Don’t worry Twitterverse, Dmitry Medvedev’s cat is fine

If you checked Twitter earlier today, you may have seen #Dorofei among the top trending topics.

Dorofey is Dmitry Medvedev's cat.

The reason for the handsome tomcat's short-lived Twitter fame, RIA Novosti news agency explains, was an unconfirmed rumor of his disappearance.

Today's edition of the local Sobesednik newspaper reported that Dorofey – a pedigree Siberian Forest Cat – had run away from the presidential residence in Moscow, and was being searched for by local police.

According to Russia Today's translation, the article claimed that officers were searching under every nearby bush, and had mobilized a team of volunteers to join the hunt if Dorofey hadn't reappeared by the weekend.

The report quickly made waves on Twitter, with some wags suggesting that the cat had "escaped to Holland" or was in talks with Barack Obama, Gazeta reported.

But our favorite joke has to be this one, cited by the Associated Press:

"Another [Twitter user] posted a doctored photo of Putin in a fur hat with cat's ears and the caption: 'Dorofey? No, haven't seen him.'"

Police in Moscow denied the report, but the Dorofey meme was too good to let go. With his name trending and numerous newly created Twitter accounts, Facebook pages and blogs all purporting to relay his thoughts on the run, the Russian president himself was obliged to weigh in.

"About the cat. A source close to Dorofey says he has not got lost anywhere. Thank you all for your concern," Medvedev tweeted, from the sidelines of the nuclear security summit in South Korea.

As for the word from the – ahem – cat's mouth, GlobalPost has spotted at least three Twitter accounts claiming to belong to Dorofey himself. None has been verified, but for the picture alone, we direct you to @KotDorofey: he claims to be "the real Dorofey" and has more than 400 followers already.