It’s always heartbreaking when a pet goes missing. You search everywhere and hope to find them, but at some point you begin to fear that they might be gone for good.

But sometimes, miracles happen when you least expect them. That was the case for one family, who recently got some unexpected news about their long-lost cat…

Two years ago, a Texas family was devastated when their beloved cat Shoto got out of the house and disappeared. They searched and searched, but couldn’t find him anywhere.

Making things even worse, Shoto went missing during a severe January cold snap. The family began to fear that their cat might be gone for good.

Cut to two years later. A Good Samaritan found a skinny stray cat and brought him to the Dakin Humane Society in Massachusetts. The staff examined the cat and discovered he had a microchip, indicating that he had an owner somewhere.

They would soon discover that this stray cat had actually been missing for two years: it was Shoto, alive and well and somehow 2,000 miles away from home.

For Shoto’s owner Karla, it was a phone call she never expected. She says she almost didn’t pick up, assuming that the Massachusetts area code was a telemarketer. But thankfully, she picked up, and got the unbelievable news that her cat was found after all this time.

Despite the distance, Karla quickly made plans to reunite with her cat. “Without missing a beat, Karla made plans to drive to Dakin to pick up Shoto, a 26-hour-each-way journey from Texas!” the Dakin Humane Society wrote on Facebook.

Photos show the heartwarming moment Karla reunited with her cat after so long apart:

It’s not clear what Shoto was up to in these intervening years, or how he ended up all the way in Massachusetts from his home in Texas. “That adventure will forever remain his secret,” the shelter wrote.

The Dakin Humane Society wrote that they were “honored” to facilitate this sweet reunion, and said it was “thanks to the amazing power of a microchip.”

People on social media were moved by the heartwarming reunion. “I’m so glad for Shoto! What a reunion, indeed. I’d have cried buckets!” one commenter wrote on Facebook.

“Wow what a great happy ending,” another wrote.

Others wondered what Shoto was up to these past two years or how he made such a long journey to Massachusetts. “If only cats could talk!!!” one person wrote.

“I would love to know his story, but it’s his secret,” another added.

We’re so glad Shoto is home after all this time! We’ll never know what he got up to these past two years, but the important thing is he’s finally home!

It’s a reminder to always get your pets microchipped, which makes reunions like this possible, no matter how long it’s been or how far apart you are!

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