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Missing Portland cat found 5 years later in New Mexico; reunited with owner

The Santa Fe Animal Shelter & Humane Society said 6-year-old Sasha was found wandering the streets in Santa Fe and was brought to the shelter by animal control. (Credit: Santa Fe Animal Shelter & Humane Society)

SANTA FE, N.M. — A cat who has been missing for five years from Portland, Oregon, has been found in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

The Santa Fe Animal Shelter & Humane Society said 6-year-old Sasha was found wandering the streets in Santa Fe and was brought to the shelter by animal control.

Murad Kirdar of the Santa Fe Animal Shelter said Sasha didn’t have a collar but after scanning him, they found a microchip which allowed them to locate his owner, Viktor Usov, in Portland.

Usov told the shelter they lost Sasha five years ago.

On Tuesday night, Sasha was reunited with Usov at the Portland Airport.

We are LIVE in Portland reuniting Sasha and his guardian, Viktor, who lost his cat 5 years ago. If it wasn’t for the cat’s microchip, we would have never been able to reunite them. A special thanks to American Airlines who helped with this reunion. To learn more about microchips, please contact your veterinarian. SFHumaneSociety.org

Posted by Santa Fe Animal Shelter & Humane Society on Tuesday, November 19, 2019

“I mean this is exactly how he was. He loved being where all the action was. Loved being around people, loved being rubbed,” Usov said.

It’s unknown how Sasha got to Santa Fe.

“It was all because of a microchip (that) we were able to reunite the families,” Kirdar said.

Santa Fe is about 1,200 miles from Portland.

Watch Sasha the cat get on a flight home to Portland! Stay tuned this evening on Facebook for updates of Sasha's reunion with her guardian :)

Posted by Santa Fe Animal Shelter & Humane Society on Tuesday, November 19, 2019

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