Julia Ozola's cat Asya disappeared in Dublin airport on 23 October last after arriving in Ireland off an Baltic Air plane, and she says she is furious with airport staff for losing the pet that is "like a child" to her. She is also planning to take action against the airline.

Speaking to the Sunday Tribune, Ozola said: "My sister Christine and her boyfriend Miof flew from Riga with my cat last month, as it had been in quarantine in Riga for six months. Asya had some injections and was kept in quarantine at home in Latvia before we took her here to be with us."

A baggage handler at the airport was removing the cage holding Asya when the cat escaped. Ozola has been told that the cage door was damaged and Asya subsequently got out.

In a desperate attempt to be reunited with her beloved pet, Ozola has put missing cat posters up in Dublin Airport and across the Swords region in the hope that they will jog the minds of local residents.

Ozola, who lives in the Citywest area, said: "That cat is like a child to us and we have had it for eight years, which is a very long time."

She has contacted Air Baltic, who have said they are very sorry, and is now planning to contact her solicitor about taking legal action against the airline and the baggage handlers.

"I am going to talk to my solicitor about what has happened, and even though I don't want to get money out of somebody for their mistake, as money is not the issue, I hope that it will prevent this from happening again, " she said.

Ozola, who works in the Nutgrove Shopping Centre, said: "I showed the airport police the picture and they started laughing. Maybe it is funny for them but it is not funny for me. I am still very hopeful that Asya will turn up. People should know that Asya is not dangerous. She is just very scared because she is an indoor cat."

A spokeswoman for the Dublin Airport Authority said: "The loss of the cat or other items is not the responsibility of the Dublin Airport Authority. We just provide the carousels and the other infrastructure for airlines and the baggage handling is looked after by the carrier."

Penauille Servisair is the baggage han-