Stray Cat Found in Florida—Microchip Reveals Shocking Truth 1,100 Miles Away – ryan

The rescue of a stray kitten in Florida led to a shock discovery some 1,100 miles away.

When Kiwi the domestic short-haired tabby was found wandering the streets back in mid-March, her rescuers could never have predicted what would come next. Brought to Polk County Animal Control, staff quickly discovered that Kiwi had a microchip. When they scanned it, it brought up the contact information of Lourdes Ortiz.

What followed was a call Ortiz said she had “never fully” given up hope of receiving. Eighteen months earlier, in May 2022, Ortiz had adopted Kiwi from Polk County Animal Control. For the next few months that followed, Kiwi enjoyed a happy existence in the care of Ortiz and her daughter.

But in October 2023, their world was rocked when Kiwi went missing, having escaped from their home. Ortiz and her daughter searched around the neighborhood and asked local shelters for help but it was as though Kiwi had disappeared without a trace. Months passed and there was no sign of Kiwi.

A year ago, Ortiz made the difficult but necessary decision to move to New York City to care for a sick relative. She did so knowing that, in the event she was still alive, they would be leaving Kiwi behind.

“Leaving Florida without Kiwi was heartbreaking, not only for me, but for my 13-year-old daughter who loved her dearly,” Ortiz said. “That was devastating for us. As the months passed, my family and I lost hope. We didn’t know what could have happened.”

It felt like Kiwi’s story had ended in the saddest way imaginable. Yet, in mid-March, Kiwi was somehow discovered not far from where she had first gone missing.

Ortiz was delighted, but her joy was tempered by the fact she now lived in New York and could not go pick up her long-lost cat in person.

That was where Best Friends Animal Societya leading national animal welfare organization working to end the killing of dogs and cats in America’s shelters, stepped in. They contacted Ortiz to tell her they were arranging for Kiwi to travel up north to New York City so she could be reunited with her forever family.

Kiwi embarked on an 1,100 plus mile journey from Florida to New York. She was reunited with Ortiz at the Best Friends Animal Society in New York City on April 3, a year and a half after she first disappeared.

“I missed you so much! Where did you go?” Ortiz exclaimed during their touching reunion. “Wait until my daughter sees her. She doesn’t know she was coming to New York today. This is going to be a big surprise for her,” said Ortiz.

Ortiz’s daughter isn’t the only one who has missed Kiwi either. “Kiwi is loved by not only her human family but by her two dog siblings, Logan and Mookska. We are all extremely happy to have our beautiful Kiwi back,” Ortiz said.

Reflecting on this happy reunion, a spokesperson for Best Friends Animal Society praised the efforts of all involved in helping reunite Kiwi with her family, while also highlighting the important role microchipping played.

They told Newsweek: “Shelters across the country are currently full—one way to help keep pets out of shelters, and make sure they can be reunited with their families should they go missing, is to have them microchipped and to ensure identification tags are up to date with the human’s current information.

“When you adopt from a shelter or rescue group, many dogs and cats will already be microchipped. There are also low-cost microchip clinics across the country where people can bring their pets for this added layer of security.

“We are so thrilled that Kiwi is back with her family and we hope by reading her story people will take this as a reminder to go out and make sure their pets are microchipped.”