5 September 2023
FUQUAY-VARINA, N.C. (WNCN) — Microchips help reunite lost pets with their owners all the time, but when a Fuquay-Varina veterinarian recently scanned a cat brought into the office, he couldn’t believe what he saw or the story behind it.
Bob, the cat, is getting the star treatment at 5-Points Animal Hospital in Fuquay-Varina. His journey to 5-Points didn’t seem remarkable at first.
“One of our clients, who has his pets coming here, had Bob living on his porch for a while and thought ‘I should probably bring him in and see if he’s owned by anybody,'” recalled veterinarian, Dr. Kevin Wilson. “We scanned his microchip.”
Dr. Wilson and Scott Wilson, who own the animal hospital, could hardly believe it when the microchip revealed the cat’s owner lives in Wichita, Kansas.
In Wichita, Carol Holmes felt a similar sense of disbelief when she learned the cat she’d lost 10 years ago turned up 1,200 miles away. She says the cat was named after her father, and she got the news that Bob had been found on what would’ve been her dad’s 94th birthday.
“It was kind of a surprise for her,” recalled Scott Wilson. “That bittersweet moment because she said she’s been thinking about her dad.”
Neither Holmes nor the Wilsons know where Bob’s been over the past decade. “There’s no way this cat walked all the way from Wichita, so we would love to know Bob’s story,” noted Wilson. “But Bob is the only one who knows his story.”
They hope this will remind people to microchip their pets and make sure the information is current.
“If your pet has a microchip, you need to make sure to get your information updated in the microchip database whenever it changes,” noted Dr. Wilson.
The Wilsons are looking for the best way to get Bob home. Until then, he’ll stay at the animal hospital with a gold star on his kennel.
The Wilsons have been sending Holmes pictures of Bob, and they say they hope it won’t be long before she can be reunited with the pet that got lost a decade ago.
“She’s been missing him all these years,” noted Wilson. “We’re ready to get him home, and I think he’s ready to go home.”