mysterious missing plants

[Musket]

Does anyone have any dwarf sag?
I had just gotten a beautiful bunch (and I mean a bunch, enough to do the whole 46g tank, front and some mid ground sizes too) had it soaking in a bucket waiting while we got the tank in place..then we all got sick.. This is the first time the whole family got laid out. Our 3.5yr old first on Friday afternoon, me Sat evening, and my husband late Sunday evening.

I had put a plexiglass board and a notebook on top of the bucket. It was there for 3 days. (Hindsite: I should have put the bucket in the tank.) Last night I went to check on everything and make sure there was enough water as the cats have knocked the top off several times and drank from it. I hadn't seen anything missing or on the floor so just kept recovering it, until I couldn't be upright for more than 2-3 mins starting Sat night. I left it overnight + most of Sunday with no top. Ugh. Yesterday I started to feel better and wanted to work on the tank, I went to see if there was enough water with the plants... There were NO sag left (except one teeny tiny one and one huge one anchored to a wisteria to hold them under the water. All the small & mids were GONE. I thought, oh they just sank, maybe I put the rock on them to hold them down... nope, Gone. Gone Gone. I am so, so, bummed out. I had a few words into the air and figured I should have known better.

This is the same plant the cats have stolen out of the other tank (except big) when I clean the tank and leave the room to dump the water. They leave the rest alone. I guess these are their favorites! Yet there are no plant traces anywhere (like we usually get when they attack other plants.) Kinda funny actually. I just really wanted to get this done since we are feeling better, and now my little dudes are gone. I could just see them in there too. I am truely bummed. But apparently the cats (or some plant loving aliens) have had a nice healthy snack.

Thanks in advance.

Or even anything else, since that was going to be the brunt of the tank to start. I now will have a VERY sparse tank.