A fearless feline who escaped from his owner in Yellowstone National Park has miraculously completed a 1,000-mile journey back to his home in California, two months after going missing.
Benny and Suzanne Anguiano were on a camping trip earlier this year with their cat, Rainbow, when the cat became frightened and ran into the bushes. The Salinas couple He told KSBW.
They said they spent the rest of the trip combing the Yellowstone forests looking for him, leaving his favorite treats and toys to encourage him to return.
However, after not seeing the cat for several days, the owner gave up on the idea that the cat was lost.
“We had to leave without him,” Susan told a local station. “That was the hardest day because I felt like I was abandoning him.”
Sixty days later, when the Anguianos returned to Salinas, they received a notification from PetWatch with Rainbow's microchip ID and location.
Their cat somehow ended up at the local SPCA in Roseville, California (about 200 miles northeast of Salinas).
The couple learned that a neighbor had found him alone on the street, realized he was someone's pet and handed him over.
They have no idea how he traveled the 800 miles from Yellowstone to Roseville.
When he finally reunited with Rainbow, he wasn't feeling well.
“He was just so exhausted,” Susan said, “and probably didn't have the energy to go any further.”
They hope that someone who encountered Rainbow on his long journey home will hear their story and get in touch, providing some clues as to how he got back to California.
“They'd say, 'I saw it here, I saw it there,' or they'd bring it in,” Benny said.
Kittens aside, Susanna urged all pet owners to microchip their animals.
“If that hadn't happened, we would never have been able to bring him back,” she said.
