Maryland Woman Receives An Unexpected Call Two Years After Her Beloved Cat Disappeared

Losing a pet is devastating, but when they disappear without a trace, the heartbreak deepens. 

The questions never stop circling in your mind: Where could they be? Are they frightened or hungry? Will they ever find their way back home? 

This was the painful reality for Alexis Keith, a cat mom from Maryland, when her cherished cat Lilly went missing one night. 

Days slowly stretched into months, and months eventually turned into years, with still no sign of Lilly.

Alexis was devastated, as she shared in an interview:

“She jumped down to the second-floor deck and then, I guess, down to the ground. I was like, ‘Oh my God, she probably hurt herself.’”

Worried, Alexis searched everywhere. Flyers went up around the neighborhood, and she joined every local lost pet group she could find.

But no matter what she did, Lilly didn’t turn up. Still, Alexis refused to give up hope, sharing:

“I always wanted to believe she was OK – that someone else had her and she was being taken care of. I knew that she was such a sweetheart, and I was just hoping that she was able to win somebody over.”

Every day, she held onto that hope, imagining her cat safe and loved somewhere.

For two long years, Alexis kept looking, but eventually she realized she needed to move forward with her life.

During that time, she moved twice, got married, and even had a baby. Then, completely unexpectedly, she got a call that would change everything.

The call came from the spay-neuter nonprofit and clinic SAVECats. They had taken in an injured gray cat, and when they scanned for a microchip, Alexis’s number came up. It was Lilly!

Alexis was stunned, as she shared:

“It took me, like, three hours to really register that they really had her. They left me a voicemail like it was no big deal.”

It turned out Lilly had been surviving on the streets of Maryland all this time. She braved harsh weather, searching for food and finding shelter wherever she could.

Thankfully, a kind stranger had been feeding her, thinking she was feral because her ear looked tipped, as Alexis explained:

“I think she hurt it when she jumped, which made it look like she was tagged. I remember every time it rained or snowed, I would think of her like, ‘I hope she’s not outside. And she really was out there, through all of it.” 

Without hesitation, Alexis rushed to bring her long-lost kitty home.

Their reunion was unforgettable. Lilly immediately recognized her, sniffed her hand, and melted right into her arms.

Now, after two years of living outdoors, Lilly is back with Alexis and has adjusted perfectly to her new home and new family members.

It’s truly a miracle she came back after all that time, and watching her settle in so happily truly shows that some bonds are unbreakable.