Title: Frikke’s Long Journey Home: From Svolvær to Oslo and Back
In the chilly month of May 2022, in the picturesque town of Svolvær, a young cat named Frikke failed to return home after one of her usual short adventures outside. Her owner, Hilde Schultz Eilertsen, searched high and low, but Frikke was nowhere to be found. "We looked everywhere. Went around the streets and had the back door open, but she never showed up again," Eilertsen recalls.
After exhausting all local efforts, Eilertsen turned to social media, hoping someone in the vicinity might have spotted the cat. But as days turned into weeks, the trail went cold, and Frikke remained missing. The family, with two young children who adored their feline friend, could only hope for the best.
A Phone Call After Two and a Half Years
Over two and a half years later, a phone call gave Eilertsen a glimmer of hope. It was "Ti Liv – Foreningen for hjemløse katter" (The Nine Lives – Association for homeless cats), a organization that helps stray cats in the Oslo area. They had found a cat with an ID chip that traced back to Frikke.
Frikke’s journey, as it turns out, had taken her over 1,400 kilometers from her home in Svolvær to the bustling streets of Oslo. The-familie now faced a new challenge: how to reunite with their beloved cat who had traveled miles away.
Frikke’s Life in Oslo
Frikke’s life in Oslo was a far cry from her peaceful existence in Svolvær. She was found on the streets of Grønland, given the name ‘Laila Grønland,’ and taken to a vet. However, due to an oversight, she was not scanned for an ID chip, which would have immediately revealed her true identity and home.
Frikke was then placed in a foster home on Tøyen until Christmas. It was only when she was set to move to a new foster home that the vet discovered her ID chip. The revelation left the foster family and Ti Liv members astonished, as finding a cat’s owner from thousands of miles away is not common.
Dissecting Frikke’s Journey
How Frikke managed to travel from Svolvær to Oslo remains a mystery. Eilertsen speculates that she might have hitched a ride in a car or found her way into a moving truck, but there’s no way to know for certain.
Torbjørn Haugaasen, a professor of animal ecology at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences, is not surprised by Frikke’s journey. "Katten är det vanligaste familjedyret i Norge. Det är anslått att vi äger omkring sjuhundra tusen katter på landsbygden och positie tattiblje i stora städer som Oslo," he says.
While many cats may wander far from home, they typically stay relatively close to it, according to research from the Norwegian University of Life Sciences. Using GPS tracking, researchers found that the average cat spent 79% of its time outdoors within 50 meters of home and traveled an average of 352 meters from home.
The Importance of ID-chipping
The only reason Frikke found her way back to Svolvær is that she was ID chipped. Without it, she might have spent the rest of her days as a stray in Oslo. "Denne historien är ett bra eksempel på hur viktig det är att ID-merka katter och alla dyr som vandrar ute. Da kan ägaren återfå sitt kreatur om det hamnar liftlöst," says Haugaasen.
Now, Frikke is in a temporary foster home in Skjetten, waiting to make the long journey back to Svolvær. Her family can’t wait to welcome her home. "Det blir veldig fint. Vi gleder oss, og spesielt ungene gleder seg," says Eilertsen.
Everyone hopes that Frikke’s incredible journey will serve as a reminder to ID chip our pets, increasing the chances of a happy reunion if they ever gomissing.
