Cat rescued after family dump him in Leeds Bus Station before boarding a Megabus

Leeds Cat Rescue were alerted by members of the public who had witnessed the distressing incident and posted photos of the pet, named Nate, on Facebook.

Leeds Cat Rescue explains why mum of kittens had to be put downA family who appeared to be his owners had attempted to board a long-distance Megabus service to Birmingham, only to be told by the driver that animals were not allowed to travel. They then left Nate, who was not in a car carrier, running loose in the busy bus station and left on the coach.

15 cats in urgent need of a new home in LeedsAfter rescuing Nate and scanning his microchip, it was discovered that the cat was registered to owners living at an address in London and had been missing since November 2018.

The charity will now return Nate to his original home.

A post on Leeds Cat Rescue's Facebook page said:-

"This evening we were contacted by Leeds City Council, a cat had been dumped in the bus station by people who then boarded a Megabus and left. We were made aware afterwards of reports of the incident on other Facebook pages. We were able to attend rapidly and Nate is now safe, he luckily is microchipped and has been missing since November 2018. He will be reunited with his grateful owners on Friday in his home city, London. We don't know how he came to be in Leeds in the care of these people, but it was incredibly reckless to abandon him in such a busy, dangerous location.

"Thank you to security staff at Leeds Bus Station, Michael who teased him out from under a bush and Teddy the cat, who gave up his chicken dinner!"

"We assume, with him being a friendly, confident boy, that he's been a stowaway in a van or car and has likely been fed by the people that had him. It really shows the importance of microchipping - most strays aren't chipped but will have an owner somewhere."

For advice on chipping, contact the charity at [email protected] or on 07521914398.