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"She suddenly became a very independent and extremely intelligent cat," he said.
Around the same time, Anthorr was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, stemming from the work he had done, as well as his volunteering with state emergency services.
Anthorr said he took Bandit to a number of his psychiatry appointments early in the process, but it was soon recommended he get an assistance animal to help with his PTSD. He was told an assistance animal would help him to feel grounded, be in the here and now, and also reduce anxiety attacks or other PTSD-related symptoms.
So, he began the journey to get Bandit registered as his assistance animal.
Canberra Head to Health clinical director, Vanessa Hamilton, said assistance animals were growing in popularity to help with poor mental health.
She said often people who experienced PTSD did not want to talk about their trauma.
By utilising an assistance animal for intervention purposes, Ms Hamilton said it could make the person feel less alone. "It helps to reduce loneliness, and improve negative feelings like depression and anxiety," she said.
Bandit is officially registered as an assistance cat in New South Wales, but Anthorr is still working towards her registration in the ACT.
While there are hundreds of assistance dogs, Bandit is one of only a few registered assistance cats in Australia, and Anthorr believes she was actually the first.