A missing cat has been on a long journey before finally reuniting with her worried owner 19 months later.

Marjory lived as a stable cat with the horses at Seaview Riding School on Walney where she was ‘very well loved’.

(Image: Joanne McDonald)

As a feral kitten, she was taken on by Joanne McDonald and her friend Natalie Chapples, who both have horses at the stables on Biggar Bank.

They took the ‘tiny’ kitten to the vets for a check-up, made sure she was spayed, got her microchipped and had her ear clipped, which signals that a cat has been through a Trap-Neuter-Return program.

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Joanne said the mischievous feline would often disappear for short periods and was often hiding in the hay so no-one thought anything of it when she wasn’t seen that first day.

But when she didn’t reappear, Joanne and Natalie began looking for her before reporting Marjory as missing in January 2023.

“We hunted high and low,” Joanne said. “I was worried she’d been got by a fox or something.”

(Image: Joanne McDonald)

She later learned that several months after Marjory went missing, she was picked up as a stray by a man in Ulverston.

She was known to enjoy getting in people’s cars, which is how Joanne suspects she travelled to Ulverston. “If she wasn’t so inquisitive, she would never have gone missing,” Joanne said.

Marjory was taken off the streets in April 2023 and went to live with the man’s girlfriend in Bootle.

Marjory lived here for over a year but didn’t get on well with the other cats she shared a home with.

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Not long ago she was advertised for free online and found by a veterinary nurse who was looking for a house cat.

(Image: Joanne McDonald)

Marjory was given to the new owner Eve who took her for a check-up and discovered the microchip which included contact details for Joanne’s husband.

Joanne described her as an 'absolute sweetheart' and said: “Marjory was very well loved at the stables, she’s a right character. She loved the horses, and they loved her back. She would stand on their backs and groom them.”

Getting the phone call from Archway Veterinary Practice at Grange-Over-Sands was a ‘bit of a shocker’ for Joanne.

Luckily, Eve lives on Walney and Joanne was able to be reunited with Marjory.

She said: “To anyone who’s cat is missing – never give up hope.”

(Image: Joanne McDonald)

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It has been decided that Marjory will stay with Eve as she will now be more used to living as a house cat.

Joanne said it was for the best as she worried that Marjory wouldn’t settle back at the stables after so long away.

“It would be unfair to bring her back to the yard now after such a long time,” Joanne said. “It’s nice to know she’s safe, it’s a relief to know she’s not been knocked over or anything, she has a nice owner now and will be well looked after."