ST. LOUIS — A "purr-fect" ending, you may say!
A missing housecat is home safe after taking a walk on the wild side at the Saint Louis Zoo.
Anderson Spencer said he was walking with his friend and his cat "Bea" near the south entrance of the Saint Louis Zoo last month.
They were harness-training Bea when 20 minutes into their outing, something scared her and she unfortunately got away.
Spencer and his friend watched as she ran across the road toward the Zoo and were unable to catch her.
"My heart was absolutely broken, and I felt an immense amount of guilt for putting her in a situation where she would be scared enough to run away from me," Spencer said.
Spencer contacted the Zoo that day and asked if they had seen her but had no luck. They took down his information and she began to search for her.
He walked through Forest Park, stayed out until the Zoo closed and set out food for her, hoping Bea would come back.
It wasn't until two weeks later on Aug. 3 when his luck turned around. He received a call from the Zoo saying that staff had spotted her three days prior but were unable to catch her.
The next day, Spencer arrived at the Zoo to take a look.
"To my surprise, she was on the roof of the antelope enclosure," he said. "She had traveled halfway across the zoo from where she was initially lost."
A staff member and Spencer climbed onto the roof and were able to rescue Bea after around 15 minutes.
The Zoo confirmed to 5 On Your Side that Bea was located on the antelope house roof and was able to safely collect and reunite the two.
She was a bit skinny, Spencer said, but otherwise doing well.
"She got lots of treats when we got home, and it’s safe to say she is not allowed outside ever again," Spencer said.
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