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10/28/09
Pete and Caroline Hunt assumed that their 7-yar-old Bengal cat, Bilbo Baggins (pictured above), had been shot by a farmer. Bilbo went missing while the Hunts were attending an archery competition. They had taken their three cats with them in their motor home.
But when they arrived at their RV Park, there were some men shooting at a nearby farm.
Mr Hunt said: “There was a very loud bang from a shotgun very close to us.
“Bilbo isn’t used to noise like that and he ran off. As we had only just arrived at the site, Bilbo didn’t know his way around and must have got lost.
“I asked around all over the place to see if anyone had seen him. When I asked the farmer, he said, well, if he came in here I’d put him down.”
The Hunts were heartbroken to return home with an empty cat box.
Mrs Hunt said: “I thought we’d never see him again. Then someone from these vets in Taunton rang last Thursday and said did we have a Bengal cat.
“I said yes, but we lost him. She replied, we’ve got him here. I was so overjoyed I didn’t know what to say.”
Mrs Hunt had to drive to Taunton to pick up Bilbo. She said: “When I saw him he was very thin. Apparently, he had gone into this woman’s house through the window and she had fed him.
“She took him to her local vets and they read his microchip. Unfortunately, we hadn’t updated our address with the microchipping company but they managed to contact Estcourt House Vets in Devizes and they put them in touch with us.
“Bilbo walked straight up to me, put his little head on my sleeve and purred. I can’t tell you how delighted I was.”
Ed Davies at Estcourt House Vets said: “This shows how valuable it is to get your pet microchipped. But you must tell the microchipping company of any change of address. Fortunately, we had the Hunts’ contact details, which we were able to give the Taunton vets.”
This should serve as a reminder for you to check to see if your microchip contact info is up-to-date.
Microchipping is an essential part of any pet recovery plan, but that plan must also include putting a collar on your pet with ID tags (like TogetherTag) and a bell (to help you locate your cat early on, especially when it’s dark).
Read The Cat’s Meow Guide to Pet Recovery for everything you need to know about keeping your cat safe, and finding her when she’s missing.
[LINK: ThisisWiltshire.co.uk]
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09/26/09
Linda Jansen of Penicuik, Midlothian in Scotland had long given up hope of ever again seeing her cat Sampson (pictured above) who went missing a year and a half ago. Which is why Jansen was stunned to get a call that Sampson had been turned in to a veterinarian in Devon, 500 miles away (see map below). His microchip led the vet to Jansen.
Jansen said, “The funny thing is he is a really bad traveller.  He always gets sick whenever he’s in a car. So forget The Proclaimers – my cat really did walk 500 miles. She added, “I have no idea where he’s been for 18 months but I can’t wait to see him.”
According to the vet, Sampson was well-fed, but appeared to have been living rough.
In the interim, convinced they’d never see Sampson again, Jansen and her daughter adopted Angus, a tabby kitten (right). Sampson will soon have a baby brother to train.
The Edinburgh firm Eagle Couriers has offered to return Sampson to his home in Scotland for free. Director Fiona Deas said: “It’s one of the most amazing pet stories I’ve heard. We’ll make his journey home as comfy as possible.”
Three cheers for Eagle Couriers, who is willing to transport a carsick cat 500 miles!
[LINK: thesun.co.uk]
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09/17/09
A Himalayan named Clyde was miraculously reunited with his owner yesterday after a three-year odyssey into the Australian Outback.
Clyde was about a year old when he vanished from his home near Hobart in Australia’s island state of Tasmania. His owner, Ashleigh Sullivan, had given up hope of ever finding Clyde.
No one has a clue how Clyde managed the 185-mile sea journey across Bass Strait from Tasmania off mainland Australia’s southeast coast, then another 2,000+ miles overland to Cloncurry, deep in the arid interior of the Outback.
A nurse found Clyde wandering at a hospital in Cloncurry. She cared for him for about four months before taking him to local vet Donna Weber, since she was leaving town and could not take Clyde with her.
