'College cat' reunited with owner after 16 months

A pet owner has described being reunited with her cat after she went missing 16 months ago as a "Christmas miracle".

Rhubarb disappeared in August 2023 from Liverpool and owner Claire Berry said after searching "high and low" for her, she feared she was dead.

She was shocked when she was got a call out of the blue to say her tabby cat had become a regular visitor to West Lancashire College in Skelmersdale, Lancashire, about 18 miles away and was known as the "college cat".

Ms Berry said she was "over the moon" to have Rhubarb back.

Rhubard was reunited with Ms Berry after a college staff member got worried about the cat during the winter and took her to the vets to check if she was chipped.

Ms Berry said: "I couldn't believe it."

She said Rhubarb had not been trying to get back out since her return.

"She was so placid when she came home and climbed on my knee purring."

West Lancashire College said it believed the cat had a home locally "but just liked to visit us for company".

"Many of our students and staff fussed her, fed her daily and she had become part of the West Lancs family," it said.

Jonathon Marlow, who is a lecturer at the college, said he worried about the "friendly" feline as the months got colder so took the "college cat" to the vets to check if she was microchipped.

If not, he was "fully prepared to adopt her", he said.

It unfolded that the cat's name was actually Rhubarb, and she had gone missing 16 months ago, then aged 11 months, from Liverpool.

"I was stunned to learn she had somehow made it all the way to Skelmersdale," Mr Marlow added.

He said reuniting the cat with her owner was "one of the most heartwarming experiences of my life".

He added: "Seeing Claire's happiness after all this time is something I'll never forget."

Ms Berry described having Rhubarb back as "my Christmas miracle", adding she was "so grateful" to Mr Marlow and said he "should be on Santa's good list".

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