A St Neots family have been reunited with their ginger tom cat - four months after he went missing in a snow storm.

The Hunts Post: Fernando went missing during the Beast from the EastFernando went missing during the Beast from the East (Image: Archant)

Fernando, a seven-year-old rescue cat, disappeared on December 10 and somehow made his way from Samuel Jones Crescent, in Little Paxton, to the B&Q store, in Eaton Socon, where staff found him wandering around the car park.

Owner Emily Long, who has a 21-month-old daughter called Matilda, visited the store, in Alpha Drive, on Monday to thank staff who noticed Fernando was micro-chipped and contacted Cats Protection.

Emily describes Fernando, pictured, as “homebody” who doesn’t usually venture far from home and says she has no idea how he survived the bleak winter months and how he managed to cover what could be up to three miles in appalling weather.

“He is one of those cats who loves the warm and being inside and the weather was very cold when he went missing so we think he may have become disorientated in the snow,” said Emily.

She added: “We would love to know where he’s been for the last four months and how he survived the multiple visits from the Beast from the East. But as cats can’t talk, we’ll probably never know.”

Emily launched a Facebook campaign after Fernando went missing and received lots of support and there were several sightings , but in the end they turned out to be other cats and the family had all but given up hope.

“I received a call from the microchip company to say Fernando had been found strolling through the B&Q car park and the kind staff there had called Cats Protection,” explained Emily.

“He was very hungry when we got him home, but not injured and no worse for his ordeal. Matilda is his best buddy and she is delighted after months of calling out for ‘Nando’ on our walks around the village with no success. He is now home safely and so relaxed and content, it’s like he never left. Our other cat Pedro, his brother, is just about getting used to sharing his house again. I took Matilda to B&Q on Monday so we could give them a ‘thank you’ card as they were so kind.”