A cat who went missing on a Lake District holiday has been reunited with his owners two years after he went missing.
Babes, who is six years old, was found living rough in an allotment in Kendal, around six miles from where he first disappeared.
A concerned local resident spotted the scared and difficult-to-catch feline and decided to share a photo on social media in an attempt to find the cat’s owners before winter.
Babes’ owner Gael O’Brien, of Wigan, said she was in complete shock that their cat had been found.
She was staying overnight at Windermere’s Kotel when Babes was lost after he slipped his harness while out on a walk on November 14 2022.
Searches for Babes took place for weeks and a Facebook group was set up to try and gather sightings and bring people together willing to help search for him.
Over 900 people joined the online group to help the search and for two years, Gael held onto hope.
Gael shared on social media: “The second I looked at the photo I knew 100 per cent that I was looking at my boy Babes, there was no doubt in my mind.
“I had studied every marking on his body for two years ruling out possible sightings. I knew this photo, this sighting, was him.
“The photo I had spent 103 weeks praying for, the photo I had come to realisation that I probably never going to receive, I had finally been sent it.
“My boy Babes is alive! I instantly burst into tears, went sick, was shaking and rang the number that had sent me the photo.”
Gael then immediately drove to Kendal – 80 miles from her home – with six tins of sardines, a trap and a torch to bring Babes home.
After trial and error trying to rescue the scared Babes went on until 4am, Gael had to return home and Doncaster’s Trapping Lost Cats team stepped up to help.
The charity had initially helped search for Babes in December 2022 and the couple also got their second cat, Precious, from the organisation.
The TLC team travelled from Doncaster – a three-hour journey – to help rescue Babes and quickly managed to successfully catch him after a short period of time.
Gael said: “When I got back to Kendal, Babes was inside the trap in Joanne Davies’ car (of TLC). Every one of us was elated, crying, laughing and had hands over our mouths in shock – it was like, what the heck just happened?
“Travelling back home with Babes was like travelling back with your new born baby in the back of the car. I literally couldn’t have been any happier.”
Babes is now safely back home with his family and is learning to enjoy the company of his new sibling Precious.
Gael said he is healthy and is eating and drinking well and decompressing in his own space.
She added: “Two years of hell has all been worth it to finally have Babes home. Exactly 103 weeks since he escaped his harness in Windermere, my heart has finally healed.
“I couldn’t have kept Babe’s name out there without the help of the Facebook group and it’s followers. Total strangers rooted and invested in finding Babes and reuniting us both.
“Taking time out of their busy lives to share a post or comment on a post or sending me messages of other stray cats that were possibly Babes.
“I’m so truly grateful to each and every one of you. You have all brought my boy Babes back home where he belongs.
“It doesn’t bare thinking about what he has had to endure over the past 103 weeks and I will carry that guilt with me forever.
“Thank you everyone who helped from the bottom of my heart.”
Gael is also planning to keep the Babes Facebook group open to share updates on his life.