Dr Weber scanned Clyde for a microchip, and contacted Clyde’s family when she got a hit. An animal transport company delivered Clyde to his home for free — flying most of the way.
Did Clyde recognize his long-lost family?
“I’m positive he remembers. He’s not acting like he’s suddenly appeared somewhere and is frantic,” Sullivan said as she tearfully held her contented cat.
“It’s pretty special to have him back.” Sullivan said. “I’m overwhelmed.”
Microchipping is only one integral part of a successful pet recovery program. Check out The Cat’s Meow’s Guide to Pet Recovery to find out more.
[LINK: guardian.co.uk]
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08/29/09
Imagine this scenario. As a responsible cat owner, you’ve taken care to tag, bell and chip your cat. One day, your cat goes missing. She’s picked up and taken to a shelter and scanned for a microchip. They find the chip and the chip number, but when they search the database for your contact info, it’s a big blank.
Some people don’t know that a microchip must be registered with a database. They either assume that once it’s implanted, you’re done, or they completely forget about taking that important last step.
When your pet is microchipped, you’ll be handed some paperwork and asked to go online to register your pet. Once online, you submit your pet’s info and your contact info. If your pet is lost and her chip is scanned, it is this information that enable those who found your pet to contact you.
I’m sure a few of you are now wondering if you remembered to register the chip, or aren’t sure with which of the six U.S. databases your pet is registered.
Go to ChecktheChip.com and enter your pet’s microchip number. It will tell you the database you need to contact.
If you have lost your pet’s microchip paperwork:
- Have your shelter or vet test-scan the microchip. This will give you the microchip number.
- Then, enter the number at the microchip search service ChecktheChip.com
- The site will tell you with which database the pet is registered. Go to the microchip website and review your pet’s info. If it’s not there, register your microchip number.
- Print the results and keep them in your cat’s vet file! You’ll need them if your cat is lost. Also, if your cat turns up at a local shelter, sometimes they want to see that you have the microchip paperwork.
And, don’t forget to update the info every time you move or change telephone numbers. Even if your cat has been missing for years, she can still be found and returned to you if your information is current.
For more information, visit the “Message to Pet Owners” page on ChecktheChip.com.
Thanks to reader Olivia for sharing this info!
If you lose a pet, check out “The Cat’s Meow’s Guide to Pet Recovery.” It contains at least a few strategies that you might not have considered!
Don’t forget! You can leave a comment on this post for an entry in The Cat’s Meow’s giveaway of a custom oil painting of your cat by Linden Alley.
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08/06/09
Smarty the Tabby is back in the loving arms of his family three years after he was spooked and went missing from his Northern California home.
Smarty was just a year old when he disappeared. He was turned in to the Marin Humane Society this week as a stray, and a routine microchip scan identified his owners, Aaron and Leah Lamstein. The Lamsteins and Smarty were thrilled to be reunited.
“Smarty has indeed lived up to his namesake,” says Carrie Harrington, Marin Humane Society communications manager. “Certainly a bit of street smarts helped this kitty survive outdoors on his own for all this time. We hope this story will serve as an important reminder of how important it is to microchip your pets!”
Microchipping is only a small part of a three-prong defense and pet recovery plan to keep your cat safe. Read The Cat’s Meow’s Guide to Pet Recovery for more information.
[LINK: abclocal.go.com; PHOTO: Marin Humane Society]
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07/22/09
The following story, broadcast on WFAA-TV, points out the fallibility of microchipping your pet. Microchips are often invaluable in returning lost pets, even years later, but human error and technology limits can result in false negative readings.
In other words, your microchipped cat could be turned into a local shelter, but if improper scanning results in the chip not being detected, Fluffy could be euthanized at the end of a 72-hr holding period, just as nearly happened in the following story.
Chip problems spur pet owner, Humane Society concerns
01:38 AM CDT on Tuesday, July 21, 2009
By JONATHAN BETZ / WFAA-TV
WFAA-TV
Sammy
Also Online
MORE: Pet and animal reports
 GARLAND – When Rick Rush lost his dog “Sammy” (right) over a week ago, he said he took comfort knowing his black Labrador had been micro-chipped.
