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Cat curls up in owner’s suitcase, survives plane ride to Disney

Posted at 5:26 PM, Sep 15, 2012
and last updated 2012-09-15 17:28:25-04

ORLANDO, FL (WKMG) - An Ohio woman found a surprise in her bag after arriving in Orlando for her annual Disney vacation.

After a 10-hour plane ride, Bob-Bob the cat ended up almost a thousand miles away in Orlando after he curled up in his owner’s suitcase.

"I thought how in the world did this happen?” Ethel Maze told WKMG-TV’s Evan Lambert. “She said that I just looked like... it was such a strange look on my face she knew something was wrong and I said 'You'll never guess what's in here.'"

It turned out Maze’s 14-month-old cat climbed in when no one was looking and a friend zipped up the suitcase without realizing Bob-Bob was inside.

That friend, Mike Groleau, was helping pack up for the group's annual trip to Disney early Monday morning. He said he thought he saw something move in the suitcase, but didn't give it a second thought.

"It was early in the morning, I'm not fully up yet so maybe my eyes are just playing tricks on me,” said Groleau. “It never dawned on me."

So the suitcase and Bob-Bob were loaded into the car, checked at the airport, and sent on the trip with the rest of the plane's luggage. Maze said when she found her cat in the bag, she was scared he didn't survive.

"Well I'm just amazed that he made it, because he was just soaked when I got him," said Maze.

However, the cat is now back to normal and glad to be spending some unexpected time with his owner.

Bob-Bob's return flight in a pet carrier will be more expensive, around $65, but will should be much more comfortable.

A spokesman for the TSA said the technology used to scan bags is programmed to pick out explosives and weapons, but not animals.