A cat who turned up at a Loch Lomondside campsite after she had been missing for more than a decade has found a new home.
Georgie, now aged 16, had appeared at the Rowardennan campsite in summer 2019.
Mystery surrounds where she had been living before she got there.
Georgie had vanished in 2008, aged 12 weeks old, when her owners from Rochdale, Greater Manchester, took her with them on a family camping holiday.
Georgie’s owners had to make the 250-mile trip home without her in the hope that her microchip would eventually help reunite them.
When the campsite was forced to close during the first Scottish lockdown, meaning there would be no-one on site to keep their eye on Georgie, staff called in the Cats Protection League for help.
The charity’s East Dunbartonshire-based adoption centre, in line with protocol, scanned for a microchip, and traced her original owner, but with the passage of time they decided not to collect her.
Georgie remained at the centre for four months.
At the age of 16, she has a list of health problems including thyroid and dental issues which needed treatment, as well as arthritis.
Cat lover Margaret Petrie, a secondary school teacher who lives minutes from the East Dunbartonshire adoption centre, is Georgie’s new owner.
She said: “It’s always good to have a wee cat. I hadn’t heard about Georgie’s story when I was looking at the centre’s website, but I was looking to home a cat that other people might not want. I was heartbroken when I heard what a tough life she’d had.
“Georgie’s very affectionate, friendly and loving and will come in and in say hello when I’m sitting in the lounge, before returning to her bed.
“She could go out if she wanted but she isn’t very mobile and prefers to stay indoors after such a long time spent living outdoors.”
The Cats Protection League pointed out this week that microchipping is the best way to ensure lost casts are returned to their families. Microchipping is a safe procedure which involves placing a chip the size of a grain of rice beneath a cat’s skin, containing an owner’s contact details and can be easily updated by a vet.
