Cat’s 1,300-mile road trip a mystery

CHICAGO – No one knows how a tabby cat named Charles traveled the 1,300 miles from his New Mexico home to Chicago, but he’s set for a free flight home.

Charles disappeared about eight months ago while his owner was out of town and a friend was caring for him.

“Oh, I was crushed, and I found out while I was away volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, and I was so upset because I was in New Orleans so there was nothing I could do,” said Robin Alex, of Albuquerque.

Then last week, Alex received a call telling her Chicago Animal Care and Control had picked up her wandering cat as a stray. Staffers contacted Alex after finding that Charles had a tracking microchip embedded between his shoulder blades.

But Alex said she could not afford the round-trip ticket to Chicago to bring Charles home, so she was afraid he might be euthanized. Enter fellow Albuquerque resident Lucien Sims, who was moved when his mother sent him an online story about Alex and her pet.

Most importantly, Sims was on his way to Chicago for a wedding, so he said he would go to the shelter, pick up Charles and bring him back to New Mexico.

Sims has made arrangements for Charles’ return, including getting American Airlines to waive the cat’s travel fee.