A Cat’s Crime Spree Got so Bad Its Owner Had to Post a ‘Lost and Found’ for Stolen Goods
Kate Felmet from Beaverton, Oregon, didn’t expect her sleek black cat, Esme, to develop a reputation as the neighborhood thief. At first, Esme would trot home with scraps of fabric or bits of paper, dropping them proudly at Kate’s feet. But the pattern grew impossible to ignore once the “gifts” started piling up, and none of them belonged to her.
Kate, who works as an ICU doctor, couldn’t keep up with her cat’s growing stash. Every day, Esme would stroll home proudly with a new trophy in her mouth, meowing loudly to announce her success. Over time, Esme’s collection expanded from small trinkets to a full-blown crime spree: gardening gloves, kneepads, belts, rolls of tape, and even a taxidermy bat. During the early pandemic, her focus shifted to face masks. Sometimes, she would drag home a dozen in one day. Kate praised her cat each time she brought back an inanimate object, relieved that Esme wasn’t hunting birds anymore. However, her encouragement might have made things worse.
A Sign, A Clothesline, And A Confession
By the spring of 2021, Kate decided it was time to come clean. Her lawn turned into a neighborhood lost-and-found. She put up a hand-painted sign that read, “My cat is a thief. Please take these items if they are yours,” alongside a drawing of Esme holding a green glove in her mouth. Next to the sign hung a clothesline filled with stolen items, random odds and ends, carefully clipped and waiting for their owners.
To her surprise, the sign didn’t just help reunite missing items with neighbors; it also became a local attraction. People stopped to snap photos, laugh, and sometimes reclaim their stuff. One day, a school bus driver even hopped out to grab a pair of gloves. Kate estimated that she managed to return over a dozen items, including several matching glove sets and masks. She admitted that while most neighbors found it funny, it got a little awkward with one family; Esme had stolen their kneepads three times straight from their garage.
The Cat Who Got “Called Out”
When the sign went up, Esme seemed personally offended. She stopped stealing for a while, as if sulking after being publicly exposed. Kate joked that her cat “looked mad about it.” The break didn’t last long. Soon, Esme was back to her daily heists, announcing each return with her trademark yowl at the back door. Kate didn’t intervene—she figured a cat obsessed with gloves was better than one chasing wildlife.
Behavior experts say cats like Esme often swipe things to get attention. What starts as play quickly turns into a feedback loop: every laugh, scold, or bit of praise becomes reinforcement. Esme probably learned that each theft brought a reaction from Kate—and in her mind, that meant affection.
Local Legend Klepto Kitty
Image via Canva/View Apart
What began as an irritating quirk turned into a small-town story everyone could smile about. Kate’s handmade “My Cat Is a Thief” sign turned Esme into a local celebrity. Photos of the display spread online, and the black cat’s shameless expression quickly won fans across social media.
Esme still patrols the yard, occasionally dropping off a new “gift” for her owner’s inspection. Kate says she always thanks her, even when it’s another lone glove. After all, every thief likes recognition, and Esme has certainly earned hers.