Woman reunited with missing cat after 4 years thanks to microchip
A missing South Carolina cat is now back home, living his best life.
A missing South Carolina cat is now back home, living his best life.
A missing South Carolina cat is now back home, living his best life.
It took almost four years. But thanks to microchip technology, a missing South Carolina cat is now back home, living his best life.
Oliver is a sweet, 14-year-old cat who lives in Bluffton, South Carolina. He loves cuddling and spending time with his owner, Linda Burton.
But back in April of 2020, Burton was hospitalized with COVID-19.
"I was sick in the hospital and I came home after four days, and Oliver was missing," Burton said.
Burton intensely searched for Oliver, but after months and months went by, she eventually gave up hope, worried that something like an alligator might have found Oliver first.
"I honestly didn't think he could survive four years. I didn’t think he could survive an hour," she said.
That’s why Burton was shocked when she got a text from the local shelter saying someone had brought Oliver in – four years later.
"I just about fainted, because I couldn’t believe that he was found," she said.
Luckily, Oliver was microchipped, so the shelter was able to easily find Burton and reunite the pair.
"She was ecstatic," said Shelly Anchondo, Okatie Campus Manager of the Hilton Head Humane Association. "Like, she was immediately ready to hop in her car and come get him. She was in tears. So was our front office staff."
Burton says Oliver hasn’t missed a beat since returning home and he's become her little shadow.
She hopes his story will inspire others to microchip their pets.
"Please microchip your pets, because there’s no way I would have gotten reunited with Oliver if he wasn’t microchipped, and it’s just a small thing that you have to do and it can make such a big difference," Burton said.
