From
The Times, Friday 23 February 2007:
'A deaf cat that went missing six years ago has been returned to its owner - at the Battersea Dogs and Cats Home where she works. Meffelda Hay, of New Malden, Surrey, was able to make a positive identification thanks to a microchip embedded in the 20-year-old Punky many years earlier.'
Always get 'em chipped - and don't give up hope!