“I know the chip works,” he said. “The vet checked the chip in the last checkup and it works.”
But, something went wrong when Sammy was picked up by animal control in Garland. Shelter employees found the dog within hours, but they never found his implanted microchip. While Rush spent days searching for his beloved pet, Sammy sat in the city’s shelter.
“I rely on that chip,” he said. “This case, it did not work and that’s pretty upsetting with me right now.”
Millions have put the tiny glass microchips in their pets. Companies promise owners the technology helps reunite them with their dogs or cats if they become lost.
When a found animal shows up at a clinic or shelter, workers scan the animal with a wand. The small chip emits a radio signal with the owner’s information.
The city of Garland insists it scans every animal – dead or alive – that enters its facility. However, directors admit it’s easy to miss the chips.
While the chip did register when the dog became lost last year, shelter workers said they are unsure why it didn’t this time.
“Any type you have a mechanical device, there’s no surefire measure to make sure it’s going to work every time, 100 percent of the time,” said Jason Chessher, Garland’s deputy health director.
To show off the technology, shelter workers took News 8 to a display in the lobby. Initially, workers had trouble getting the wand to work.
“It’s not picking it up,” said Diana Oats, the shelter’s manager, as she repeatedly waved the wand over the chip.
It took several swipes before the chip registered.
“You have to be almost on top of it,” Oats said. “It has to be very close to the animal, if not touching the animal, to pick up on the chip.”
The chipmakers defend the technology, insisting it has returned hundreds of thousands of lost pets.
Still, the Humane Society of the United States said more needs to be done.
“There are variables and there is still cause for concern,” said John Snyder, Humane Society.
Different companies use different radio frequencies and not all scanners can read the competition. Many shelters, including Garland, do have a global scanner that can read all frequencies.
To clear any possible confusion, the Humane Society said companies should agree on one frequency.
Advocates also worry shelter or clinic workers may not be properly trained with the wands and that many chipped pets are slipping through.
“The burden to make it work falls on the staff of the animal shelters,” Snyder said. “It’s not a two-second process.”
Still, directors at Garland’s animal shelter stand behind the chips. In the past 100 days, workers said they’ve found 96 chipped animals.
“I think they’re fairly reliable,” Chessher said. “I think we are fairly efficient at picking up the microchips of animals that come through the shelter.”
After five days, Rush eventually found his dog at the city shelter, but he said he worries what would have happened, if he hadn’t found Sammy when he did.
“He’s my dog and I can’t imagine him being put down because somebody couldn’t read a chip,” he said.
You should never rely solely upon a microchip to recover your lost pet. ID tags ensure a quick reunion, and don’t require a scanner to reveal your contact information. Pet recovery services like Together Tag not only display your phone number on the tag, but also store extensive info online, including your pet’s medical history and vet’s contact info, ensuring that when Fluffy is found, she’ll get the medical attention she needs even if you can’t be reached right away.
Pairing a microchip with an ID tag is the only effective means of ensuring that if your cat is recovered she’ll be returned to you.
More Info:
The Cat’s Meow’s Guide to Pet Recovery
[PHOTOS: SiouxCityJournal.com, WFAA-TV]
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06/30/09
Sometimes, it takes a village to find a cat.
In the case of a cowcat named Murphy, it took the west end of Oneonta, New York to help Murphy find his way back home:
By Jake Palmateer
Staff Writer
ONEONTA _ “Murphy’s Home!”
The sign on Pam O’Connor and Mark Voorhees’ Chestnut Street yard on Sunday said it all.
O’Connor’s 10-year-old cat, Murphy, went missing two weeks ago and had nearly been given up for lost. But on Saturday, Murphy was reunited with his owner.
The grey-and-white cat with one yellow eye and one blue eye ran out the front door June 12, O’Connor said.
It was unusual for the neutered Murphy, who she said is strictly an inside cat, to get outside.
Murphy has been O’Connor’s pet since he was a kitten.
“I bottle-fed him. He was an orphan,” O’Connor said.
