A cat found this week at John F. Kennedy Airport after it had been missing for two months has undergone surgery and is in critical condition following his long ordeal.
The feline, known as Jack the Cat, was found in a customs room after he fell through a ceiling tile, hungry, weak and dehydrated.
The surgery Thursday was on the cat's leg. Veterinarians successfully reconstructed tears on his leg.
Owner Karen Pascoe, who lives in California, told NBC New York on Wednesday that Jack has low blood pressure and needs treatment, but all are hoping he is OK. A veterinarian has been in regular contact with her.
"She couldn't believe how much he was purring, you know, after all he'd been through," Pascoe said. "This has been a story that probably grabbed people's hearts for a lot of reasons."
Jack is being fed through a nasal tube and will need treatment for three to five days before he can be considered well enough for travel.
Jack disappeared in the American Airlines baggage center on Aug. 25, just before Hurricane Irene arrived in New York and forced airports to shut down for most of the weekend.
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Pascoe was flying with Jack and Barry to San Francisco that week to start a new job in California.
She continued to California, but returned days later to keep looking for Jack. She also hired a pet detective at the time to help, but he was not found.
American Airlines said its airport employees had been "focused on the search effort since Jack escaped" and promised to fly the cat out to California to be reunited with Pascoe.
