Runaway tomcat

“Rudi” finally back home after nine months

Thanks to the chip! Tomcat "Rudi" could be handed over to his owner.

(Bild: Pfotenhilfe Lochen)

Tomcat "Rudi" escaped from his home in Lamprechtshausen in Salzburg's Flachgau region in June 2023. Last week, the starving runaway was handed over to Pfotenhilfe Lochen in Upper Austria. The cat's owner could only be found quickly thanks to his chip.

On Maundy Thursday, a stray cat in Lamprechtshausen was brought to the Pfotenhilfe animal welfare center in Lochen. The runaway was chipped and registered - so his owner was quickly located. The woman burst into tears of joy on the phone. After all, she had been missing her "Rudi" since June last year.

The cat was probably only a few kilometers away the whole time. The settlement where "Rudi" had been roaming around for four weeks, emaciated and inaccessible, was a good two kilometers away from his home. He was lured by food and nursed up so that he could be attacked and put into a transport box.

"Rudi" is back home after nine months.

(Bild: Pfotenhilfe Lochen)

Mistress no longer believed he would return
"I suspect that he jumped into a delivery service car, jumped out again at the next stop and then never found his way home. Unfortunately, this kind of thing happens all the time," says Pfotenhilfe boss Johanna Stadler. "This case shows once again how important a chip is, even for cats. The cat with the rather inconspicuous coloring was immediately picked up by his owner."

In the meantime, the owner, who had not expected "Rudi" to return, had adopted another cat. However, the two get on well. "Rudi" behaves as if he had never been away. And his owner is over the moon.