Cat makes surprise return home four days after being ‘cremated’

The myth of cats having nine lives was tested to its limit when Nicci Knight’s beloved feline Ted walked through the catflap after being “cremated”.

Knight, from Newby, North Yorkshire, was on holiday in Turkey when she was told by neighbours that Ted had drowned in their pond, the BBC reported . She arranged for a funeral to take place in Thornaby while she and her family were away – but four days after the ceremony, Ted walked back into their home.

“I had to break the news to my husband and our four children and we were all absolutely devastated, because Ted is a huge personality and a beloved member of the family,” Knight told the BBC.

Knight arranged for Heavenly Pets Crematorium to collect the body and cremate it.

Four days after the cremation, Knight – still in Turkey – saw she had several missed calls from her cat sitter. “I was in the pool again, having a lovely time, having, you know, put it [Ted’s death] behind us,” she told the broadcaster.

The cat sitter told Knight that Ted had just walked through the catflap. “I didn’t believe it at first,” Knight said. “I had to get her to FaceTime me live so that I could see that Ted was actually alive.”

Knight soon realised she had paid £130 to cremate someone else’s cat. When she later went to collect the ashes, she saw the urn had been labelled “Not Dead Ted”.

Vicki Crallan, the director of Heavenly Pets Crematorium, told the BBC it was “bittersweet” and she was worried there was a family out there “missing somebody”.