VIDEO: Runaway Cat Found Living at Home Depot a Year Later

A Lake Orion family has an extra member tonight after picking up their cat, Coyote, from in Oakland Township.

He wasn't there for a checkup, though.

"We had a client that brought in what they presumed was a stray cat, and he's been living in The Home Depot garden center for the past six months," said Dr. Kristi Yee, a veterinarian at the clinic. "We found that he had a microchip, and so we were able to scan the chip and find the registered owner information.

"They thought their cat had been dead," she said. "It went missing last summer and never came back."

Coyote turned up at The Home Depot in Auburn Hills* 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.

"I told them we were going to get a surprise," she said. "They were thinking a swimming pool; I think this far surpassed the swimming pool."

Skittles ended up at the veterinary clinic when a Home Depot employee decided to try to adopt the cat. That's when Yee discovered that Skittles was Coyote, and she quickly contacted the family.

"It's definitely worth microchipping a cat or a dog because for $40 or $50, you can have peace of mind," said Yee.

For now, the Strohschein family said they're just looking forward to having Coyote home again.

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

*: The Home Depot is in Auburn Hills, not Orion Township.