The woman who first sounded the alarm that cats were going missing in a Bangor neighborhood lost one of her cats to an animal attack on Friday.
Jennifer Delano let her orange tabby cat, Max, outside around 6 a.m. on Friday. Roughly two hours later, a neighbor posted in the Fairmount community’s Facebook page that the body of a cat matching Max’s description was found near Delano’s home.
Delano said she immediately had a pit in her stomach after hearing the news and used the GPS tracker she put on Max’s collar to look for him. She found only the collar and pieces of his body in a neighbor’s backyard.
The discovery is the latest development in the months-long saga of domestic cats going missing in the neighborhood. At least 21 cats have gone missing in the neighborhood since June and only one has returned home, according to Delano.
Delano created a map of where the missing cats live after she noticed a string of missing cat posts on the neighborhood Facebook page. Since then, the 2,200-member group has become the headquarters for the mystery, where owners report missing pets while others post photos of cats they see, hoping to match it to one of the missing.
Max is the first and only cat to be found dead. His body is also proof that wild animals are at least partially responsible for the disappearances, Delano said. Most cats vanished without a trace, leaving owners without closure and wondering what happened to their beloved pet.
Some residents were certain that wildlife known to be in the area, including coyotes, foxes and fishers, were killing the cats. Others, however, wondered why an established predator would suddenly increase its hunting habits.
David Warren, a spokesperson for the city, said Bangor officials are aware of the ongoing disappearances and are monitoring the situation closely.
“There is a police detective assigned to this matter and leading the investigation,” Warren said. “As that police work continues, Chief Hathaway will keep the city council and city administrators updated on developments.”
Trish Bruen, Bangor’s animal control officer, told the Bangor Daily News last week that she believes “multiple species of wildlife, and possibly even some humans, are responsible for the missing cats.”
A bobcat that died after being hit by a car near the neighborhood last week led residents to wonder if the animal was responsible for the mystery. Wildlife experts agreed the single bobcat may be part of the problem, but likely wasn’t solely to blame.
Bruen continues to advise cat owners to keep their pets inside to protect them from animal attacks, car strikes, theft or other harm.
Delano said she only let Max outside during the day and he never ventured far beyond her yard and was in by sunset every day. She also added the GPS tracker to his collar when cats began disappearing in the neighborhood. That ensured she knew where he was and could find him when it was time to come inside, though he always came when she called.
“I’m devastated,” Delano said. “I thought I was doing things to help protect him.”
Max was particularly fond of kittens Delano would foster, she said, and always patient with her children and other cats.
While Delano isn’t certain what kind of wild animal killed 8-year-old Max, she’s certain it wasn’t a bird of prey because she found teeth marks on his collar.
“Max was the best boy,” Delano said. “He always came when I called him, especially when I crawled into bed. He would jump right up and lay with me. He was the friendliest cat.”
