Share Your #ReunionStory

Pringles 4 Year Adventure!

Our cat Pringles went missing four years ago. She had always been an indoor only cat but got out when we were shifting house. We could see her in the paddocks behind our old house but she was so scared she wouldn't come to us, in fact she ran the opposite direction when we tried catching her. We made multiple attempts for weeks to catch her, including setting traps and asking the neighbours to keep an eye out for her. Because we shifted to the next town, every time I drove past the area I always looked for her. I marked her microchip as missing and life went on. Four years later I received a call from the pound from our old town to say that they had Pringles, she was alive and well! We were all so shocked! She is home now and settling in well although her kitty sister is less than impressed to have to share the cat food bowl! The pound told us that Pringles was caught on the same street that she had gone missing from so it's amazing to know she never left the area. If only she could tell us what she had been up to for 4 years!

- Jess

A Three Night Adventure

Bobby snuck outside on Tuesday night when we’d let our dog Rocky out for a wee. It was not ideal, but had happened before and he’d always shown up at the front door the next morning. But on Wednesday, he was nowhere to be seen. We sent out a message to our neighbourhood WhatsApp group, but no sightings. By Thursday, I’d printed and distributed 300 flyers, put up 20 x A3 posters, notified CAR, Crumb and the local vets. My husband and I took it in turns that night walking the streets calling his name and shaking his food. We put food at the front and back doors and still - nothing. On Friday morning after we were starting to loose hope, suddenly my 12 year old son shouted that Bobby had turned up at the front door! We could t believe it. He was hungry and thirsty, but completely unharmed. He didn’t seem to know what all the fuss was about!

- Jessica

Whisper's Journey Home

Whisper is my youngest, at 1.5 years old. He's a brown Tabby and is sweet and friendly. He loves roaming the backyard, catching crickets and lizards. However, on 11 April 2026, he didn't come in for breakfast and remained missing for over 2 weeks (would have been 3 weeks today). I put a notice on the Traralgon Facebook page, hoping that someone in my area would find him. No luck for 2 weeks and I was becoming more and more afraid that something bad had happened to him and I would never see him again. Then, out of the blue, on 30 April, I got a call from a lovely young man who said that Whisper was running around in his front yard (he has his name and my phone number on his collar - as well as being microchipped and registered). I was so relieved and went over to the man's address to get Whisper as soon as I could that day. Turns out he was nearly 3kms from home, on the other side of the highway into town!! I can't imagine how he got there and, frankly, I don't want to. I'm just so glad he is home. And he's grounded for the next 2 weeks!!

- Bec

Po Is Back!

Po was last seen on 26th April at 9am. During the day he usually hids and sleeps and only comes out when he is hungry in the afternoon or evening because he loves to eat but yesterday he was not seen and did not come out to eat. We searched the entire house and all those places that he usually hides to, but no sign of po. We searched the streets for hours. My son went out with his favourite food hoping he would smell that and will come out but, no luck. After we all got exhausted and sat to discuss what could have happened, my son heard a scratching noise from the toilet. H went to check under the faucet inside cupboard thats where po was hiding but was not able to open the door and this entire time he was sleeping or sitting quietly. We were all relieved once he was found.

- C.A.R. Pet Owner

Felt Like Odds Were 1 In A Miillion!

I lost Stevie for exactly 4 weeks and one day. I exhausted all options with community pages, flyers, word of mouth and spent mosts days walking and looking when I had the chance. I was hysterical and so upset and 1 week after we lost him we found out we had to move which made the search even more difficult. Unfortunately I didn't have Stevie's microchip number and knew it was my last resort, so I reached out to the animal rescue organisation to provide them.To my disbelief, the day I registered Stevie in my name and repotted him missing on Central Animal Records he was found later that night!! 38 KILOMETRES AWAY!?!??!?!?! Just as I was losing hope he finally came home very skinny but the same happy cat thanks to the local council, and 4 days before we got the keys to our new house! The stars really did align and it couldn't have been a better way to be reunited!

- Chelsea

2 Years Apart, Back Like He’d Never Been Away.

Bagheera came into our lives when he was only 4 weeks old. I was his foster mum, along with 2 of his siblings. I fell in love with him, and adopted him. I continued to foster for multiple years, and he was such a gentle kitty to the babies.My family (2 humans, 6 animals) bought a caravan in 2023. We travelled up and down the east coast & central qld/nsw/Victoria for 18 months. Everyone knew the routine. Drive, visit, stay a week or more, drive, rinse, repeat. All of my animals (multiple species) got along with each other and slept on the drives.In march 2024, Bagheera, the country boy, rabbit hunter that he is, took off in the bush for days, and I couldn't find him. I flagged him as missing immediately.I would often wonder what he was doing or where he was, if he was okay etc. I had no idea.Fast forward to 2 weeks ago when I got the phone call from the vet saying they “have my cat Bagheera.” That's right, 2 years, the same month, later. I'm not joking.

