‘Stray’ Cat Shows Up in Woman’s Garden

By Rachael O'Connor

Life and Trends Reporter

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A woman was already ready to offer a home to what she thought was a friendly stray cat in her yard—but then made a jaw-dropping realization.

Nicole Joanne Billington, 28, lives on a farm in England, where she keeps horses and other animals, including several cats.

In November, Billington thought she had a new barn cat to add to the family when a strange feline wandered into the yard. But after interacting with the supposed stray, she realized it was her own missing cat, Tigger—who had vanished seven years earlier.

"From 6 or 7 weeks old, she never left me," Billington told Newsweek. "She slept in my bed, came in every stable while mucking out, followed me to the tack room to get tack, to the arena while riding. She would come to field gates and wait at the gate while I caught horses. She never left the yard, not even onto our fields. This lasted just over three years.

"Spring or summer 2018, she just wasn't there one day," Billington said. "Days turned to weeks; we rang around all vets, rescues, put posters out, and not so much as a potential sighting. It was just like she had never existed."

But, just days ago, everything changed.

In a video posted on November 27, Billington shared a clip to her TikTok account @nicole.j.billington, from the night the cat showed up. At first, she thought it was her own tabby cat, Sassy, as they looked so alike. But, on closer inspection, this new feline had a tipped ear—and while she appeared to be a stray, she was incredibly friendly toward Billington, coming up for cuddles, and meowing repeatedly at her.

"I had never seen this cat before…or so I thought," Billington wrote over the video, adding that she was ready to adopt the friendly "stray" herself.

As she told Newsweek: "I noticed she was female, and she had been ear-tipped—must be a stray, I thought. But how odd for her to come this close, with our other cats and dogs.

"I welcomed her in, hoping to give her a full belly and warm night if she’d take it. The minute she was within 6 feet, she darted over and began rubbing her head and purring against me."

Then, reality dawned: Billington revealed that, 11 years ago, her farm cat had kittens, and they kept one especially friendly kitten, whom they named Tigger. This feline was with them for three years, but, seven years earlier, had "vanished" without a trace.

Billington noticed the "stray" had the same eyes, markings, personality and meow as Tigger—and that she looked so much like her other tabby cat, Sassy, because both felines had the same father.

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"For seven years, we wondered, waited, prayed that she was OK," Billington wrote in the video. "No sightings, no evidence, just gone."

Billington then shared side-by-side comparisons of the stray compared to Tigger as a kitten—and, apart from the new tip from her ear, the pair were identical.

"I am just so happy to have her home," Billington wrote. "I am in such SHOCK!

"The craziest night…my girl is home after 7 years."

TikTok users were awe-struck, watching the video more than 79,000 times, as one commenter wrote: "This gives me hope. Our cat vanished earlier this year. maybe she'll find her way home too."

"She remembered you all! This is truly magical," another posted, with a third adding: "This is incredible. That cat loves you more than life. Bless her I'm so glad you've been reunited."

And another comment read: "She just had to go clear her head for a while!"

Some commenters pointed out that Tigger's newly tipped year gave a clue as to her whereabouts in the past. Stray cats who live outdoors in a known colony may be part of a trap, neuter, return (TNR) programme; felines are trapped and taken to the veterinarians to be spayed or neutered before being returned to the colony, so they won't reproduce, according to Alley Cat Allies.

The cat's ear will be tipped to alert other rescuers that the feline has already undergone neutering and does not need to do so again. In Tigger's case, Billington said she had already been spayed when she went missing—so a volunteer may have tipped Tigger's ear when they realized the stray had already had the procedure.

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Now, Billington said, Tigger is "back to her normal routine," from waiting at the bedroom door each morning, where to run for breakfast, and the daily routine with the horses.

"She hasn't forgotten a thing [and] hasn't left my side since the minute she returned," Billington said, adding that Tigger is comfortable with the other cats, dogs and horses on the farm.

"I just wish I knew where she had been," Billington said, revealing Tigger is in "good health," and apart from some fleas and missing her ear tip, "she is no different now than how she was seven years ago."

"She must’ve been caught in a stray colony, but no one ever called when they found her or posted anything anywhere," she said. "We’ve been looking online to see if anyone has posted her missing, hoping she has been looked after, [and] spreading the word in person and to vets, but nothing.

"I just wish we had some answers," Billington said. "It’s very bittersweet as I am still worried what she has been through and grieving the time we lost, but so happy we got closure and the best kind! I now don’t have to worry about the worst and am so happy to have my girl back home."

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