooty.

"They still had no car but they travelled on a bus to meet the lady, but it wasn't their cat.

"In the meantime, they came back to Ireland and the same lady phoned them again saying that she felt she had located one of the cats. She caught it and had it back at her house, a vineyard. She sent photos of the cat and we all looked and compared all the pics.

"This lady took it to a vet to get checked because it is chipped, and it is their cat, which is magic."

Rudy had been found. Last week David and Heather left Donegal again on Thursday morning to be reunited with Rudy. They flew to Barcelona and are hiring a car to drive to Béziers. Three months after the accident on October 14, they will have one of their three 'children' back.

"Isn't that lady amazing to have found the cat?" said Pauline.

As for David and Heather, Pauline says: "They are over the moon. They just treasured those cats. It would be nice if they all turned up but it is highly unlikely."

Indeed, with the amount of publicity the story is generating, especially in the Béziers area, there has to be a good chance that Sooty, Ginger or Patch will be located. The good news story has also been picked up by the local Mayor in Béziers, Robert Menard, who plans to meet Rudy.