Arizona family reunited with cat lost for months in Oregon

Jan. 25 (UPI) -- An Arizona family was reunited with their pet cat after the feline spent nearly five months on the loose in Oregon.

The McMillan family of Gilbert said they took a trip to Oregon last summer and their cat, Lexi, got loose at the Thielsen Forest Campground, about 6 miles from Diamond Lake.

The family extended their trip by a day to search for Lexi, but they eventually had to drive home without their pet.

Oregon Department of Transportation worker Chris Southwick said he and his coworkers spotted a cat on the loose near their maintenance facility in Lemolo, a few miles from the campground. In late November, he captured the feline.

"It was hiding on the engine of a piece of equipment, that had been used earlier in the day, to try and stay warm. I opened up the engine compartment and grabbed it," Southwick told KPTV. "There were fires, when I found her, we'd been getting a pretty good snowstorm. Probably two or three feet at that time. I'm surprised she actually lived."

Southwick said he brought the cat home and cared for the feline until she became stronger and more active.

The worker said the cat seemed comfortable in his home, but he decided to take her to the Saving Grace Adoption Center in Roseburg to see if anyone was missing a pet.

The shelter scanned the cat for a microchip and identified her as a the missing Lexie.

Janice Quist, a volunteer at Saving Grace, was already planning a trip to Surprise, Ariz., about an hour from the McMillan home, and offered to bring Lexie along for the ride.

Lexie was reunited with her family this month.

"I got so excited that I started crying," Maxine McMillan, 10, said of the reunion.