CATLIN, Ill. (WCIA) Tuesday marked a homecoming almost three years and more than 1,000 miles in the making.

Doug and Michele Carder of VALOR Rescue said their cat, Ivy, was stolen from PetSmart in Champaign back in 2022.

“No one had seemed to know where she had gone,” Doug said.

The couple said Ivy was the first of two cats they’ve had taken from the location.

“[Petsmart] told us that from the beginning: we’re not liable for anything that happens,” Doug said. “If that’s the case, that’s ok, I just want everyone to know it.”

After years of what-ifs and worries, the Carders got a message that Ivy was in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

“I looked at it and I’m like ‘No, this is a scam, I just know it’s a scam,’” Michele said. “I plugged in the microchip number they had listed on the email and it was her.”

Another rescue helped coordinate her pick up, and then it was a one way ticket back to Illinois with the help of a couple cat-loving flight attendants. 

From Albuquerque to Denver to Chicago, the Carders were more than ready to welcome Ivy back home.

“Everybody was crying and yeah it was really nice,” Doug said about their airport celebration. “We had balloons and signs that said ‘Welcome home, Ivy.’”

Ivy’s return comes about a month after the Carders got Sadie back, the second cat of theirs they said was taken from PetSmart.

“Sadie was only gone a couple of days, Ivy was gone for three years, but both were found by microchips,” Doug said. 

If it weren’t for those little pieces of technology, who knows if the furry friends would be back in their owners’ arms. The Carders said their story should be a message to pet owners everywhere to always get pets microchipped.

Both cats are a little more anxious and flighty than they used to be, but they’re doing pretty well all things considered. 

While the Carder’s rescue works to get animals adopted, Ivy and Sadie are going to stay in their care for the foreseeable future.