Luna, a three-year-old cat from Durham, has been reunited with her owner after going missing for four months, only to be found over 200 miles away in Inverness, Scotland.
Sophie Carty, 25, was devastated when Luna disappeared from their home in Darlington in November 2024. She spent weeks searching, calling her name, and fearing the worst as heavy snow and storms hit. But last month, Sophie received an unexpected call - Luna had been found over 200 miles away in Scotland.
Luna had been found locked in a shed at a hotel in Inverness and was taken to a local vet. There, her microchip, registered with lost and found database, Petlog, was scanned, providing Sophie’s contact details and making their reunion possible.
Sophie comments: “After four months of heartache I received a call from Highland Vet Referrals saying Luna had been brought into the surgery, and she was alive and doing well, despite being very thin.
“I was inconsolable and asked where she was, that's when the vet told me she was in Inverness in Scotland. I couldn't believe it, that was around a six-hour drive from where Luna went missing. We travelled the long journey to collect her and bring her home.”
Luna was in a fragile state when she returned, suffering from malnourishment, an infection, and suspected nerve damage. “On her first couple nights home Luna was in a very bad way, very tired and looked to be paralysed on her back end”, added Sophie.
“However, after a trip to the vets, antibiotics and painkillers, she is like a new cat. She is up and moving (with assistance) and is happy to be home with us. She's getting loads of cuddles and attention which she isn’t complaining about!”
A Petlog spokesperson commented: “We are thrilled that Luna and Sophie have been reunited. Luna’s story is an incredible example of why microchipping is so important, if the worst does happen, a microchip gives pets the best chance of being reunited with their families – even when they are found over 200 miles away! We urge all owners to ensure their pets are chipped and their details are kept up to date on a database like Petlog.”
A microchip, the size of a grain of rice, is placed under the skin at the back of the animal’s neck. It links pets to their owners’ contact details, held on databases like Petlog, allowing vets, local authorities, and animal charities to scan the chip and match it to the owner. Microchipping is effective in reunited lost and found pets with their families only when owners’ contact details are up to date.
Sophie offers advice for other pet owners: “It is so easy for cats to go walk about, be picked up, or hop in the back of a van and travel miles! If it wasn't for her microchip we would of never of seen her again. Please make sure your details are up to date, because you never know when your cat might hitch a lift to visit Loch Ness!”
Since June 2024, all pet cats must be microchipped by law before they are 20 weeks old, with their owners' contact details stored and kept up to date with a pet microchipping database.
More information about pet safety, microchipping, or registering with Petlog, can be found at petlog.org.uk.