Meet "Black Rat" — three days after escaping a vet she returned home to a farm, travelling more than 30kms on her own.
The epic journey started last Wednesday when her owner Kerry Wilhelm took the short-haired black cat from their home in Woodanilling to Katanning – in southern Western Australia.
Black Rat had just had a litter of kittens and Ms Wilhelm thought it was high time to de-sex the family pet.
The escapade started when Ms Wilhelm carried the cat from her work in Katanning to the nearby vet clinic.
'I feared the worst', owner
"I was giving her a big cuddle and she seemed to be very calm … then the poor thing got spooked when a school bus pulled into the car park," she said.
Despite searching and posting for help to a local social media page, Ms Wilhem could not find Black Rat.
She feared the cat was lost for good.
"I mean she's never been around so much traffic ever. Never ever been in a town," she said.
Three days later, Ms Wilhelm's husband called her asking if she had dropped Black Rat home.
"He said I think someone's playing a joke on us, the cat's here at the door waiting for her breakfast," she said.
Shocked when her cat came back
"I was in a little bit of shock actually and I think he was as well."
Ms Wilhelm said she could not believe the cat had travelled so far on its own.
"We're about 25 kilometres Wagin side of Katanning and then probably another 5kms inwards onto the farm off of the highway.
"Since this completely bizarre episode, I've had so many people express their stories about their cats and it's amazing how these creatures have like an in-built GPS system."
