Kiko, a 6-year-old cat, was reunited last weekend with his owners in Portugal three years after he went missing in Belgium.
The Portuguese cat was lost during a holiday trip in Boortmeerbeek, in Flemish Brabant, according to the Flemish animal shelter Pootjesparadijs.
After wandering astray in the area, he was taken in by a local woman, who fed him and cared for him, a volunteer for the shelter told VTM Nieuws.
When Kiko was brought into the care of Pootjesparadijs following a "small accident", the shelter was able to find the cat's microchip, which revealed that Kiko's home was in Portugal.
However, the search for his owners did not end there because the contact details for Kiko's family were out of date.
Firefighters to the rescue
Determined to return Kiko home, the shelter appealed to the internet for help in late June, taking the story to its social media pages to ask for any leads on the whereabouts of Kiko's owners.
Within days, with the help of a Portuguese organisation, Pootjesparadijs tracked down the owners, who lived in Braga, a city northeast of Porto.
“They were extremely overjoyed when they heard the news,” the Flemish shelter said in a statement.
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The shelter launched another appeal in July to find a way to bring Kiko back home to Portugal, as the owners were unable to pick him up from Belgium.
Kiko was ultimately able to "hitch a ride” with a team of Belgian volunteer firefighters from ERA-BE vzw who were travelling to Portugal to assist in combating forest fires.
Kiko was reunited with his family on Saturday 1 August after three long years apart. A video of the emotional reunion was shared online by ERA-BE vzw.
“We’re at a loss for words for just a moment. This has been quite the adventure, and we’re so happy that we were able to see it through to the end,” read a statement by Pootjesparadijs. “Saying thanks isn't enough, but still thanks, thanks...and thanks again!”
