A cat that vanished from its home nearly a year ago — and was presumed dead by its owners — spent months living in a Home Depot in Michigan, until an employee brought it into a vet to get it a checkup and discovered it was microchipped.

The chip allowed the vet to track down the cat’s owner, and the Home Depot staff bid their mascot a fond farewell:

Coyote turned up at The Home Depot in Orion Township last winter.

Employee Daniel Truitt said the cat was extremely friendly and quickly won over employees and customers, who renamed him Skittles and brought in food and a pet bed for the runaway cat.

“I actually just told these two about five minutes before we got here,” said Coyote’s owner Vandee Strohschein, gesturing to her two youngest children. The Strohschein family lives just a couple miles away from the Home Depot where Coyote was found. …

As for The Home Depot employee who wanted to adopt the cat, he said he’s just happy for the family.

Of course, customers who were counting on the cat to recommend garden products that don’t turn into cat food or litter boxes may end up disappointed.

VIDEO: Runaway Cat Found Living at Home Depot a Year Later [Patch.com]

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