O’Connor printed flyers, and she and Voorhees delivered them to houses across the neighborhood.
“It was a lot of walking,” Voorhees said.
Businesses assisted by allowing flyers to be placed in windows, she said.
But as time went on and there were no sightings of the cat, Murphy’s owner began to fear the worst, especially since the couple lives on a busy street.
But a Murphy sighting on Thursday near Napa Auto Parts by a neighborhood boy named Robert renewed hope, O’Connor said.
“A garbage man corroborated the story,” she added.
And on Saturday, a girl named Katie who also lives in the neighborhood spotted the cat near the Marketplace on Chestnut antique store, O’Connor said. Murphy’s home was roughly in the middle of the one-mile stretch of Chestnut Street between Napa and the antique store.
Although the girl had tried to entice the cat into a cat carrier with food and even held the cat briefly, Murphy escaped, O’Connor said. O’Connor said she found Murphy hiding under a nearby porch after the girl called her.
A reward of $500 was offered, and O’Connor said she would split it between the two kids. O’Connor said she didn’t know their last names.
Voorhees said he thought Murphy may have been hiding out in a swampy area below Chestnut Street during his time on the lam.
The cat appeared Sunday to be in good condition.
“He’s lost a little weight,” O’Connor said. “He’s happy to be home.”
As O’Connor and Murphy took down “lost cat” signs over the weekend, passers-by inquired about the kitty and congratulated O’Connor for Murphy’s safe return.
“The neighborhood is spectacular,” O’Connor said.
O’Connor said she is grateful for Murphy’s return.
“It was a tense couple of weeks,” O’Connor said.
O’Connor said the occasion was special because Sunday was her 60th birthday.
Remember, one of the most valuable tools in your pet recovery arsenal is the good will, eyes and ears of your neighbors. In an age where many neighbors no longer know–or even have met–each other, it’s good to cultivate relationships with those on your street so that if your cat ever goes missing, you’ll have 20 families–not just one–looking for Fluffy, and hoping and praying for her safe return.
[LINK/PHOTO: TheDailyStar.com]
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06/27/09
Dopey the Cat, a big orange tabby, is back with his family near Sacramento six years after he disappeared. His owner, Donna Lane-Mills, thought he’d been hit by a car, and had long ago given him up for dead.
“He was a favorite of my youngest daughter, who was just 6 years old at the time,” Lane-Mills said. “She was crying herself to sleep at night saying, ‘I miss my Dopey.’ ”
But thanks to a microchip, the cat is back home after living in Rancho Cordova and Yolo County.
Lane-Mills said that the microchip company left a voice-mail message that Dopey had been found in the Yolo County Animal Shelter.
“I was shocked when they told me he was found,” she said.
Where was Dopey all that time? He lived for a while in Rancho Cordova, where he was cared for by a woman who later gave him to her grandmother in Yolo County. When she died, Dopey was surrendered to the shelter.
At the shelter, it’s unlikely that the 9-year-old cat would have been adopted, according to shelter workers.
Dopey has settled right in to the spare bedroom at his original home. He sits in a window and sleeps on the spare bed.
And he’s renewing acquaintances with his old friends: Spencer, a 17-year-old American Staffordshire terrier mix, Inni, a 15-year-old cat, and his standoffish mother, Fluffy, who’s still around.
If Dewey had been wearing a tag when he was lost, he would likely have been reunited with his family six years ago.
Microchipping is only one part of a three-prong pet recovery system, which includes tagging, belling and chipping your cat.
A bell on your cat’s collar can help you locate her when she first escapes, before she truly goes missing.
A tag is the single best defense against losing your pet, enabling an immediate reunion. (Pet recovery solutions like TogetherTag offer web support so that anyone who finds your cat can go online to get you and your vet’s contact info as well as any medical info–a lifesaver if your cat receives daily medication.)
A microchip is an excellent backup to the tag, so that if your cat loses the tag, she can still be reunited with you at any point in the future–even years later. However, chipping alone is not a solution: most people who find lost pets don’t think to take them to a facility where they can be scanned. And if your cat is chipped, always remember to update your contact info with your microchip company when you move.
