'Small Cat' of cafe fame missing

Small Cat, a stray that once lounged on the sofas and overstuffed chairs at a downtown coffee house where she was adored by many, is once again drawing attention after a local artist who had adopted the feline says it was catnapped.

Small Cat was evicted from Comma Coffee in 2009 after an anonymous complaint to the health department. The establishment's owner, June Joplin, took the cat home, but Small Cat didn't adjust well to a multi-cat household, so Joplin eventually brought her back to the neighborhood behind her shop, where artist Deana Hoover has her studio and unofficially adopted her.

"I let Small Cat move into my studio, and I have become quite attached to her," Hoover said. "She has been living here pretty exclusively for the past several months, mousing the building and keeping me company while I'm working. She's become a bit of a community pet with a group of people who take care of her in different ways."

But all that changed over the holidays.

"She's been taken by someone who thinks June tossed the cat out on the street. The woman stole the cat, then called Comma Coffee and berated one of the employees about neglecting the cat," Hoover said.

Small Cat does not live on the street, however. Hoover put in a cat door to her studio so the feline could come and go as she pleased.

"That's where she lives most of the time. She has other options, but it's her favorite place, and I have felt honored by that. She has a love seat, a big pillow, and an electric heated bed for the cold nights. She has another bed in the sunshine, where she likes to go during the day," Hoover said.

The cat is fed and given fresh water daily by employees, neighbors who bring cat treats, and by a man who comes every morning just to see her, Hoover said.

Small Cat does have matted fur, Hoover admits, but a neighbor on the block routinely tried combing her. That became impossible because the fur was so long, so the woman decided to take the cat to a groomer, who advised shaving it. That plan eventually was dropped for the time being, because winter was just around the corner.

Hoover is making a plea to the woman who took Small Cat.

"I am among a sizable number of people who miss seeing her, petting her, and spoiling her every day. I ask you, please, bring back our cat," Hoover said. "You can return her to the studio and drop her off, no questions asked. She isn't yours, and she has a good life. We love her and miss her every day."