Published Jun 08, 2026 | 3:47 PM ⚊ Updated Jun 08, 2026 | 3:49 PM
Heavy rains reduced almost the entire house to rubble. Credit: youtube.com/@SouthFirstKannada
Synopsis: In Karnataka’s Bagalkot, a pet cat’s sudden dash out of the house saved mango trader Shabbir and his son Arbaaz. As they chased it, the roof collapsed under heavy rain, reducing their home to rubble and destroying their fruit stock.
A cat’s act of running out of a house helped save the lives of two people in Karnataka’s Bagalkot during the weekend.
This happened on a Saturday that began with mango trader Shabbir heading to Vijayapura, about 85 km away from where he stayed, for a wedding. With him was his son, Arbaaz. Shabbir’s family includes four daughters and another son.
Their pet cat too—after having its morning bowl of milk—stepped out of the house while they went to the function.
By the time Shabbir and Arbaaz were back home, it was around 4 pm. The cat returned an hour later, at around 5 pm.
Around this time, when they were all inside the house, it began raining heavily once again.
Arbaaz recounted that his father was keen on feeding the cat as they had been away since morning and he feared that it was hungry.
“But, instead of drinking the milk, the cat ran away again. My father tried to chase our cat and catch it. I also stepped out to help,” he continued.
That act would go on to save all their lives.
Debris had already begun falling from the roof as the cat began running out. But as soon as the three of them came out, the entire roof caved in. Had they remained at home, both father and son would have been crushed to death.
The heavy rain reduced almost the entire house to rubble.
Almost 70-80 boxes of fruits, which Shabbir claimed were worth over Rs 1 lakh, stored inside the house were destroyed too.
While seeking the government’s help in gaining them compensation, the duo did not forget to acknowledge that their cat had saved them.
