Pete and Caroline Hunt assumed that their 7-yar-old Bengal cat, Bilbo Baggins (pictured above), had been shot by a farmer. Bilbo went missing while the Hunts were attending an archery competition. They had taken their three cats with them in their motor home.

But when they arrived at their RV Park, there were some men shooting at a nearby farm.

Mr Hunt said: There was a very loud bang from a shotgun very close to us.

Bilbo isnt used to noise like that and he ran off. As we had only just arrived at the site, Bilbo didnt know his way around and must have got lost.

I asked around all over the place to see if anyone had seen him. When I asked the farmer, he said, well, if he came in here Id put him down.

The Hunts were heartbroken to return home with an empty cat box.

Mrs Hunt said: I thought wed never see him again. Then someone from these vets in Taunton rang last Thursday and said did we have a Bengal cat.

I said yes, but we lost him. She replied, weve got him here. I was so overjoyed I didnt know what to say.

Mrs Hunt had to drive to Taunton to pick up Bilbo. She said: When I saw him he was very thin. Apparently, he had gone into this womans house through the window and she had fed him.

She took him to her local vets and they read his microchip. Unfortunately, we hadnt updated our address with the microchipping company but they managed to contact Estcourt House Vets in Devizes and they put them in touch with us.

Bilbo walked straight up to me, put his little head on my sleeve and purred. I cant tell you how delighted I was.

Ed Davies at Estcourt House Vets said: This shows how valuable it is to get your pet microchipped. But you must tell the microchipping company of any change of address. Fortunately, we had the Hunts contact details, which we were able to give the Taunton vets.

This should serve as a reminder for you to check to see if your microchip contact info is up-to-date.

Microchipping is an essential part of any pet recovery plan, but that plan must also include putting a collar on your pet with ID tags (like TogetherTag) and a bell (to help you locate your cat early on, especially when it’s dark).

Read The Cat’s Meow Guide to Pet Recovery for everything you need to know about keeping your cat safe, and finding her when she’s missing.

[LINK: ThisisWiltshire.co.uk]