Lost Cat Travels 800 Miles From Yellowstone to California, Reunites With Family

What was supposed to be a peaceful camping trip in Yellowstone National Park quickly turned into a nightmare for Benny and Susanne Anguiano, when their 2-year-old Siamese cat, Rayne Beau, went missing. The couple, from Salinas, California, had been camping at the Fishing Bridge R.V. Park in June, and during one moment of distraction, Rayne Beau dashed into the dense Yellowstone woods, leaving the couple heartbroken and unsure if they would ever see him again.

For five long days, Benny and Susanne searched tirelessly for Rayne Beau, hoping for any sign of him in the thick forest. They combed the area around their campsite, calling his name and hoping he would return, but there was no sign of the adventurous cat. Even Rayne Beau's sister, Starr, who had never been separated from her brother, began meowing anxiously through the screen door of their trailer, as if she, too, was calling for him.

Eventually, faced with the difficult decision, the couple realized they had no choice but to head back home without their beloved cat. As they packed up and made the journey back to California, Starr meowed the entire way, clearly missing her brother. "Leaving him was unthinkable," Susanne recalled. "I felt like I was abandoning him."

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A Remarkable Journey Home

Nearly two months later, a miracle happened. On the streets of Roseville, California—over 800 miles away from Yellowstone—a stray Siamese cat was found wandering alone. A local Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) took him in and scanned his microchip. To everyone’s astonishment, it was Rayne Beau. The Anguianos were shocked when they received the call informing them that their lost cat had somehow found his way back to California.

"It was unbelievable," Benny said. "We couldn’t believe that Rayne Beau had made it back to California after all this time." Roseville, where Rayne Beau was found, is about three hours north of the Anguianos’ home in Salinas. Though the exact details of his journey remain a mystery, it’s clear that Rayne Beau’s determination to find his way home played a significant role in his incredible trek across four states.

Rayne Beau’s Adventurous Spirit

The Anguianos first met Rayne Beau and his sister Starr when they were just 11 weeks old. They initially fostered the pair but quickly fell in love with the kittens and decided to adopt them. Rayne Beau was a little shy at first, but he quickly warmed up and revealed his playful, adventurous side. Susanne affectionately described him as a "dog cat" because he enjoyed playing fetch and would come running when called.

His adventurous spirit wasn’t new—Rayne Beau had already proven himself a clever and daring cat. One night at home in California, he had managed to climb over the fence in their backyard, only to return on his own the next morning. But this time, things were different. When Rayne Beau dashed out of the truck in Yellowstone, the couple lost sight of him almost immediately in the vast wilderness.

Susanne explained, "He didn’t realize that it wasn’t just like his backyard. This is like the biggest backyard in the United States." The couple feared the worst, especially after a campsite worker warned them that grizzly bears and coyotes had been spotted in the area. Despite their efforts to find him, the couple left Yellowstone without Rayne Beau.

A Ray of Hope

Though leaving their beloved cat behind was heartbreaking, Susanne held onto a small glimmer of hope. As the couple drove back home to California, they passed a double rainbow in Nevada. “That gave me hope that our Rayne Beau would be ok,” she shared. Little did they know that their cat would soon make his way back to their home state.

Both Benny and Susanne suspect that Rayne Beau may have hitched a ride with someone traveling toward California, but they aren’t sure how he made it so far. What they do know is that their adventurous cat was determined to return home. "The fact that he was in California and just three hours north of us—I think that proves more that Rayne Beau was the one trying to get towards his home," Susanne said.

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A Happy Reunion

When the Anguianos were finally reunited with Rayne Beau, they noticed that he had lost about 40 percent of his body weight and was visibly exhausted. He was restless in his carrier on the way home, but as soon as they let him out in the car, he calmed down. "He just looked at me, and then he put his head down and fell fast asleep," Susanne recalled. "He was so exhausted."

Now that Rayne Beau is safely back home in Salinas, the Anguianos are making sure he gets plenty of rest and recovery time. He has been adjusting well and is back to his old self, though Susanne admits she is now hesitant to travel with her cats again. If they do take another trip, they plan to stay much closer to home to avoid any similar scares.

Rayne Beau’s incredible journey home is nothing short of remarkable, and his story serves as a reminder of the strong bond between pets and their families, no matter how far apart they may be.