Nobody knows how Figaro got from her home in Madisonville, Louisiana, to the Louisiana SPCA shelter in Algiers, more than 40 miles away. But however it happened, the Gazeley family is incredibly grateful and relieved to be reunited with their itchy-footed cat.

As far as the family can figure out, the gray tabby must have stowed away somewhere in Dave Gazeley’s car when he let her out on Sunday night. On Monday, poor Figaro awoke to find herself stranded at Louis Armstrong International Airport in the New Orleans suburb of Kenner, more than 40 miles from home, when Dave parked his car there before leaving for a business trip.

But Gazeley says Figaro can’t have climbed into the car with him: He’s allergic to cats, and the sneezing attack caused by a feline stowaway would have revealed her presence. Of course, as we all know, there are plenty of other places cats can ride along, most of which result in harrowing (at best) journeys.

However Figaro ended up on her epic journey — which involved crossing the longest bridge in the United States, the 24-mile Lake Pontchartrain Causeway, and presumably two weeks scrounging out a living at the airport’s long-term parking garage — she was eventually found by a good Samaritan who brought her to the SPCA. Staff scanned Figaro for a microchip and found one, which allowed the cat to be reunited with her family.

Figaro’s best friend, Cadee, the family’s 12-year-old Boxer, was delighted to be reunited with her pal. Thanks to a combination of sheer luck and a microchip with up-to-date contact information, Figaro will get to spend the rest of her life with her family instead of a shelter.

Source: Nola.com