Francine is a stray cat that has likely been at a Lowe’s department store as long as any store employee in Virginia, having first appeared as a white, stray, speckled cat that wandered into the Richmond store location in 2017. She has remained a beloved fixture of the store ever since. However, last month, the calico cat disappeared, leaving everyone anxious at the question: Where could Francine be?
The store put up a poster featuring her photo, offering a reward of $2,000 to whoever finds her. Chas Nabi, a regular visitor from Francine’s store, launched an Instagram page titled “Where’s Francine?” that gained popularity rapidly, drawing in a total of 35,000 followers. The initial hint regarding her vanishing was captured by the store’s security cameras. The footage revealed Francine meandering into the rear of a delivery truck bound for a regional distribution hub in Garysburg, North Carolina.
Additional information was collected by employees at the warehouse who utilized thermal drones. Some attempted to entice her into several humane cat traps, while regularly monitoring the 246 surveillance cameras around the area for any indication of her presence in the expansive distribution center, which spans over a million square feet. After spending 9 years at Lowe’s, Francine had numerous friends ready to help with anything needed, but on October 4th, a recognizable cat showed up on one of the security recordings. It was Francine.
The employees who provide Francine her morning meals, Manager Sida and Wayne Schneider, quickly traveled 85 miles (ca. 137 km) to the distribution center to bring back their cherished furry companion. However, despite offering her some kibble and Francine’s favorite rattle, they were unable to coax her out of her hiding spot, so they headed back to Virginia without her. But then, 17 days later, Francine finally entered one of the traps to grab some food from the distribution center. Sida and Wayne made their way back to North Carolina, and this time, they didn’t come back to Virginia empty-handed.
After one month, Francine was finally home in Virginia safe and sound. And luckily, she didn’t lose any of her “Nine Lives.”
Sources:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francine_(cat) — photo source
wric.com/news/local-news/richmond/photos-blue-carpet-lowes-francine-return/
