Our pets love us so much. We are the loves of their lives. They sit by the door waiting for us to get home, bring us a mouse they found, or jump for joy when it’s time for a walk. They show their sweet affection to us with cuddles and licks and we love them back. Toby the cat wasn’t so fortunate.
Toby lived with a family who decided not to keep him because he wasn’t getting along well with their other cats in the house. The owners found another home for him with another family 12 miles away.
One day Toby was discovered back at the original families door. The only explanation was that Toby found his way home, 12 miles away! When the family realized their old cat was back they made a shocking decision.
“They took him to a shelter and asked them to euthanize him,” said a staff member of the SPCA of Wake County. “It was just so heartbreaking to know he made it all the way back to his family, and that was their response.”
The SPCA brought Toby from the shelter into their group and thoroughly checked him out.
“He tested positive for feline immunodeficiency virus, and also had an upper respiratory infection. We got him treated for the infection, which took a little while. Initially, the seven-year-old FIV positive kitty wasn’t very excited about sharing a room with other cats, but he quickly became a volunteer favorite,” said a member.
The organization shared Toby’s story on social media and it went viral. A huge number of calls and inquiries flooded in with people wanting to adopt Toby.
Toby soon found a new owner, Michele Puckett.
“He is just so sweet, cuddly and loving,” Puckett told The Dodo. “He’s also pretty much taken over our bed as if he’s lived here forever. He loves to relax and lay under our pillows,” she said.
“It’s really hard to understand how someone could have dropped him off to be put to death like they did,” Michele said. “It’s shocking, but we feel so grateful he was saved.”
It’s great to know there is a happy ending to Toby’s journey.
