B.C. Couple Inundated With Calls About ‘Missing Cat’ — But Their Cat Isn’t Missing

A British Columbia couple is pleading with the public to stop calling them about their supposedly missing cat — because their cat isn’t missing. And they don’t even own a cat named Torbo.

For more than a year, Natasha Lavoie and her partner Jonathan McCurrach have received dozens of phone calls from strangers, many claiming they've found their lost pet. But their actual cat, Mauser, is alive and well — lounging in the comfort of their air-conditioned home.

“Sometimes I get six calls a day,” said Lavoie, speaking to CBC’s On The Coast. “People leave voicemails saying they’ve found my cat and want money for it. And I’m just thinking, ‘My cat’s literally right here.’”

The mystery of the cat named “Torbo” took months to unravel. McCurrach eventually asked one caller where they had gotten the number. The answer: a novelty T-shirt made by a U.S.-based fashion company.

The shirt was designed to look like a lost cat poster — complete with Lavoie's actual phone number printed on it.

“Why would you use a real number?” McCurrach said. “It just seems careless.”

The clothing company, Wisdumb NY, told CBC News that the shirt in question is no longer for sale. A representative admitted that the use of a real phone number “was not intentional,” though images of similar faux missing posters with 604 area codes remain on the company’s Instagram.

In North America, phone numbers starting with 555 — such as 555-0100 through 555-0199 — are set aside for fictional use to avoid exactly this kind of mix-up. But like others before them, Wisdumb NY failed to follow that convention.

Netflix and rapper Soulja Boy have previously faced similar backlash for using real numbers in entertainment and music. Netflix had to edit a phone number from Squid Game in 2021 after a South Korean woman received thousands of prank calls. A U.K. family also received waves of unwanted calls in 2009 after their number appeared in one of Soulja Boy’s songs.

Lavoie said she’s considered changing her number, but is reluctant to give up her original 604 area code — B.C.'s first and now a rare commodity. “I’ve had this number for 20 years,” she said. “I don’t want to change it. I’ll just keep not answering.”

Some of the voicemails, however, have been disturbing. One caller left a message claiming they had a snake that “eats free kittens.” Others simply demand a reward, refusing to believe the cat isn’t real.

“At first I thought it was some kind of scam,” McCurrach said. “You hear about fake pet scams all the time. But they just keep calling.”

While most calls appear to come from the United States, the couple has received a few from within Canada as well. Despite reaching out to Wisdumb NY, the response was minimal.

“They didn’t really apologize,” McCurrach said. “Just gave the same line they gave CBC.”

Lavoie, trying to find some humor in the ordeal, added: “I think we both deserve a free T-shirt after all this.”