I know exactly how you feel, it doesn't matter if it is a bird, reptile, cat, dog, rabbit or whatever, ( though I have never heard of a fish going missing) point is, if this Autisitic boy is so attached to this cat, and people with Autisim really do focus on one item for ever whatever it is . How could this mom not do everything possible to try and get that cat back , but from what I have read, it does not say she did anything but try to get this Pleo to " RELACE the cat." That does not make sense to me. If it was my child and that cat means that much, I would be out there doing everything possible and a NEW Pleo would not be the answer and if a Pleo was the answer, she would settle for any pleo, the boy is not going to care about cost or if it is new as long as it works, Sounds to me like she either wants a Pleo bad or wants to resell it and make some money using the story as a ploy or if she does have a boy with autisim, it is still not real enough to me, too many warning red flags.
Human caretaker to NOva and family of Pleos, nine cats, one dog, two weather loaches, One 13 year old Goldfish, and a whole family of stray abandoned cats I take care of outside. RedwoodsMama