OXFORD, Ohio — Calvin the cat is back with his owner after surviving 18 months in the wild.
He escaped the home of retired Miami University professor Richard Campbell while family members were visiting in April 2021. According to Campbell, Calvin has been a part of the family since 2017 when he rescued him and his brother from a tree.
Calvin was found this fall living on the edge of the Miami University Natural Areas by retired professor Susan Prochaska.
“Over approximately two weeks, I would go twice a day and call the cat and provide food and water,” she said. “Eventually, the cat started to come closer but would disappear each time after he ate.”
On Oct. 29, she finally coaxed him to come home with her for the weekend. Calvin relaxed and loved being in the house. Prochaska said she thought he probably had belonged to someone at one time before. She took him to the vet to check out if he had a microchip.
“He was able to be reunited with his family because he had a microchip with his family’s contact information. Without it, I wouldn’t have known Calvin’s story,” she said.
Microchipping is a procedure in which a microchip containing information that is readable by a special scanner is inserted under the animal’s skin by a veterinarian.
Campbell said Calvin had some parasites in his stomach and tick bites but is doing well now.
“It is rare for an indoor cat to survive for 18 months in the wild,” he said.
He said that he thought Calvin may have been fed by Miami students living in Collins Hall.
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