A family have been reunited with their pet cat two years after it ran off sulking – because they got a DOG.
Niko disappeared in September 2014 when Airlie arrived as an eight week-old puppy.
Owner Linzi Hooton-Bork thought she had gone off in a temporary huff but she never came back and she and husband Sean gave up hope of seeing her again.
Nearly two years later, she was stunned when a local vet phone out of the blue to say they had Niko who had been identified from her microchip.
The moody moggy is now back home in Torquay, Devon and even finally getting on with Airlie, a lab collie cross.
Linzi, 26, said: “When she first went missing, we presumed she was just sulking because of the new addition.
“Niko is the mum of our other two cats, and has always been the boss; she even out ranks the husband.
“When we brought Airlie home, she told him straight away she was the boss with a few swipes.
“They didn’t have long together, she went missing within a week
“She definitely was not scared of him, more annoyed by his presence.”
Account coordinator Linzi, who has owned Niko since she was a kitten, added: “We missed her tremendously.
“We plastered half of Torquay in posters. We spent hour after hour searching for her with no luck. We were heartbroken.
“Months passed and we started to accept the fact we may never see her again and started to grieve.
“When we got married in June last year, we named our top table after her.”
Niko was finally found by a family visiting Torquay earlier this month and they took her to Greenbay Vets where her identity was confirmed by a microchip.
Linzi said Niko was “tolerating” the dog’s presence and had even flirted with the idea of playing with him.
She added: “The dog gets on amazingly with the other two cats.
“They play like crazy and Airlie often pins them down and puts their heads in his mouth.
“When Niko came back, she again asserted her authority with him straight away.
“But he was a lot bigger than before.
“But because he plays with the other two, he doesn’t understand why she won’t play and keeps trying.
“They are getting on fine. They are by no means best friends but they are tolerating each other and she keeps flirting with the idea of playing with him.”
She added: “As soon as he said he had a call from the vets, I knew it was about Niko. I sobbed uncontrollably.
“We drove to the vets as fast as we could, both a blubbering mess.
“We were in shock; it had been two years, and I don’t think either of us believed what was happening.
“We had just about composed ourselves by the time we arrived at the vets, but as soon as we walked through the door, and saw her in a little crate in the corner, the tears came flooding back.
“She looked far better than we expected, she was a bit grubby, and had lost half of her tail, but she looked healthy.
“We’ve no clue where she has been for this last two years, or what adventures she has been on; if only she could tell us.
“I think the strangest thing, is that it hardly even feels like she has ever been gone.
“She has just slotted back in perfectly.”
Veterinary nurse Claire French said: “It is amazing that after such a long period of time away from home that we were able to reunite them and hear that she has settled back in well.”
