Aussie teacher’s incredible reunion with cat missing for more than two years

A primary school teacher has received the “best birthday present ever” after she was reunited with her cat two and a half years later he suddenly disappeared. Jessica was heartbroken when George, who she adopted alongside her sister Dusty four years ago, “ran off” just a week after she moved into a new home in Adelaide in 2022.

At the time, Jessica had been introducing the cats and her German Shepherd puppy Rex to their new neighborhood. “I’d been taking him outside wearing a harness and a leash to help him get used to his new surroundings,” she told RSPCA South Australia.

“I’d brought him back inside and taken his leash off but not his harness, and then I had to go out briefly and while I was out, one of our housemates accidentally left the laundry door open and George ran off still wearing his harness .”

Despite putting up missing posters, posting on Facebook and contacting rescue organizations, George was nowhere to be found.

“He was very skittish around strangers so I knew he wouldn’t come up to anyone who called out to him,” Jessica said. “I looked for months and I always held out a little hope, but in the end I gave up on ever seeing him again.”

Missing cat found still wearing harness years later

Miraculously, two and a half years later RSPCA SA received a report on July 19 about a cat with a strap hanging down from its neck lingering around a workplace 10km away from Jessica’s home.

“This cat had been living in drainpipes near my work for years and we’d been putting food out for it occasionally,” Courtney, who contacted rescue officers, said.

“Then on Friday we noticed what looked like a piece of rope around his neck and hanging down his front legs, and that’s when I decided to call the RSPCA.

“I now know that the rope was the body band of the harness this cat was wearing when he ran off — it must have been hidden under his fur and had finally snapped, because this was the first time we noticed it.”

Good Samaritan tries to catch missing cat

Equipped with a cat trap and instructions from RSPCA SA, Courtney attempted to catch George but it proved more difficult than she anticipated.

She regularly checked the trap over the weekend but it remained empty until Monday when George wandered in — only for him to be accidentally released by a well-meaning staff member who feared the cat had been trapped without food or water for days.

“There were some tears out the back that day,” Courtney said.

Luckily, five days later George was once again caught in the reset trap and transported to RSPCA’s animal care center at O’Halloran Hill. Footage of vet nurses tending to the pet captured the moment the thrilled staffers discovered George had a microchip in his ear.

Microchip leads to heartwarming meeting

A quick scan then led to a heartwarming reunion. Photos show Jessica grinning while hugging her long, she lost pet.

“When I got the call, I said ‘no way!’,” Jessica said. “It’s my birthday next Tuesday, and having George back has to be about the best present I’ve ever had.”

This week, the primary school teacher gifted her Year 2 students with the incredible reunion story for an extra special show-and-tell.

“I showed them photos of what George looks like and some pictures of us being reunited,” Jessica said. “They had lots of questions and ideas about where he might have gone, and we spoke about how two years ago is a long time.”

Microchipping is a legal requirement in all Aussie states and territories besides the NT.

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