Cleaning lady finds a surprise kitty in an empty apartment: ‘This isn’t the distribution system’

Cleaning on TikTok (CleanTok) goes viral for visually satisfying cleanups—from messy apartments to graves. It’s a brain smoothener, but that’s not what happened with Chyna (@noluv.Chyna). She found an unexpected yet adorable cat hiding behind the door of an apartment she was supposed to clean.

Chyna was pre-inspecting an apartment unit that she needed to clean. Those who lived in it just moved out, and it looked spotless at first. The water was working just fine, the electricity was running, and the rooms didn’t have any visible damage. It was all well until Chyna went into one of the bathrooms and checked behind the door.

“I screamed so loud. There was a cat in here,” she said, gesturing behind the door. The cat, also surprised by her presence, jumped on her. Both essentially scared each other at that moment.

The cat took off and climbed onto the rack of an empty room. She’s a calico cat who appears to be gentle. She must have been spooked by Chyna at first, but in the video, the cat seemed to like receiving head pats.

“They left you behind? They’re so mean,” Chyna said. She was frustrated by whoever left the cat alone in the empty apartment. She felt pity for the cat—most people would. It’s unknown how long the house has been vacant, but she must have gone hungry at one point.

The cat distribution system doesn’t work this way

Chyna decided to take the cat home with her, and social media felt pity for it. One commenter pointed out that there was no litter box or food left in the apartment. Anyone who has ever owned a cat would know that some of them would hold in pee or poop if no litter were available. What makes the situation worse is that if the windows and doors were shut, she probably had access to neither food nor water.

Another social media user suggested that Chyna report the previous owners to authorities. Abandoning pets is considered animal cruelty in all states. Although penalties vary, each state has a corresponding punishment for those who abandon or neglect their pets.

One TikTok user said, “This isn’t the distribution system, this is cat abandonment.”

Needless to say, no animal should be left behind just because their owners are moving places. But it appears that the surprise kitty was not abandoned.

Lost, not abandoned

Chyna explained that when she walked out of the building, she noticed a sign for a missing cat. It resembled the one found in the apartment and looked just like the one on the poster. When Chyna called the number, a lady on the other end of the line was crying. The owners have been searching for the cat for over two weeks.

Another twist in this update is that the cat belonged to a different unit in the building. Although it was found in Unit 111, it was apparently from Unit 109. Chyna theorized that the previous tenants in Unit 111 could have stolen her and then abandoned her in the apartment. But it’s also possible that the previous tenants in Unit 111 left the door open during their move. The cat was curious, went in, and got stuck in one of the bathrooms.

Although there was internet outrage for about a week about ‘cleaning kitty,’ she has safely been reunited with her loving owners. She wasn’t abandoned, just lost.

(featured image: noluv.chyna)

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