Curiosity killed the cat, as the saying goes, but, for two-year-old family pet Beau, having a naturally inquisitive nature led to a three-month expedition that saw him end up 25 miles from his Norwich home.
The tearaway tabby went missing back in May when his owners, Michelle and David Basted, became concerned after he failed to return from one of his regular night time jaunts.
'We weren't too worried at first as he often went wandering for a couple of days,' Mrs Basted explained. 'But, when he hadn't come back after a week, we came to the conclusion that someone had taken him in.'
In spite of the family posting messages on Facebook appealing for information, the mystery of the cat's whereabouts remained unsolved and the couple's four children – Kane, 13, Jake, 11, Henry, 9, and Polly, 2 – became resigned to the probability that he wasn't coming home.
'They were all upset,' Mrs Basted said. 'But it was very hard for Henry as Beau used to sleep on his bed so I think he took it particularly badly.'
The family's other pets – their two dogs and Beau's brother Ozzy – also showed signs of missing their pal, so when, out of the blue, Mrs Basted got a phone call to say Beau had been found 25 miles from her Hellesdon home, she was 'over the moon'.
'I couldn't believe it,' she said. 'I really didn't think he was going to come home.'
The hungry and slightly dishevelled-looking cat had been discovered hanging around the car park at Tesco, Sheringham, and after staff called local veterinary practice Miramar, receptionist Darol Miller jumped in her car and went to collect him.
'He looked a bit skinny and was absolutely ravenous,' Ms Miller said. 'We had no idea how he could have got all the way to Sheringham and the only thing we could think of was that he had jumped in the back of a delivery van.'
After tracing his owners through his microchip, she phoned Mrs Basted to tell her Beau had been found and within a couple of hours, the family were reunited with their much-loved pet.
'I didn't tell Henry and when he saw me with the cat box and realised Beau was home, he was just so happy,' Mrs Basted said.
Mirimar veterinary nurse Lucy Newall said 'It doesn't matter whether it's a dog, a rabbit, a cat or a tortoise, microchipping is really important as it can lead to lost pets being reunited with their owners.'
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here