Document text
Wayward cat returned (again) to Ashland store ASHLAND -- One of Ashland Hardware's permanent fixtures is back in the store today after a two-week absence. And no, it's not a plumbing return. Pete, a gray 6-year-old female feline, was found recently by a cat-lover near the south Ashland freeway interchange. The news lifted spirits at the hardware store, where an intensive search had been made of the nearby railroad cars and neighborhood. "Yesterday we just gave away her cat food because we were feeling, `Aw, she's not coming back,' " said assistant manager Mike Brown. "We were really missing Pete. She's one of the employees here." Ashland resident Tracy Tagen found the skinny and sick cat and took her to a veterinarian. Only when she got the cat home did a friend mention that the cat resembled one in a missing poster at the hardware store. Tagen refused a reward offered by the store's owner, Paul Comstock. But he did convince her to let him pay the vet bill. "It's just a miracle that someone found her," said manager Cathy Trower. "She's just a special kitty." This isn't the first time Pete has taken a walk on the wild side. When she was a kitten, she climbed into a customer's car and rode almost to the California border before she was discovered and returned. Another time she was found near the Ashland Community Hospital. "I think she has a tendency to like cars," explained Trower. Employees now report that Pete is feeling perky, has a new collar and is being spoiled rotten. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA