A couple accidentally shipped their cat in a return package. The animal arrived home six days later

A Utah couple accidentally shipped their pet cat in a return package for Amazon, Business Insider reports. The animal, trapped in the box without food or water for six days, was rescued by an employee of the company.

The cat, named Galena, was eventually found safe in California, Utah television station KSL-TV reported.

Carrie Clark, one of the cat’s owners, noticed the pet was missing on April 10, the television station reported.

For nearly a week, Carrie, along with her family and friends, searched throughout the house and put up posters around town in hopes of finding the cat, KSL-TV reported. “The anxiety and stress of not knowing what happened to her was excruciating,” she said.

Carrie then received a text message notifying her that Galena had been scanned for a microchip, and later that day she received a call from a veterinarian in California.

“I didn’t believe it at first and thought it was a joke,” Clark told KSL-TV, because the distance between Utah and California is several hundred miles.

The vet told Carrie that the cat was found inside an Amazon return package, along with five pairs of steel-toed boots.

“I ran to tell my husband that Galena had been found. I was shocked to realize that the cat must have jumped into an oversized box that I had shipped the previous Wednesday,” she said.

How Galena was saved

KSL-TV reported that the cat was rescued from the box after six days without food or water by an Amazon employee who found it in a warehouse and took it to the vet.

Carrie and her husband then flew to California to retrieve the cat.

“It was an amazing reunion! Galena instantly stopped shaking and relaxed in my arms when I got to hold her again,” said Carrie. “Despite the fact that she was thinner and a little dehydrated, her blood work was completely normal and she was completely unharmed!”

Carrie said she hopes the story will inspire all pet owners to microchip their pets.

The American Veterinary Medical Association says that one-third of pets will be lost at some point in their lives, but those that have microchips have a much better chance of being reclaimed by their owners.

Publisher: CLB

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