Missing one-eyed cat spent five years in prison before ending up at oil rig

A missing cat has been reunited with his owner after spending five years living as a stray in a Scottish prison.

Dexter had been staying around Peterhead Prison in Aberdeenshire and was nicknamed One-eyed Joe by the prison officers who had been feeding him.

The cat was eventually picked up at an offshore oil rig after being found in a shipping container from Peterhead.

Workers contacted the Scottish SPCA on Thursday when they made the discovery.

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SPCA animal rescue officer Aimee Findlay said she has “no idea how the cat ended up” in the container.

“After checking him for a microchip, it turns out his real name is Dexter,” she said.

“We are so glad that he was well looked after for the time he was missing but were even more delighted to be able to reunite him with his original owner, thanks to his microchip being up to date.”

Staff from the animal welfare charity collected the microchipped cat on Friday after he was flown back to the mainland by helicopter.

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It’s not the first time a long lost cat has returned home after vanishing for years.

In January, a cat that was missing for 11 years was finally reunited with its owner – after turning up 80 miles away from his Scottish home.

Fergus,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.

Mum-Fiona Mutter, 45, was stunned when she got a call from Cats Protection asking if she had a cat named Fergus – who had been found in Aberdeen.

Last March, a cat was reunited with her owner after going missing from Isle of Wight almost 14 years ago.

Jess, 17, was returned to Leigh Bateman after vanishing from a family friend’s house in 2007.

The cat found a new home not far from where he had gone missing, taking shelter on the grounds of the Ryde House Group assisted living home, where residents named him Tibby.