Holiday miracle in La Pine: Cat missing for four years is reunited with happy owner

'Tiny seed of hope' blossoms -- thanks to good Samaritan, and tiny microchip

La PINE, Ore. (KTVZ) -- A holiday miracle is at hand for a former La Pine resident who was reunited with her cat, Schrodinger, who has been missing for the past four years.

Theresa Blanco said Schrodinger went missing not long after her significant other, Steve Kreucher, 63, passed away, losing his battle with cancer.

Blanco said she spent countless hours looking for the cat.

"I talked to a pet psychic that is usually pretty reliable," Blanco recalled Monday, "and she gently told me that Schrodinger went to be with his dad."

Despite what Blanco was told, she remained persistently hopeful she'd see her cat again.

"Even after she told me that, I think for the next two years, I continued to walk around the block, calling him," Blanco said.

Blanco recently moved to California, where she said she left a drawer open that the cat liked to sleep in.

"So I guess, I don't know -- maybe because I'm a nitwit, I had a teeny tiny seed of hope."

Fast-forward to just a few days ago, and that hope became a surprising, even amazing reality.

Someone in La Pine found Schrodinger under their deck and brought him to the Humane Society of Central Oregon. A scan turned up the cat's microchip was read, which led Schrodinger back to a very happy reunion with his shocked, loving owner, and in good health.

"It was still considerably beyond the realm of reality when I got a call from Darren at the Humane Society of Central Oregon," Blanco said.

She said it truly is a miracle.

"I'm considering him an early Christmas present from Steve," Blanco said, "and maybe this is Steve's way of saying he's okay that I moved away from where we were, so happy to start a new life."