Many cats don’t even LIVE to be 14 years old, much less survive being lost for 14 years. A Canadian cat named Tiger Lily did just that. She was reunited with her owner, Ingrid Kerker, after being missing for 14 years.

You can imagine Kerker’s shock when a veterinary clinic called her to say they’d located Tiger Lily. ID was made from a code tattooed on the cat’s ear (it was done back in the day when microchipping was not available).

When Tiger Lily went missing on October 12, 1996 (a date Kerker wrote in the family bible), the Kerkers did everything possible to find her, with no luck. But they never forgot Tiger Lily and talked about her often.

Kerker’s two sons were very excited to get the news. They had photos with Tiger Lily, napping together, back when they were toddlers.

The reunion was a happy one. Tiger Lily was as friendly and affectionate as she’d always been, although her age was apparent. The vet clinic placed her age at 19. No one knows where she’d been in the intervening years, but the staffer who rescued her could smell diesel fuel on the tabby’s body.

Adjustments will need to be made. The Kerker household now has two cats and a dog. Tiger Lily is warming up to the cats, but she’s still not so sure about the dog. Good Luck, Tiger Lily!

[SOURCE: Winnipeg Press; photo by Boris Minkevich, Winnipeg Free Press]