Mysterious tree-sitting cat of San Mateo is found — his humans didn't want him anymore

Siamese litter mates Royce (right) and Bentley are back at the Give Me Shelter Cat Rescue in San Francisco after they were abandoned by their owners. Royce was the cat that sat in a tree in San Mateo for four days. (Nov. 8, 2019) less Siamese litter mates Royce (right) and Bentley are back at the Give Me Shelter Cat Rescue in San Francisco after they were abandoned by their owners. Royce was the cat that sat in a tree in San Mateo for four ... more Photo: Give Me Shelter Cat Rescue Photo: Give Me Shelter Cat Rescue Image 1 of / 7 Caption Close Mysterious tree-sitting cat of San Mateo is found — his humans didn't want him anymore 1 / 7 Back to Gallery

The tree-sitting cat of San Mateo has been found alive and mostly well, his fur filthy and matted, his ribs a little too prominent.

His story is sad and infuriating, but also hopeful.

If you missed previous reports, Royce the cat's 15 minutes of fame came last month 40 feet up a wind-lashed fir tree that he had sat in for four straight days.

Concerned neighbors worried that he would starve milled about under the tree. A TV station truck pulled up and popped out a camera crew. Firefighters mounted a ladder but couldn't reach the striking feline, a flame-point Siamese.

So they sprayed him with water to encourage him to come down. But you know the saying "like herding cats." The herding doesn't come any easier when you hose them first.

The feline did come down in true cat fashion — when nobody was there to persuade him to come down. The Peninsula Humane Society workers had left a cache of savory meat parts and kibble at the bottom of the tree. When they returned, the bowls were cleaned out, and there was no sign of Royce.

Meanwhile, a neighbor called the Humane Society to report that a stray cat that had been loitering around her backyard. A humane trap was set, and, sure enough, it caught a Siamese.

Only this one was the more typical seal-point Siamese, fawn-colored fur with a dark brown face instead of Royce's creamy orange glow.

A microchip revealed that the seal-point was named Bentley. He and his brother — a flame-point Siamese — had been adopted by a San Mateo family as kittens in April 2018 from the Give Me Shelter Cat Rescue in San Francisco. The Humane Society chapter called Give Me Shelter and informed them that they had Bentley in the mandatory four-day "stray hold."

Give Me Shelter repeatedly tried to reach the adopting family by phone to let them know Bentley was found, but there was no response. Perhaps something had happened to them. At this point, shelter staff had no idea if Royce, his flame-point brother, was also missing, but they were beginning to get worried.

On Oct. 23, four days after Bentley was captured, a Give Me Shelter volunteer knocked on the door of his owners' house. No one answered. She saw empty dishes in the backyard. At least the family left some food out before evicting the cats.

"We were horrified. How could this family abandon these precious kitties?" shelter co-director Maria Conlon said.

The volunteer canvassed the neighbors to see if they knew what happened to the family and if they had seen Royce. One of them had.

"She took a photo of the cat (while it was in the tree) and it was definitely Royce!" Conlon said.

There was a good chance he was still in the neighborhood — a cat that had been kept indoors all the time was unlikely to become a roamer once outside. Plus, the fir tree he had climbed was only a short distance away.

The volunteer looked into backyards, alleys and behind landscaping, and got lucky. She spotted Royce slinking about, but he was scared and crying, and wouldn't let her get close to him. The next day Give Me Shelter volunteers returned to the house and managed to trap him.

The family left no forwarding address or means to contact them. They were moving from the area and apparently decided the pets they had cared for a year and a half weren't worth keeping. Weren't worth the effort of finding them a new home. Weren't even worth driving back to Give Me Shelter which would have gladly taken them back.

Conlon estimates that Bentley and Royce fended for themselves for two or three weeks after they were abandoned.

Although they don't know where the family moved to, Give Me Shelter is sharing "do not adopt" information regarding them with other shelters and rescue operations.

It is a misdemeanor to abandon a pet in California.

As for Royce and Bentley, they're spending a few weeks "decompressing" and getting their weight back up at Give Me Shelter, Conlon said. Royce needs some vaccines updated.

They will be available for adoption as a pair in December, Conlon said. The cost is $250.



Hopefully this time they'll be picked by humans more deserving of their companionship.

ALSO: SF firefighters asked to get rid of their beloved cat. They don't want to.

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Mike Moffitt is an SFGATE Digital Reporter. Email: moffitt@sfgate.com. Twitter: @Mike_at_SFGate