Mystery of cat's 150-mile journey

Rocco's owners said they were delighted to have him back

A couple from Scotland have been reunited with their cat following his 150-mile mystery journey to Cumbria.

Steven and Laura Buick said they had all but given up hope of finding Rocco after he disappeared from their Edinburgh home three weeks ago.

However, he was discovered at the Tebay service station and taken to the Animal Rescue Centre near Grayrigg.

He had no collar but had been been microchipped, which allowed his owners to be identified.

It is not known how Rocco came to be so far from home, but one theory is he may have stowed away on board a lorry, and then taken up a temporary home at the Tebay service station.

Rebecca Walker, of the rescue centre, described the result as remarkable.

She said: "To have come this far is just crazy really."

Despite the microchip, the rescue centre was struggling to contact the owners.

It contacted the Animal Search UK website, where it saw details about the missing cat had been posted. The website had up-to-date contact details for the owners and so was able to put them in touch.

Rocco was reunited with his owners on Sunday, who said they were delighted to have him back.