Cat reunited with owner after going missing on journey from Scotland to Ripley

A Derbyshire cat lover has spoken of her joy at being reunited - after more than two months - with the precious pet she thought she had lost forever during a house move from Scotland. Kimberley Smith, of Ripley, was left heartbroken when her cat Suki slipped her harness and ran off into the woods at Scotch Corner service station on the A1 near Richmond in North Yorkshire.

She feared Suki would be lost forever, but two-and-a-half months later wept tears of relief and happiness as she was reunited with her missing moggy at Linnaeus-owned animal hospital Wear Referrals in Bradbury, County Durham. Kimberley said: “Suki went missing in the midst of a five-and-a-half-hour car journey as I relocated from Kilmarnock to Ripley.

“We stopped off at Scotch Corner for a rest and I put the harnesses on Suki and my other cat Jess to allow them to get out of their cat boxes for a little bit and have a bit of a stretch.

"Suki got startled and managed to slip her harness and ran off into the woods. I spent the next two hours trying to get her to come back to me but she was too scared. Every time I got close to her, the branches would snap under my feet and she would run off again and hide. I was absolutely heartbroken she would not come back to me.

"In the end, I had to do the inevitable and leave her as I couldn’t stay there all day, especially when I still had two hours to drive home."

Kimberley put some food down for Suki and then her partner, Steven, had to drive the rest of the way because she was crying so much.

"When we got back that night," said Kimberley, "I settled Jess in and I tried to settle myself but I couldn't as I was missing my baby girl. So, I made plans the next day to travel back up to Scotch Corner to see if I could get her back but, sadly, there was no sign of her anywhere.

"I put more food down for her and prayed that someone had found her and was looking after her – I didn't want to think of a larger animal getting her.”

Time went without any word but Kimberley’s prayers were answered almost three months’ later, when she received a phone call saying Suki was safe and being cared for at Wear Referrals.

Kimberley said: "I couldn't believe it. I immediately called Wear and they confirmed they had Suki and that she was alive and doing well. I couldn't stop the tears coming down my face. I was so excited. I couldn't wait to see her.

"I travelled up to Wear and was shaking while I was waiting to get into the consultant room to see her. I couldn’t wait for her to recognise me and let me hold her and snuggle into her. I managed to get her out of her box and she was finally back in my arms giving me a hug. We had quite a few hugs to be honest.

"I said a big thank-you to everyone at Wear for looking after her so well and then set off to take Suki to her new home. She was a little apprehensive at first but is now back to coming straight for a hug when I get in from work. She also snuggles with me on the sofa when I'm watching TV and lies at the bottom of the bed on her cover at night."

Wear’s operations manager Suzanne Pickering revealed the hospital had used the information on Suki’s microchip to help return her to Kimberley. She said: “She was handed in and on her microchip, we found the details for a vet practice in Scotland. We contacted them and they said they would call the owner.

"It wasn’t long before the owner contacted us and she was over the moon with the news. Our client care team member Kim, who found Suki’s primary care vets’ contact information, was there at the reunion.

“It really shows the importance of having your pet microchipped. It’s now the law in England that your cat must be microchipped and registered by the time they’re 20 weeks old. The penalty for not microchipping and registering your cat is a £500 but, as Kimberley and Suki prove, the benefits can be priceless."