Cat found in bag on side of Paris, Ont. road settles into new home

Matt the cat is adjusting well to his new forever home, one month after he was found at the side of a road in Paris, Ont.

"I think he's found his forever home now, so that's good," Drew Logan, Matt’s owner said.

Matt didn’t have the easiest start to life.

Hillside Kennels Animal Control said the cat was found by a jogger on an embankment near Paris on April 21. The cat was tied up in multiple bags with no way to move his legs or feet. A jogger found the cat and contacted Hillside, who eventually gave the kitty to the Toronto Cat Rescue.

"[We] held him for a couple days for recovery, then he was great. He was happy, was healthy. He wasn't even skinny. I don't think he'd been there for very long," said Jennifer Cave, volunteer lead for the KW/Cambridge/Guelph chapter of the Toronto Cat Rescue.

Matt the cat at Hillside Kennels Animal Control. Source: Hillside Kennels Animal Control)The rescue made sure the feline was neutered and up-to-date on his shots. He was then put in a PetSmart in Cambridge.

Cave said the cat showed no signs of injury and easily got along with humans.

"I don't know how he ended up there. I mean, he is a friendly cat. He's been loved at some point. He's not a feral cat. He didn't need any socialization. He loved humans right away," she said.

Cave said unfortunately with the cost of living, rescue groups are seeing an increase in surrenders and stray pets being found.

Drew Logan, who saw the story about the cat in the newspaper, was looking for a companion for his four-year-old cat Mac at the time. Ironically, he came across Matt at the store on Hespeler Road.

“It just worked out that when I walked in, that was the cat that was running around. They told me that, that was the one in the paper," Logan said.

Mac also has a similar origin story to Matt. Mac was found in the middle of a rainstorm on a dirt road. Logan said he knew he had to adopt Matt when he saw him.

"It was almost like a sign to adopt that cat," he said.

Matt the cat in his new home in Cambridge on May 22, 2024. (Colton Wiens/CTV News)

"I immediately fell in love with him, because I've always wanted a kitty that was super affectionate and cuddly. Mac is not like that,” Ashley Stone, Matt’s owner said.

The cat was named Matt in honour of the man that found him.

"Logan asked me if I wanted to change it, and I said no. I said, ‘because this man found him and he is the reason that Matty is still alive’. The only thing I did was shorten it to give him Matty. But when I'm mad at him, I call him Matthew," Stone said.

Matt was found in multiple bags at the side of a Paris, Ont. road on April 21, 2024. (Source: Hillside Kennels Animal Control)Matt has been living with Logan and Stone for about a month, and quickly made friends with Mac.

"He's doing amazing. They were a little standoffish at first, but now they're like best friends," Logan said.

Logan believes Matt is about nine months old. He said Matt is now a permanent fixture in the family.

"The only issue I have with him is he gets way up in your face, because he wants cuddles. So he's done great. I don't know why anybody would throw him out," Logan said.

The Toronto Cat Rescue is now running a fundraiser through Canada Helps in Matt’s name, to help cover the medical and care costs that come with rescuing cats like Matt.