A family in North Carolina has reunited with its 20-year-old cat, after its disappearance cause years of pain and uncertainty.
Laken Read was devastated after her first cat, Muffin, went missing from her family home in 2016. Her family searched everywhere for their beloved pet, but when Hurricane Matthew hit shortly after, their concerns grew.
"I pretty much refused to believe she passed," Laken Read told The News & Observer. "It was really unfortunate timing, too, because Hurricane Matthew had hit after she went missing."
The storms brought damaging winds throughout the area, leaving a path of destruction and debris in the streets, the newspaper reports. When they still couldn't find Muffin, their hopes began to fade.
"Once the bad weather came, that's when we really started to worry," Jerry Read told McClatchy News. "Then we couldn't find her anywhere. We started worrying even more. We felt like we'd done all we could do, but we knew she was microchipped."
Years went by with no news about Muffin; no one had reported finding the cat. Until last week. Laken Read got a call to go to a local veterinarian's office for a surprise: Muffin. Even with age, she recognized her beloved pet right away.
A nearby family had found Muffin in 2016, thinking she was a stray and taking care of her. They took her to the vet recently to check out some health issues and found that she was microchipped. This discovery led to Muffin returning home to the family who never gave up hope that she would come home. Now, the only problem they face is time.
"The toughest part is knowing this is a 20-year-old cat now, that's... we're going to have to say goodbye again," said Jerry Read. "But that was at least a little comfort that here at the end of her life she'll be back with the family that she knew for 16 years."
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