The thought of your pet missing even for a day, is just horrifying. Now imagine your pet missing for years. That’s exactly what happened to Elizabeth Gillespie.

Her lovely Siamese mix cat, adorably named Kevin Durant, was gone for almost 7 years! She searched for him but eventually lost all hope.

Fast forward 7 years later, Elizabeth received a text message saying that her boy was found. She was informed by 24Petwatch and the Walker County Animal Shelter, turning her whole world upside down.

Since she made the wise choice of microchipping Kevin, he was now safe and sound at the local shelter. 

In a Facebook post shared right after she got the message, Elizabeth wrote: 

“I just got a text from 24Petwatch / Walker County Animal Shelter that Kevin Durant (my cat) has been found! I will be there at 10am when they open to get my Bubba!!”

This was followed by an appreciation post, where Elizabeth proudly shared Kevin’s photos when he was a kitten. Just look how adorable he was! 

After Kevin went missing, Elizabeth started volunteering at North Georgia Animal Alliance. She fostered many fur balls who were in desperate need of attention. This however, worried Elizabeth as she shared in a post:

“He never met my other pets since they joined the party after he went missing. And now I have 2 cats named after NBA players. He saw me “foster” one night only, an emergency bottle baby kitten and he knocked the kmr can over and spilled it 3x. This is gonna be fun.”

The next morning Elizabeth rushed to the shelter. Once reunited with Kevin, she couldn’t let him out of her arms. However, what shocked Elizabeth most was the fact that he had been living just a mile away from her house.

This little fugitive lived in a cat colony just on the other side of the neighborhood. As Elizabeth shared in a Facebook post:

“My guilt from absorbing that he’s been so close and outside this whole time is overwhelming. I’m so glad I get to have more time with him though.”

Kevin also had a quick veterinary check-up and luckily, no major health issues were detected. He was healthy and ready to rejoin his long-lost family. 

Surely, Kevin will need some time to adjust to living in a house again. On the other hand, this cross-eyed boy was exhausted from the harsh street life. Elizabeth also shared a quick update:

“It’s going to be an adjustment for him for sure. His first 5 years of life inside with catio access and his last 7 years as a free roaming outdoor boy in a colony… After 10 days at the shelter in a small cage, he is definitely relaxing and sleeping a lot now.”

This proves the importance of microchipping your pets. In a situation like this, you will be more than happy you made such a decision.

In conclusion, I’m super excited that Kevin got reunited with his mom. It sure taught me to never lose hope! Kevin will get to spend his senior years in the comfort and warmth of his forever home.