A Lyft driver in Texas allegedly took off with a cat rider in a bizarre incident that went viral on social media and prompted a massive search that ended with the owner and his pet being reunited a day later.
Palash Pandey said she noticed her 2-year-old cat Tux seemed under the weather on Saturday and called Lyft to take him to a vet near her home in Austin.
But what started as a normal vet visit turned into an unimaginable nightmare before Pandey and Tux could get into the animal hospital.
Pandey, 23, said he got out of the Lyft vehicle and went around the back to open the rear passenger door to retrieve Tux in his carrier when the driver sped away.
“Before I could open the door, the driver started driving,” he said wrote in a viral thread on X, formerly Twitter. “I hit the back and the passenger window and screamed running after him but he drove away.”
The frustrated pet owner said she called and texted the driver through the app several times with no response.
The Lyft driver responded about two hours later and said he didn’t have the black and white cat, according to Pandey.
Just got back from the vet. Tux has a clean bill of health. I’m pretty sure he thought he was just playing some crazy game in VR ? Thanks everyone for the help. You guys have restored my faith in the community. pic.twitter.com/ehm1sTRxVV
— palash pandey (@palashp40616755) October 2, 2023
“I don’t have anything like you. Nothing in the back,” the driver said in the chat, according to a screenshot obtained by the Washington Post. “He’s not there sorry.”
Pandey called 911 who transferred him to 311 where he filed a report. He also contacted Lyft support who informed him that they contacted the driver and there would be a “standard return fee of $20 for [the driver’s] time and effort” if the driver returns an “item”.
After exhausting all options, Pandey decided to send an appeal for help to X and Reddit. He asked people for advice on what to do and publicly called out Lyft in the broadcast.
“I didn’t expect that people would want to help, but I was desperate and didn’t know what else to do,” she told the Washington Post. “I’m really worried.”
His tweet was viewed more than 10 million times and hundreds responded with suggestions and calls to Lyft and local news stations to help Pandey find Tux.
After exhausting all options, Pandey decided to send an appeal for help to X and Reddit. He asked people for advice on what to do and publicly called out Lyft in the broadcast. palash pandey/X
“They just jumped in to help,” he said, adding that it restored his faith in humanity.
Late Saturday night, Pandey said a Lyft driver contacted him after he was contacted by Austin police.
The driver claimed he was allergic to cats and would have canceled the trip if he had known Pandey had a cat in the carrier and said he drove fast out of surprise, according to the distraught cat owner.
“My delivery location is a pet hospital, and I hold a pet carrier, so it’s hard to know,” Pandey told the paper.
He said the driver also said he picked up and dropped off several riders after Pandey’s trip to the animal hospital and none of them said anything about a cat.
The driver claimed he was allergic to cats and would have canceled the trip if he had known Pandey had a cat in the carrier and said he drove fast out of surprise. David Risher, /X
By Sunday — with still no word on Tux and a growing number of people waiting for news — Lyft CEO David Risher responded.
“The initial reaction was horrible. Since then, we’ve done a lot behind the scenes, but I know we don’t communicate enough. We are very focused on this matter and will ensure that the community gets the latest information,” he said tweeted.
Risher said Lyft sent an alert with a Tux photo to all its drivers and riders in the Austin area and also asked social media not to “sham” drivers.
Pandey also asked his supporters not to criticize the driver.
“He has received unwarranted threats and is just as upset as we all are,” Risher said the driver, whose Lyft account has been deactivated while the company investigates.
The rideshare company went one step further and deployed a search team to find Tux.
On Sunday, one of the team members spotted the terrified tuxedo cat hiding under the stairs outside the real estate company’s office, about a mile from the animal hospital. The carrier is invisible.
They catch him and quickly reunite Tux with Pandey.
“Tux was hungry and scared and covered in fleas, but he was so happy to see me,” Pandey told the Washington Post. “I was so grateful, I just hugged him and cried.”
After taking him to the vet, Pandey said he received a clean bill of health and shared a selfie holding Tux thanking everyone who helped and followed him. Lyft said it will cover the vet’s fees.
“You have restored my faith in the community,” he said at X.
Austin police are still investigating the case to find out exactly what happened to little Tux.
“We are actively working with everyone involved to fully understand the situation — to help prevent it from happening again,” Lyft said. “We are currently evaluating our policies to increase support for our community, including in cases like this.”
Risher said Lyft sent a warning with a Tux photo to all its drivers and riders in the Austin area and also asked social media not to “sham” drivers.palash pandey/X
Pandey said she’s glad to have Tux back, but hopes no other pet owner has to go through what she went through.
“He’s been with me 2 ½ years — since I met him as a kitten,” he said. “He was stuck on the terrace of the library at Drexel University [in Philadelphia], where I went to college. I saved her that day and we’ve been together ever since.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
