Imagine following an account of your favourite celebrity animal for years, only to find out one day, it has passed away. Half a million followers of the cat Jep, were similarly dismayed.
Although the feeling is unmatched by the owner’s grief, the secondhand pain of saying goodbye to a pet you’ve only known through pictures is a fresh experience for many fans of celebrity cat Jep.
Fans who loved the popular American Shorthair were shocked to find out that Jep is no longer with us.
On Wednesday (5 Jun), Jep’s owner announced on his official Facebook page Oh My Jep that the 6-year-old kitty died after getting hit by a car in Kuantan, Malaysia.
Pet owner Ms Nor Azwana Awang, who calls herself Ummi, announced to Jep’s 458,000 followers, that he breathed its last at 12.20pm — marking a tragic start to her family’s Hari Raya celebrations.
Here’s the English translation of the post:
He’s been with Ummi for over 6 years. This morning, father fed him chicken rendang. When Aicha (Ummi’s kid) cried, he came running over. When Ummi was lying down, he bit my hair. Please forgive Ummi for not updating the page much since I had my two kids.
This morning I chased him around to take a photo, it’s Hari Raya after all. But I know he liked to sleep from morning to evening.
Everyday, he slept at the curtains of my room. Today, he suddenly went to sleep under a car. No one noticed anything. Everyone’s too busy celebrating Raya. Please forgive Ummi. Ummi was eating just now. Someone hit Jep. It was really an accident. There was no blood. He ran, then he lied on the ground. Please forgive Ummi. Jep is no more. This was half an hour ago…
According to Malaysian newspaper Berita Harian, Ms Ummi, 33, was having a meal at her in-laws’ place, located just opposite of her own home.
Jep was sleeping under a car when one of her family members needed to move the vehicle. It was then she saw Jep hit by one of the car’s tyres.
Recounting her horror, she said,
I screamed. I saw Jep run away fast and lie on the ground, so I ran as fast I could to check on him. There were no bleeding wounds. Maybe he broke his neck…
Ms Ummi thought her 6-year-old cat would have made it out alive since he could muster the strength to flee after it was hit.
But to her devastation, he wasn’t. Ms Ummi saw Jep collapsing onto the ground shortly after running away.
She said emotionally,
I hugged him until it was almost his time. I couldn’t bear to watch him go like that, so I ran back into my house.
Ms Ummi’s family was traumatised by the incident as well, because her two children were very close to their Internet-famous pet.
Ms Ummi related that it was surprising to see Jep sleeping outside in the day. She noted,
He rarely rested under a car in the afternoon. He would run whenever he heard the sound of a car’s engine. He would be sleeping in my room at this time of day.
It was hard not to get emotional, when Ms Ummi recalled her fond memories of Jep, like how he was very attached to her and never left her side.
Even when I washed plates in the kitchen, he would come and play at my feet. When I hung clothes out to dry, he would climb onto the suspension to be with me.
A stab right in the feels.
Jep was catapulted into the limelight in 2016, when Berita Harian did a special report on the fluffy feline.
Netizens loved his adorably nonchalant look and his famous ‘eye smiles’. His Facebook page has over 485,000 likes, while his Instagram profile garnered a following of over 126,000 fans.
He was also featured in Malaysia’s popular cat magazine, Haimeow.
The Internet has Ms Ummi and her husband Mr Mohd Kamarul Anuar Mohd Ariffin, 36, to thank. They were the ones responsible for capturing Jep’s life through pictures, even up till his untimely demise.
Fans took the chance to bid their favourite celebrity cat farewell.
Countless fans left touching messages of thanks on Jep’s page for bringing joy to their lives.
Just look at Jep’s super cute ‘eyes smile’ at the end. We can’t deal.
The agony of losing Jep is still too fresh for Ms Ummi and her family.
She shared that she didn’t have plans to close his social media accounts yet because they are filled with memories of her beloved pet.
It’s also unlikely that she would look for a “replacement” of Jep — at least not so soon.
Jep was laid to rest in the garden next to their home.
Our condolences to Ms Ummi and her family. Thanks for bringing us joy by sharing Jep’s life with us. May he cross the rainbow bridge in peace.
Featured image from Facebook and Facebook.
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