A cat has been reunited with its family after managing to travel 9,000 miles away from its registered address in Australia.
Melvin, the moggie was found last month living rough in Erskine, Scotland, after a person reported the stray had been visiting their home for food.
The person had been feeding Melvin twice a day since Christmas but had become concerned that the cat was looking unwell.
Melvin was picked up by Scottish SPCA Chief Inspector Laura McIntyre, who took him to be checked by a vet and then transported him to the charity’s Glasgow Animal Rescue and Rehoming Centre.
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Laura said: “One of the first things we do with animals when they come into our care is scan them for a microchip.
“As you can imagine, the team were slightly confused when Melvin’s details came back registered to an address in Australia!
“With assistance from Cats Protection, we were able to solve the mystery of Melvin’s journey to Scotland and reunite him with his owners.
“Melvin was born in Australia and adopted as a kitten by Scottish couple, Jacqueline and Matt Dick.
“After 14 years down under, the pair decided to move back home, spending $8,000 to bring Melvin, and their Border Collie, Max, back to Scotland with them.
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“Sadly, Melvin disappeared in August 2022, just eight weeks after moving into their new Erskine home.
“We were delighted to be able to reunite Melvin with Jacqueline and Matt after all this time.
“It is so important to have your pets microchipped so that, as in this case, owners can be traced quickly.”
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Melvin is now safely back at home with his owners, who are delighted to have him back.
Jacqueline said: “We were devastated when Melvin went missing. We did everything we could think of to try and find him, but by winter we feared the worst.
“We were over the moon when we received the call that he’d been found by the Scottish SPCA.
“The first night we got him home he didn’t leave my side and was purring really loudly.
“I was in floods of tears as I never thought I’d see him again.
“We just want to say a big thank you to everyone who looked out for him while he was missing and helped get him back home where he belongs.”
This isn’t the first time that Melvin has cashed in one of his nine lives… while living in Australia, he was attacked by a hungry dingo.
Luckily, he was saved when the family’s German Shepherd rushed out to scare the animal away.
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