A five-year-old child wept with joy when he found his long-lost cat in a shelter, 18 long months after the feline went missing.
Recently, Michelle Humber visited the local Cats Protection re-homing facility in Derby, UK, with her son Ronnie in order to adopt a cat. They had desired a kitten, but instead chose to adopt Orlando, a FIV-positive cat. When they returned to the shelter to take Orlando home, there, by remarkable coincidence, sat their missing cat Phoenix, who disappeared 18 months ago, in cage next to Orlando’s cage.
The boys were upset when Phoenix went missing because he had such a significant role in their lives, according to Michelle. He never stopped playing and jumping.
“A couple of weeks ago, we discussed getting a cat. Because they missed Phoenix so much, the guys loved the concept.
“We visited the Cats Protection and met Orlando. A week later, when we returned to pick him up, we noticed Phoenix in the enclosure next door. The kids thought it was fantastic and were overjoyed.
“Ronnie immediately recognised him and screamed and cheered in delight. As soon as we approached him, he began to purr, and it was great to be able to hold him.
He really impacted our lives, therefore it will be wonderful to have him back. The chances that what happened to us would have happened are probably rather slim.
“I can tell the guys are giddy with anticipation since that’s all they can speak about. He is a really nice and amiable cat. He is excellent and fantastic with kids.
We don’t know where he has been because they merely told us that someone took him in to the veterinarian office as a stray. The staff was outstanding. They may have never witnessed something like this, I’m not sure.
When Phoenix first went away, Michelle, her partner, and the boys put up posters and looked for him, but soon they all lost faith of ever finding him.
The fact that the family was unable to adopt Orlando is the one letdown in this beautiful conclusion. Due to Cats Protection’s adoption policy, which mandates that FIV positive cats must go to homes with other FIV positive kittens and where they would be kept inside, they were unable to bring both cats home as planned.
