Cat reunited with owner after going missing for 11 years from Scottish home

A cat that was missing for 11 years has finally been ruined with its owner – after turning up 80 miles away from his Scottish home.

Fergus, aged 14, vanished from his home in Forres, Moray, more than a decade ago, leaving his family devastated.

He was last seen at the end of a field near his family's home, and he was feared to have been killed.

But mum-of-two Fiona Mutter, 45, was stunned when she got a call from Cats Protection on Sunday afternoon asking if she had a cat named Fergus – who had been found nearly 80 miles away in Aberdeen.

Mutter took her son, Kyle, 19, for a quick tour of the shops to pick up another cat litter tray and more bowls, and then went to collect her beloved moggy.

She said: “It was such a surprise to get the call that Fergus was alive.

“He was always prone to wandering and would sometimes go off for a few days at a time, but one day he never came back.

“We sadly assumed something had happened to him.

“To hear that he was still alive and had ended up so far away was such a shock.

It turned out that Fergus had been living at a recycling centre in Aberdeen since October but Mrs Mutter believes he had been enjoying home comforts with another family, as he headed straight for the beds and the sofa when he came home.

It is a mystery as to where Fergus has been for the past 11 years, but Cats Protection think it is likely he travelled in a vehicle to Aberdeen.

Mutter, who thanked the charity for going “above and beyond” to get Fergus home, added: “His coat is so shiny, and he’s so friendly, that there is no way he has been living outside all this time.”

Fergus is now settling in back in the familiar surroundings of his home, and has slowly been introduced to Ozzy, the other cat in the household.

“He was soon happy to be handled and stroked, he has such a loud purr,” Mutter added.

“I did buy him a cat bed but he prefers lying on the actual bed.”

Alice Palombo, Cats Protection’s advocacy and government relations officer for Scotland, said it showed how important microchipping cats was and urged the Scottish government to make chipping of cats compulsory.

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