A plucky cat whose family thought had died and even held a burial for him has turned up again after seven years.
Black and white moggy Raffael hadn't been seen by his owner Mustafa Javed since December 2016 after disappearing from their home in Trafford, Greater Manchester.
As the months and years passed without a trace of the cat, known affectionately as 'Raffi', the Javed family sadly concluded he must have used up his nine lives.
But Raffi turned out not to have gotten far at all - five miles, to be precise.
The breakthrough came when RSPCA officers were called to another family's garden following reports of an injured stray last month.
A quick scan for a microchip found the moggy did indeed have a registered owner living just five miles away.
The Javeds now suspect he ended up there after climbing into their car and escaping unnoticed when Mustafa was travelling to work, as he owns a garage in the area.
"My children, Maryam, Ibraheem and Khadeeja were only seven, six and three at the time and they were devastated when Raffi went missing, “ said Mr Javed.
"He was a clever cat, he wasn’t the sort that would just wander off, he always stayed near the house, so it was the pain of not knowing what had happened to him that was the worst part."
"I remember it was freezing cold at the time but we searched for him in all weathers, we’d go out walking in our wellies, we literally looked for months and months, setting up Facebook groups and going from house to house in the local area.
“I was travelling back to the UK from abroad at the time when my brother rang me to say Raffi had been found. We couldn’t believe it, the children were so excited, it’s all they could talk about.
"I think the whole family was stunned and shocked; we’d been through the grieving process and had even had a ‘burial’ for him to try and bring about some sort of closure, so to hear that he’d been found alive after all this time, it really was a lot to take in."
Raffi, who is now settling back at home, had a particularly strong bond with Mustafa's grandfather, he said, and would regularly sit on the roof outside his window.
Sadly his grandfather passed away over a year ago, but Raffi was poignantly discovered on the anniversary of his death.
As well as a new cat, Marshmallow, to get to know, Raffi now also has two other additions to the family in the form of Mr Javed's niece and nephew, who have since been born.
And while the heartwarming story may have a happy ending, the RSPCA said the tale served a handy reminder of how important it was to chip your pets.
"More often than not when I pick up a stray cat, the animal isn’t microchipped which is very frustrating, especially when you suspect the cat is owned and is probably someone’s much loved pet and you want to be able to return them home," said Insp Rachel Henderson, who was the one to discover Raffi.
"I was shocked at how long he’d been missing for, but delighted to be able to let Mustafa and the rest of his family know the good news.
"It’s obviously been an emotional time for them - they’d grieved and understandably moved on in the years since - but seeing the joy on their faces now their much-loved pet is back is something I will remember for a long time."
Mr Javed added: "We wish Raffi could talk and tell us his story. When we picked him up from the animal hospital he looked at us as if to say ‘where have you been all these years?’
"We get the feeling he knows where he is and it’s amazing he’s safe, he’s well, he’s back and we get a chance to have him with us again.
"We’d also like to think his story inspires other people to microchip their animals and gives hope to those whose pets are missing."
