# The cat who survived the dump

> Mike the cat vanished inside a couch, rode a junk truck to a landfill, and somehow made it home.
- Title: The cat who survived the dump · New York Post | Shortify
- Summary: Mike the cat vanished inside a couch, rode a junk truck to a landfill, and somehow made it home. Before you panic about a missing cat, check what left the…
- Keywords: pets, cats, virginia, rescue, good news, news, entertainment, cat, survived, dump, New York Post
- Source: New York Post — https://nypost.com/2026/09/12/us-news/virginia-cat-accidentally-thrown-out-with-an-old-couch
- Published: 2026-09-12T17:40:54+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: pets, cats, virginia, rescue, good news, news, entertainment
## Mike misses dinner
A six-year-old domestic shorthair in Virginia stopped showing up to eat on a Sunday. By Monday his owners knew he was properly gone.

> It really was a mystery. That was the hardest part, not knowing where he was.
## A sinking feeling
WTOP reporter Neal Augenstein searched sewers with a bag of treats before remembering he had just cleared out three old couches.

> I had a sinking feeling the cat was in one of them.
## Hauled off with the sofas
The 1-800-Got-Junk crew had already taken the furniture away. Mike ended up at the Fairfax County I-66 Transfer Station, where machines crush the trash.
## Spotted on a ledge
Equipment operator Mauricio Martinez saw a frightened cat stuck in the pit, stranded about 15 feet above the asphalt, and called his supervisor.

> He was scared and he was trapped.
## Rescued by loader bucket
Workers stopped the machinery, swung a loader bucket under his perch and spent roughly ten minutes coaxing him aboard. Then Mike bolted into a storage room.
## Home, smelling of landfill
Animal control caught him and two shelters later the family got him back. He is back on the keyboard, though his sister Mochi hissed at the smell for a while.

> At first, his sister, Mochi, was hissing at him because he still smells like the dump.
## Key takeaway

Before you panic about a missing cat, check what left the house recently. Mike went out with the furniture.