This whole time, he'd been at the camp ground we lost him, being looked after by numerous people/visitors, and not one person thought to scan his microchip.(After talking to the vet);In January of this year, someone who was a regular visitor of that camp ground, took him from there, and took him to their home in the city. They assumed he was a girl, gave him a girl name, assumed he was theirs forever. Again, didn't scan him. (Which is always the first thing I do when I find a stray dog or cat)Then, a couple weeks ago, these people took him to the vet, because of nausea, the vet scanned him, saw he was a boy, had a name, a family, and was flagged as missing since 2024. I then got the phone call that night from the vet.I couldn’t believe it. I honestly thought ‘why is a vet in Melbourne calling me??’ And then when they told me they had Bagheera, I thought he must be sick/injured etc. But, he was perfect.

The next morning we organised pickup, a some 15hr drive, broken up of course.It was a long trip down. I was so anxious, and so much was going through my head. I was getting my boy back after so long. Was he going to remember us?When the vet bought him out in the carrier, it was surreal. There he is! My kitten is coming home! (He’s not a kitten. I’ve just always called him my kitten because he was once a kitten, and he lived with an old lady cat)I wonder what he’s been doing all this time.

We had to stay in 3 different places on the way home, but on the first night, he came out of hiding within only a couple hours, instead of what I thought was going to be days. The next place we stayed, he didn’t hide at all, took food from my hand, just like he used to, and responded to his name. He smooches up to us. He’s confident. He’s back on good food - on day 3 - amazing!

He remembers us. He knows he’s home. He’s back with his family. He knows he’s safe.If it weren’t for CAR, I don’t think I would have ever seen him again.In fact, I was convinced I’d never see him again.

- Rachel

My Boy Was Stolen & Came Home After Nearly A Year

In May 2025 in country Victoria my much loved animals were stolen by my landlord and rehomed. On Tuesday 17th March 2026 I received a call from a Ranger that they had collected my boy, by Friday my daughter had organised everything and my boy was on a plane on his way home to me. Picking him up from the airport made me cry as I never thought I'd see him again, the bond between animals and their owners is never forgotten, he is home and remembers his mum, thank you so so much to everyone involved in bringing my beautiful boy home.

- Michelle

Maggie Cat Home After 7 Days & 10 Hours Missing

Maggie unexpectedly slipped out at 10 p.m., and by midnight, I realised she was gone. I wasn’t sure if she was hiding inside or had somehow managed to leave on her own. It wasn't until late morning that my husband remembered he had gone outside the night before. I was heartbroken, fearing she was lost outdoors.

My only comfort was knowing Maggie was microchipped and registered. If a stranger found her, there was hope she'd be returned. I ensured my details were up to date in Central Animal Records and marked her as missing to prevent anyone from claiming I had transferred ownership. I also signed up for a CARMA Reward Club membership to alert local vets, shelters and owners, add her profile picture, and more.

I followed all instructions from the CAR website and took extra steps, like leaving worn clothes outside to help Maggie find her way home using her remarkable sense of smell. Knowing her microchip was active kept hope alive as I browsed photos of found cats without microchips, praying that their owners would collect them in time.

On the eighth day of her disappearance, I heard a faint meow. It was Maggie hiding among the overgrown blackberries next door. After ninety minutes of trying to coax her out of the safe yard, I sat quietly about ten metres from the fence with my back turned. Suddenly, without me noticing, Maggie silently ran toward me, firmly brushing up against my back! I scooped her into my arms, holding her tight until she was safely back inside. Both of us were overwhelmed with joy—Maggie was finally home after seven days and ten hours apart. Now, Maggie is peacefully sleeping beside me, finally safe.

- Cheryl

He Was Stolen Then Returned 2 Years Later!!

So at the time Lucky was stolen, the two of us were living in my Toyota van due to homelessness. I stopped at a shopping centre and left Lucky in the car with the keys as I was only going to the toilet. When I returned, the van and my dear Lucky dog, the red kelpie, were gone.

I rang the police and had to be taken to hospital as I could not cope. The police were great — they found my van, but no Lucky.It took two years for him to walk into a pub, and the staff called the pound, who finally got in touch with me. I've never been so happy that he had a microchip in order to find me again. I'm over the moon to have Lucky back.

Thanks so much to Central Animal Records for their work. This dog saved my life and he is my best friend. I will never let him out of my sight again lol.Lots of hope to those who have lost a fur baby — I pray for their safe return.

