Airbnb visitors steal cat and refuse to give it back to owner

A family vacationing in California have stolen a cat from their rental home and refuse to give it back to its owner because it was allegedly neglected.

A vacationing family took a cat from their rental home and then wrote a letter to the town’s sheriff explaining why they won’t be giving it back.

James Wakefield, 70, alleged that a mistreated stray named Nubbins was not owned by anyone and that it was fair to take the cat home with him to be taken care of, according to his letter sent to the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office.

In the three-page letter, Mr Wakefield explained that he stole the feline because no one was taking care of her and that she had been hungry, thirsty, and cold when they found her upon arrival at their vacation rental on Railroad Ave, The US Sun reports.

When the Sonoma County Sheriff Mark Essick told Mr Wakefield that the cat had to be returned to Troy Farrell, its legal owner – who lived in the neighbourhood of the Airbnb – Mr Wakefield said the family was “never going to let that cat get put back in the living condition she was in without a fight”.

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The 4.5kg cat is missing her upper lip and most of her tail. Picture: Troy Farrell

Nubbins quickly became popular among Mr Wakefield's family, though she slept in the house's backyard. Picture: Troy Farrell

Mr Farrell has responded to Mr Wakefield’s accusations of neglect by sharing pictures and videos of times where he’s cared for the cat in his home over the four years she’s lived in the neighbourhood, despite his claim that Nubbins enjoys being an outdoor cat.

“She has so many people who take care of her,” Mr Farrell told a local news outlet.

“She doesn’t want to be an indoor cat. She doesn’t want to be stuck in a house. She just likes to be out and about doing her thing because that’s how she came out.”

The Californian litigator and trial lawyer and his family met Nubbins on their first day in Sonoma for Thanksgiving in November.

The 4.5kg cat was missing her upper lip and most of her tail and was “obviously hungry”.

When Mr Wakefield asked the Airbnb homeowner about the cat, he was told that she was a stray cat in the neighbourhood who wasn’t allowed in any of the neighbour’s houses even in the freezing weather.

A family in the neighbourhood took care of Nubbins after she had her last litter of kittens. Picture: Troy Farrell

She became very popular among Mr Wakefield’s family, though she slept in the house’s backyard they still found ways to “basically just love her” by petting her and providing food and water throughout their five-day stay.

Mr Wakefield’s daughter became concerned about the cat’s health and asked the homeowner if it would be possible for James and his wife to bring Nubbins back home with them.

The owner responded with an enthusiastic yes, according to Mr Wakefield, even saying that it would be “awesome if someone adopted her and gave her a good home”.

Upon taking her to the vet once they returned home, Mr Wakefield discovered that Nubbins had been microchipped by the Farrell family before they got her neutered so that she wouldn’t have any more neighbourhood kittens.

Nubbins currently remains with the Wakefields. Picture: Troy Farrell

The Wakefield family met Nubbins on their first day in Sonoma for Thanksgiving. Picture: Troy Farrell

The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office became involved, prompting Mr Wakefield’s letter of retaliation wherein he details how frustrating this dispute of Nubbin’s ownership has been.

“The cat either dies for lack of medical care or the cat is returned to a neighbourhood that doesn’t care enough about her to protect her from predators or get her out of the freezing windy rain she finds herself in each winter,” Wakefield wrote.

“And Sheriff that says everything I need to know about your character and the character of your organisation.”

Nubbins is currently with the Wakefields in Irvine, California.

“I am certain you will continue to do whatever you can to prevail and get the little cat back outside in the neighbourhood where she belongs,” Mr Wakefield wrote in the conclusion of the letter.

“And you can be assured that your 70-year-old cat nappers will do everything in our ability to protect her.”

It’s unclear if either party will take legal action for the “catnapping”.

The Sun has reached out to Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office for comment.

This article originally appeared in The US Sun and was reproduced with permission