By Ivan Pereira
Jack the cat is moving on to the West Side of Manhattan from Queens as he continues to regain his strength for his return voyage to his owner in California.
The cat, who was lost at John F. Kennedy International Airport for two months, was moved Thursday from the BluePearl Veterinary animal hospital in Forest Hills to its new state-of-the-arts facility at 410 West 55 St. where he will continue his recuperation.
“Jack’s still critical, but he’s stable so transferring him is the right decision at this point,” Jack’s vet, Benjamin Davidson, said in a statement. “The Manhattan hospital has an expansive intensive care unit where Jack will continue to be monitored around-the-clock by BluePearl’s broad complement of specialists, including cardiologists, critical care specialists, internists and dermatologists.”
On Aug. 25, Karen Pascoe was flying to California to move from Manhattan to her new home and planning to take Jack and his feline brother Barry with her on the flight. The two pets were put in kennels and were about to be placed in the plane when somehow Jack broke out and disappeared.
American Airlines officials began searching for Jack, but their efforts stalled two days later when the airport was shut down in preparation for Hurricane Irene.
The crews at the airport got a boost from cat-friendly supporters who were moved by Pascoe’s story. A Facebook fan page “Jack The Cat is Lost in AA Baggage at JFK,” was immediately created and thousands of pet lovers pledged their support for the owner.
Two weeks ago members of the fan page, which had more than 22,600 fans, combed JFK and asked airport employees to be on the lookout for Jack.
On Oct 25, Jack dropped down from the ceiling right near American staff members who were in the customs room.
The cat was immediately taken to the airport’s vet center, where workers scanned his identification tag and confirmed that he was the missing feline.
Since then doctors have been treating him for malnourishment and other ailments and he is being fed through a tube, according to Pascoe.
“Because Jack was so ill from malnourishment, the timing of his fall was fortunate,” Dr. Christian Erikssona vet at the Forest Hills hospital, said in a statement. “He probably wouldn’t have survived much longer without intensive care.”
The airline has said it will fly the cat to California once it is given a clean bill of health.
Fans all over the world have been pulling for the feline and showing their supprort online and in person, according to the vet hospital.
““With nearly 23,000 people who like Jack and almost 18,000 talking about him on Facebook, Jack has become quite the celebrity,” BluePearl spokeswoman Joanne Lynch said. “It’s heartwarming how many people are rooting for him to get better.”
Reach reporter Ivan Pereira by e-mail at ipereira@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4546.
