Published Sep 17, 2025
Kellie Gormly / Cats.com
A 9-month-old teenage Burmese kitten survived a terrifying ordeal after falling asleep in a washing machine and accidentally getting knocked around in a 55-minute washing cycle. And we are sharing his story as a public service message about home safety for cat parents!
The young brown cat named Pablo, who lives with his family in the Queensland area of Australia, had climbed into the family’s washing machine with feline curiosity and curled up for a nap. Then, a family member, unaware that the beloved Pablo was inside, started a cold water laundry cycle with the cat trapped inside the appliance. It is unclear whether the washer was a front loader or top loader.
The family soon noticed that Pablo had been missing for an hour and searched the house. When Pablo’s parents opened the washer after a full cycle, which included 3,000 spins, they were horrified to discover their beautiful kitten inside the washer and barely alive.
They rushed Pablo to the Small Animal Specialist Hospital (SASH) Gold Coast location, a 24-hour emergency hospital, where Pablo was admitted in critical condition. He had brain and lung injuries from being drenched and shaken in the washer, which Pablo probably snuck into when the door to the appliance was open.
Kellie Gormly / Cats.com
Kellie Gormly / Cats.com
Kellie Gormly / Cats.com
Kellie Gormly / Cats.com
“When he presented, he was in an extremely life-threatened condition,” recalls Dr. Patricia Rosenstein, in an email to Cats.com. “He was in profound shock with evidence of severe head trauma.”
Veterinarians aggressively resuscitated Pablo with intravenous fluid therapy, medications to reduce brain swelling, antibiotics, pain killers and other medications to try to stabilize his condition, says Rosenstein, the Head of Department and ICU Specialist at the hospital. Even once he began to show some improvement, though, Pablo remained at risk of severe organ injury, she says.
“He was hospitalized for eight days, and over that time his condition gradually but progressively improved,” Rosenstein says. “Last I saw Pablo, which was about a month ago, he was doing incredibly well.”
The only evidence of Pablo’s entire ordeal was that he sustained permanent injury to some toes on his hind right foot, says Rosenstein, who is amazed that the cat made it.
“He is an incredibly lucky little guy to have survived this event,” she says.
Indeed, miraculously, Pablo has made a full recovery and is back at home with his grateful family.
Kellie Gormly / Cats.com
The clinic’s Facebook post said: “Despite his cheeky curiosity, Pablo the miracle cat is here today thanks to his quick-thinking and loving human crew, who entrusted our specialist-led team to provide care when Pablo needed it most.”
Now, regarding that curiosity for which felines are known: Pablo’s case reminds us how clever and stealth cats can be, and how their curiosity can lead them to places that can injure them or otherwise cause trouble. As cat parents – especially for those of us who have younger, smaller, mischief-prone kittens – we need to be extra vigilant in checking to make sure our pets didn’t sneak into a large household appliance before shutting doors and running the machines. Cats can get into washers and dryers, dishwashers, and refrigerators.
“Unfortunately, washing machine accidents do happen from time to time, both with kittens and adult cats,” Rosenstein says. “I would say the other relatively common household appliance-related accident we see is when a cat ends up inside a clothes dryer.”
Kellie Gormly / Cats.com
The only way to prevent this sort of incident, she says, is to be vigilant and check appliances before turning them on.
“The truth is, in my opinion, these sorts of accidents do happen, just like a pet eating something it shouldn’t or slipping a gate and being hit by a car,” Rosenstein says. “These experiences are very traumatic to pet owners.”
If the unthinkable happens, seek immediate care from a veterinary ER, Rosenstein says.
“Pablo was lucky, and thanks to his very committed family and the excellent veterinary care he received, he pulled through,” she says. “Many pets, however, do not survive these sorts of accidents. It is important for pet-owning families to know that should something like this occur, the veterinary community is here to support them.”
