Pet stories are always emotional, capable of gutting people in a profound way that little else can replicate. There’s something about a lost pet, homeless pet, or reunited pet that can reduce the world to tears at the thought of anything befalling their own fluffy angel.
So of course, when Twitter user @nghvi took to the platform to detail the miraculous story of how she reunited with her lost cat Panther five years later, thousands followed along for the rollercoaster of a saga.
“hi I can’t believe this is real because I am still in shock,” she tweeted on Friday, “but my first pet ever my cat panther just came home today after going missing FIVE YEARS AGO. FIVE. YEARS. AGO.” The cat recognized its family and immediately went to his favorite spot in their house.
hi I can’t believe this is real because I am still in shock but my first pet ever my cat panther just came home today after going missing FIVE YEARS AGO. FIVE. YEARS. AGO.
— ngu (@ngvhi) March 16, 2018
The story only gets crazier from there, so as @nguhi says, “saddle in.” After Panther went missing, a shelter found him 15 miles away. Panther narrowly escaped being euthanized, and was adopted by a woman in another city.
alright saddle in bc this is a JOURNEY. sometime after panther went missing he apparently turned up in a shelter in the next city 15 mi away. days before he was going to be euthanized he was adopted ! and lived with a women for a little while in yet another city.
— ngu (@ngvhi) March 17, 2018
Then, when the woman was no longer able to care for Panther, she gave the cat to her parents — who were unknowingly the original owners’ next-door neighbors. Panther lived with this family for an entire year before the original owners found him.
she saved his life and named him Charlie! She had him for a little while and when she couldn’t look after him anymore she gave him to her parents. this woman’s parents happen to be…..my next door neighbors. They have been living with “”Charlie”” for a little over a year
— ngu (@ngvhi) March 17, 2018
BUT THERE’S MORE.
The neighbors who were taking care of Panther asked the original owners of the cat to adopt their Siberian husky, Trotsky. THE FAMILIES HAD UNKNOWINGLY SWITCHED PETS.
of course I said yes which is why last year I adopted my beautiful baby boy trotsky. ALL WHILE UNBEKNOWNST TO ME MY LONG LOST CAT PANTHER WAS LIVING INDOORS. I took their dog and they took my cat. pic.twitter.com/LkkAYKb5Hi
— ngu (@ngvhi) March 17, 2018
THIS IS WHY when trotsky saw panther at our house today he didn’t go crazy or bark. HE ALREADY KNEW HIM. THEY’D LIVED TOGETHER BEFORE. we discovered this after our neighbor called and asked if we’d seen Charlie who’d been missing all day
— ngu (@ngvhi) March 17, 2018
When the neighbors called asking for their cat “Charlie” (who is, of course, Panther) the entire miraculous story began to unravel. The original owners are letting the neighbors keep Charlie/Panther, and the original owners are welcome to visit their first cat as often as they’d like.
“I never would have guessed that 5 years later I’d get to kiss his little head again,” @ngvhi tweeted.
This needs to be made into a heartfelt Disney movie ASAP.
