A Sri Lankan woman is still waiting for her pet to be found after her cat disappeared at Dubai International Airport. The cat went missing on October 11 while being prepared for transfer to Sri Lanka, and five days later, no information has been released about its whereabouts or condition.

Avishka Kumadi was due to fly to Sri Lanka on the evening of Sunday, October 11, 2026, with her cat.

She said that after completing the paperwork and paying the required fees, she handed the cat over to the staff responsible for its air transport. The documents were checked and the animal was prepared for travel between about 8.30pm and 9.25pm.

How did the cat disappear?

According to Kumadi, after she passed through passport control and entered the airport’s duty-free area, an airline employee called to tell her that the cat had escaped from its carrier.

She immediately asked to return and help with the search but was told she needed authorisation to re-enter the area.

Asked whether she was willing to travel to Sri Lanka without her cat, Kumadi said: “I made it clear that I would not board the plane without my cat.”

At about midnight, she went with a staff member to the airport’s cargo area and spent more than an hour searching for the animal.

She said the darkness and limited lighting made it difficult to find the cat, and the search was unsuccessful.

28-hour wait at the airport

The woman said she waited at the airport for about 28 hours for news about her cat.

During the follow-up efforts, she was shown another white cat but confirmed that it was not hers.

She also met a representative of Dubai airport management to discuss the steps needed to find the cat and transport it to Sri Lanka.

According to Kumadi, she was assured that arrangements could be made to transport the animal to Sri Lanka if it was found, even if the process took several weeks.

Five days after the incident, the cat remains missing, and its owner hopes officials will provide new information about the search and when the animal might be returned.