Cat called Tiger who went missing 11 YEARS ago is reunited with family after shelter worker who lives near their home found the cat in her front yard and scanned his microchip
- A missing cat named Tiger finally been reunited with his family in Hyde Park, New York after running away 11 years ago
- Owners Maggie and John Welz adopted Tiger as a kitten, but the tabby cat escaped their home when he was three-years-old
- The Welz attempted to find their lost cat for months, but eventually lost hope when no one could get information on Tiger's whereabouts
- Over a decade later, Tiger was found by SPCA worker Caroll O'Connell lingering just a few miles from his original home
- It took three years for Tiger to warm up to O'Connell's presence, but once he did the SPCA was able to find the Welz after scanning the cat's microchip
- Maggie Welz reconnected with Tiger on August 21
- The Welz hope their story will inspire other pet owners to microchip their animals
A missing cat that escaped from his New York home 11 years ago has finally been reunited with his family after being discovered only miles away from their home.
John and Maggie Weltz adopted Tiger, a small brown cat, after finding the stray cat wandering near their home in Hyde Park, ABC 13 reports.
When Tiger was three-years-old, the Tabby managed to escape the house.
'Unfortunately somebody opened our door and he ran away and never returned,' Maggie told ABC 13.
'So we were heartbroken and we ended up a year later moving to another house about 10 houses from that house and we told those owners to keep an eye out for him but he never returned.'
Maggie Welz (pictured) was reunited with her missing cat Tiger after the Tabby cat escaped from their home 11 years ago
The Welz kept an eye out for their missing cat, but after time passed they lost hope of ever reconnecting with Tiger.
Maggie told WLNY: 'After months of effort there was never found or no information was provided to us about him.'
Months turned to years and eventually over a decade had passed since the Welz had seen Tiger.
Little did they know, Tiger hadn't strayed too far from his roots.
SPCA employee Caroll O'Connell (pictured) found Tiger wandering around her front lawn and spent three years gradually gaining the stray cats trust
According to WLNY, the runaway cat had been lingering around the front yard of Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals employee Caroll O'Conell.
O'Connell told WLNY: 'We worried about him constantly if we didn't see him. Weeks would go by and we didn't see this cat. So we would call him Spirit, because it kind of would just appear… or Ghost.'
She explained to ABC 13 that Tiger would come around her house and each year he 'deteriorated more and more.'
O'Connell realized Tiger may have been abandoned, missing or simply a feral cat.
'This spring he started to come around a little bit more in the mornings so I started to work harder to try to gain his trust,' she told ABC 13.
The SPCA worker spent three years gradually gaining Tiger's trust and eventually it paid off.
O'Connell (pictured): 'We worried about him constantly if we didn't see him. Weeks would go by and we didn't see this cat. So we would call him Spirit, because it kind of would just appear'
Using a scanner from the Dutchess County SPCA, O'Connell scanned Tiger's microchip and was able to contact his original owners
John Welz (pictured): 'She got me on my cell and started to explain, at first it didn't register. Then it dawned on me what she had been saying that Tiger had been found after all this time'
O'Connell contacted John Welz and Tiger, now 14-years-old, was reunited with Maggie Welz on August 21
O'Connell was able to get close enough and, using a scanner borrowed from the Dutchess County SPCA, scanned Tiger's microchip- cracking the case about Tiger's origins.
She contacted John Welz over phone and shocked the surprised owner.
John told WLNY: 'She got me on my cell and started to explain, at first it didn't register. Then it dawned on me what she had been saying that Tiger had been found after all this time.'
On August 21, Maggie Welz came face to face with Tiger, who was now 14-years-old.
The Dutchess County SPCA shared a Facebook post telling users about the heartwarming and surprising story
Welz (right): 'I can't tell them how grateful I am to them for their persistence and their dedication and for making sure that our cat was OK'
The Welz hope sharing their story will convince other pet owners to use microchips
Even though Tiger's all grown up, it's like no time as passed.
'Each night I've slept with him, he crawls right up on me and I just look at him and think I can't believe that you're home with us,' Maggie told WLNY.
'I can't tell them how grateful I am to them for their persistence and their dedication and for making sure that our cat was OK,' Welz said to ABC 13.
'I have no idea where he was for the years in between, I'm sure he could tell us many tales, but the thing is that he is now home with us and he will be with us for the remainder of his life.'
The Welz are sharing their heartwarming story in hopes of inspiring other pet owners to microchip their furry friends.
