An Uber Pet driver shared a wild story about her second day working for the ride-sharing platform that sounds like the plot of an indie comedy.
Julia (@friendswithtrees) live-vlogged her experience with a passenger in a TikTok that has accrued over 5,700 views as of Tuesday morning.
In her journey with the passenger, which spanned more than three hours, Julia said that she helped him search for his cat, babysat his German Shepherd, and drove him to an airport “storage unit” at a rental car agency (where he claimed the FBI took hold of his bags). Julia said that he also ate cans of tuna fish and Vienna sausage in her car.
Despite the bizarre-sounding day, Julia said that the overall experience was great—if not somewhat “energy draining.”
@friendswithtrees long video but worth the watch for the storytelling… it’s my second day on the job and this guy was my first passenger. what should have been a relatively short ride turned into a 3 hour and 40 minute excursion. I made $110 after the tip which was nice, (and he did buy me starbucks!) but holy shitballs I didn’t imagine my day would go this way. at one point while he was looking for his cat under cars at the police station i just got out and began doing squats. we were there for over a half hour 😅 first I expected to get a cat at a house. then I expected a storage unit for retrieving his bag. idk why i jumped to such wild conclusions 🤣#uber #driver #rideshare #insanestory #storytime #watchtiltheend #confusing #weird #fbi #cat #meowing #shocking #plottwist #uberdriver #day2 #newbie #oof ♬ original sound – Julia
Julia said that she picked up the passenger around noon and planned to take him to a location roughly 20 miles away. Once in the car with his German Shepherd, however, the passenger requested a few detours.
“He goes, ‘Hey, since you picked up me and my dog, can we actually go to a completely different city out of the way and go get my cat?’” Julia recalled. “I was like, ‘Yeah, that’s fine. I’m an animal-friendly vehicle. Let’s do it.’”
Julia said that the passenger ended up navigating her to a police station to get his cat. He reportedly said that the feline was “around the area” and proceeded to exit the car—with his dog—in order to search for it.
Julia said that she didn’t entirely mind the passenger’s behavior, in part, because she would get paid regardless. But then he asked whether she would help. Julia said that he gave her $20 to buy cat food so he could use it to lure his cat out, instructing her to return to the same spot after purchasing it.
The store Julia went to, however, apparently didn’t sell cat food. Instead, she said she purchased some cans of tuna and Vienna sausages. “I hope that they suffice,” she said.
Julia’s trip didn’t end after this, either, as the passenger asked to then visit an airport storage unit. Her video then transitioned to her pulling into an airport, where the passenger said his storage unit was located. It turned out, though, that he was referring to his “bags,” which were being held at the Hertz rental return area. “I’m sitting outside of Hertz just waiting for him to get his bag. I did not know that they could hold bags for people,” Julia said.
In the end, Julia said that the customer was unable to find either his bag and his cat, despite the gambits deployed to lure the animal. Instead, Julia said that the passenger and his dog ate the food she purchased.
That’s when the trip started to wind down. Julia said that she drove him to his destination and he exited her vehicle without incident.
Once alone, Julia recapped the episode: “He was chill company. Really weird. Weird individual. Chill company. Good vibes. All good. So I’m calling it [a day].” She also said that she earned $110 from the ride.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Julia via TikTok comment and Uber by email.
In the comments, several viewers expressed concern for Julia’s safety.
“Girl be careful out there, this seems kinda scary to me,” one wrote.
“Be careful out there,” another said.
Julia, however, said that she wasn’t put-off by the process and felt safe during her ride. “He was one of those ‘psychedelic homeless Jesus’-type of guys, so he was safe,” she commented.