- Matilda

Dear Prudence, Don’t Go Out To Play

Last Friday we went out and had a lovely evening. When we returned, our beloved tabby was nowhere to be found. We searched under furniture, behind curtains under the house … we waited a few days .. still no Prudence. I phoned local vets my council and notified CAR. The first question the vets and council asked was whether Prudence was microchipped. They reassured me that my chances of finding her were much better because of this. I went to bed early and sad that night, and couldn’t settle. All of a sudden, my husband opened the bedroom door and deposited some fluffy good news on the bed ! Prudence had returned, famished. Our theory is that she got locked up somewhere, and as soon as possible, escaped to freedom and home. Smothered in cuddles and kisses, she is now somewhat subdued but hopefully wiser…

- Michelle

Horror Story - But True & Not That Horrid

My soul mate, Chesnut, a Cavador, was just a year old when this happened.It was a very dark and stormy night. It was the first storm that Chesnut had ever experienced since I adopted her just nine months earlier. As the thunder cracked and lightening fell it was obvious that Chesnut was distressed, but I kept her close and attempted to comfort her and keep her calm.Suddenly the unexpected happen, a bolt of lightning hit the power pole right beside my house and everything went black. The explosion was so loud that even I jumped with fright of it.Now in total darkness I moves into the kitchen to grab my torch from its mounting on the inside of the pantry door. Switching it on, I turned the light towards where I had temporarily left Chesnut on the lounge. She was gone. I began to search every room of the house, calling out her name, but she was nowhere and the panic within me began to rise. My next thought was that she may have ran out through her doggie door in her panicked state, so I took to searching the back deck and yard. The rain came down on me heavily and I was absolutely soaked. Then I moved, still searching with my torch through the carport which runs the length of my house to scan the front yard and then search the front deck.Chesnut was nowhere to be found.I then considered Chesnut's other possible options and it hit me, in her panic she could have squeezed through the bars of the front or side gate as she was still small enough to manage just such an escape, especially in her desperate attempt of escape.I raced back into the house to grab the car keys and my portable spotlight and headed back out to the carport to jump into the car and take my search to the local streets.The rain, the lightning, the thunder, none of it had let up as I backed the drive to the front gate. where I got out of the car to open it all the while calling out for Chesnut. I then backed the car out onto the street, slipped it into first and moved along the street using my spotlight to pick try and pick up on even the slightest movement. But the rain was far too intense, the even windscreen wipers of the car couldn’t handle to torrent that fell, but I pushed on.I searched every local street on my side of the lake, but there was no sign of my little girl. She was gone and I feared the worst. So, I turned for home and as I drove home, worried and defeated I thought on how I had been her and familiarising her with the neighbourhood for the past several months. There was still hope that once the storm abated Chesnut would mange to make her own way home.To this day I have no real idea how long I had been out searching, but as I entered my house, I heard a soft whimper, then came that familiar little bark. I quickly turned the torch in the direction of the sounds and there she was, Chesnut, soaked and absolutely covered in mud. She was curled up on the lounge with her head raised towards me and just the very tip of her tail wagging frantically.As I approached her, she leaped into my arms to share her slobbery licks and of course her mud, which, by the way, covered the full length of my modular lounge!What she had done in her panic was as I suspected, she had ran out through her doggie door, but what I didn’t know that she had also managed to get herself underneath the front deck. The mug came from her struggle to squeeze herself under the deck via the front garden. It was the only point of entry that was possible for her.I surmised that Chesnut must have heard me driving out to search for her but the time she had managed to get herself out from under the deck, I was gone. So, she made her way back inside to await my return.The horror of that experience has long since passed and I from that moment on I provided her with a safe room, which happened to be home office and a great place for both Chesnut and I to wait and hide from whatever nature decides to throw at us. Plus, there’s no mud!

- Stew

He Was Stolen Then Returned 2 Years Later!!

Lucky was stolen due to him being in my van whilst I went to the toilet in a shopping centre , 2 women stole him and my van, the police found my van but no lucky I thought he'd be gone forever I've never been so devastated. 2 years later thanks to his microchip we have been reunited he was found walking into a pub two hours away from where he was stolen ! I immediately went to get him and we have been bonding again ever since! September 25 he was found!!!

- Matilda

Welcome Home Tigo

After days of searching, we heard a very faint meowing from our next-door neighbour’s yard. My daughter and I rushed to the back garden and called her name. Tigo slowly came out of her hiding place.My daughter picked her up and Tigo immediately started licking her face. We both cried with relief and happiness.We brought her home, gave her food and water, and she settled back in as if she had never left. Our home finally felt complete again. Tigo is truly part of our family.

- Anis

From a Split-Second Escape to a Third Chance

Penny’s journey back to us is one we won’t forget anytime soon.

In a split second, Penny noticed a window left just barely open. True to her fearful nature, she didn’t hesitate — she shot out and disappeared before anyone could react. For a timid cat, this was our worst fear.

For weeks, traps were set and checked daily. We searched blindly, not even knowing where to start, hoping Penny would feel safe enough to approach help. Every day without news felt heavier than the last.

Then the call finally came.

Penny had been trapped and was sitting at the pound. Penny didn’t come back unscathed. She returned to us with ringworm and a serious trap injury to her nose, which will require ongoing treatment, alongside 6–8 weeks of ringworm care.

Penny is finally safe. She’s back where she belongs, receiving the care, patience, and compassion she needs to heal.

Welcome home, Penny. You were worth it — even when it hurt.

- C.A.R. Pet Owner