Beloved cat who went missing for three years is discovered living at a McDonald's car park - five miles from its West Midlands home

Fast forward to this past weekend and his owners Michelle and Khushy Bhogal were left stunned when they received a call from the Connaught House Vets in Wolverhampton, saying Henry was alive and well.

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The intrepid explorer had been spotted skulking in a bush outside the McDonald's at Telford's Forge Retail Park by a kind-hearted couple over the weekend.

Concerned for his welfare, they picked him up, took him home and then contacted the vets the following morning.

A scan of his microchip by Connaught's clinical director Kathryn Wright revealed the identity of his owners - and within hours he was back in the home he had last seen in 2022.

Michelle, 52, said Henry, who was 14 when he went missing and is 17 now, had recognised them instantly, and was happily settling back into life at his Shifnal home.

While the full picture of Henry's three-year adventure isn't entirely clear, the couple who found him discovered that a man had been feeding him and another cat, every morning for the past year.

That still does nothing to explain how the miniature explorer made his way from Shifnal to Telford - with the small matter of the M54 and a host of other potential busy roads between the two towns.

Both Michelle and Kathryn said the remarkable story is a perfect illustration of the value of microchipping your pets - now a legal requirement for cats - and keeping the details up to date.

Michelle said: "Make sure your pets are microchipped."

Kathryn added: "This is the massive plus of microchipping, which is now a legal requirement if they are 20 weeks old from June 2024. And remember it is so important to keep your details and your phone numbers up to date.

"Sometimes we have a stray cat brought in and the number just rings out and you know there is someone out there hoping for the return of their cat."

Michelle said Henry had always been an adventurer, but had scarpered when a tamper alarm went off at their new home while they were redecorating.

She said: "I was not too worried, I just thought 'he will come home'."

She added: "I thought 'he knows his way back and if he gets confused he will go to the old house round the corner', so we went to speak to them and gave them our number in case he turned up, but of course he didn't."

Michelle said she continued to look out for Henry and had never given up hope that he would return - even keeping his bed ready for when he got back.

She said: "He is not like a house cat, he's a cat that would go out throughout the day, come back for his dinner and then maybe go out at night again.

"He would just bang on the patio doors when he wanted to come back in."

She added: "To be fair, three-odd years later and we would still look out for him.

"If we were out walking and would see a black cat we would be like 'is that Henry?' and stop and have a check.

"There was always a part of me that thought he is just the kind of cat that will show up one day."

Michelle said she and Khushy had learned Henry was still alive when she checked the voicemail from Connaught House.

She said: "I rang back Kathryn and when she told me this young couple had found him and brought him in, I said he had been missing since June 2022!"

She said the experience had been extremely emotional, adding: "I could not stop shaking all afternoon.

"All evening we were sat on the sofa with him and we would look and at him then look at each other and be like 'can you believe this?'."

Michelle said that Henry had recognised them as soon as they were reunited in Wolverhampton.

She said: "When we first got to the vets straightaway he was coming up and purring, rubbing himself against your leg."

Michelle said that Henry is now grounded - and has to stay indoors for three weeks on vet's orders.

He is skinnier than when he disappeared, but has been happily settling back in.

Michelle thanked all those who had helped make sure he is back home.

She said: "We are so grateful to the couple that found him and to the man who was feeding him."

She added: "We are so thankful to all the people who helped us get him back, but if you find a stray and can get them to a vet and they can check them for a microchip there are families that might be missing them, so please go and get them checked."

Kathryn said they had reunited cats with lost owners before - but three years was unlike anything they had seen.

She said: "Three years missing is very unusual. We have seen a few days, a few weeks, I think six months is the longest I have known before."

Kathryn said that despite his adventure Henry was looking in good condition and it was "really heart-warming" to see him home.

She said: "He is remarkably well. 17 is a good age for a cat and actually apart from a little scab on his neck he was good."