Missing African jungle cat found in Calif.

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., Jan. 10 (UPI) -- A 3-year-old African jungle cat hybrid missing for months has been reunited with its owner in Newport Beach, Calif. after an exhaustive search.

On Saturday, jungle cat Kimba was returned with his owner Mikette Von Issenberg, who had been scouring local foothills and posting flyers all over the town, the Orange County Register reported Wednesday. The cat, a small cougar-like animal, was captured in a four-foot trap baited with mackerel by Jerry and Carol Ann Ruoff of Pelican Crest, Calif.

Von Issenberg purchased Kimba when he was 5 months old. He went missing in June 2006 while Von Issenberg spent six days in the hospital.

"I think it was very likely he was looking for her," Kimba's breeder Mark Klemperer told the Register.

During the search, Von Issenberg consulted a "pet psychic" named Barbara Morrison, who told her the cat would eventually come home. Kimba is currently undergoing tests at a veterinarian's office to determine if he contracted any diseases while he was gone, the Register reported.