[LINK/IMAGES: Sacramento Bee]
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06/24/09
Stimpy the Cat is back home in Redding, CA after a thrilling hitchhiking adventure that landed him in an industrial park in Sacramento.
The 9-year-old house panther apparently stowed away on a delivery truck about 2 weeks ago.
His owner, Missy Patten, scoured every inch of her neighborhood when Stimpy went missing, but there was no sign of him. She’d given up hope of ever finding him.
“I was devastated,” she said. “I thought he was gone.”
Then out of the blue, she got a phone call from a man who claimed to have found Stimpy–about 150 miles away in Sacramento.
“I was like, ‘holy smokes,’ ” Patten said. “I was so excited.”
The man said he found Stimpy at an industrial park next to a business called PPG Auto Glass. He contacted Patten through the phone number on Stimpy’s tags. Patten owns an auto glass company in Redding, and PPG Auto Glass is one of Patten’s suppliers. A PPG Auto Glass driver was at Patten’s shop at the same time that Stimpy went missing.
“He must have gotten in the delivery truck by accident,” Patten guessed.
Patten immediately grabbed her purse and car keys and drove to Sacramento to pick up Stimpy, who was being held by employees at a business next to PPG Auto Glass.
Those employees had noticed a hungry, frightened Stimpy hanging around the day before and took him in and fed him until Patten’s arrival.
“He ate a ton of food,” according to Patten.
[LINK/PHOTO: Redding.com]
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06/14/09
Jessica Hamill and “Cindie,” an orange tabby waiting for a furever home at MHS
Tails of Marin: You never know when – or where – your lost pet may turn up
by Jessica Hamill
Posted: 06/12/2009 08:33:46 PM PDT
After working as a customer care representative at the Marin Humane Society for five years, I’ve grown accustomed to dealing with a range of emotions on the job. At times I find myself overwhelmed with excitement, especially when an anxious pet owner is reunited with his or her companion animal. It’s not unusual over the course of the same day that I’ll have an extraordinarily sad and emotional encounter with a grieving pet guardian. However, the good always outweighs the bad and I am lucky to meet so many interesting people along the way.
On a recent evening, after a particularly turbulent few days, a woman brought in a stray cat that she found in Novato. The neutered orange tabby was sporting an ID tag: its name was “T.K.” and its address indicated that it lived in San Rafael. After spotting T.K hanging around her house for a few days, she brought it to the Marin Humane Society to scan for a microchip. I didn’t immediately find a chip, but the name and address on the tag sounded really familiar.
I instinctively reached for the “Lost Male Cats” reference book on the counter, which was being used by a woman who was in the middle of filing a lost report (she was very nice about it). I didn’t find T.K. in the lost reports, but something told me to try the microchip scanner one more time.
Sure enough, I found a chip; it had moved from its original spot and so was difficult to find. I ran the chip number through our internal shelter database, and when it didn’t come up, I called the Home Again microchip company to see if it had an address on file.
I decided to do a search on our internal database again, this time by the cat’s name (thank goodness its named wasn’t Max or Sam or Fluffy). There it was, a match. In my effort to work quickly I had erroneously typed the letter O instead of a zero when entering the chip number.
“It looks like the cat lives on Boulevard Court,” I reported to the finder. “Is that near you?”
“Boulevard Court? Where is that?” asked our Good Samaritan.
As I scanned a map of San Rafael, the woman filing a lost report at the other counter spoke up: “Boulevard Court? Oh, that’s where I live.”
She proceeded to give the Good Samaritan directions, and then peeked in at the cat in the carrier. Suddenly she gasped, “Is that T.K.?!”
It turned out T.K. had been missing for two weeks. The owner and Good Samaritan exchanged contact information (just in case T.K. ever ended up at her house again) and both left the shelter with big smiles on their faces.
Jessica Hamill is a customer care representative for the Marin Humane Society, which contributes Tails of Marin articles. For more information, call 883-4621 or go to MarinHumaneSociety.org.
[LINK: Marin Independent Journal]
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