Janet Nease, from Myrtle in North Carolina, got a shock when she received a call to say her cat, Sylevester, had been found in Montreal, 1700km away from home.

The 17 year old cat had a history of wandering off, but never before to another country.

"I never thought in a million years he'd be this far away," Nease said in a telephone interview from Montreal, where she was reunited with Sylvester this week.

"I think the first thing I said was, 'Couldn't he have found some licence plates from North Carolina?'

Since Sylvester can't talk, the assumption is he hitched a ride to Montreal in someone's camper.

"We're just guessing but we figure he was lured over to the campground by the smell of hamburgers and hot dogs," Nease said.

"He's very friendly so I'm not sure if he decided to settle down in somebody's camper, perhaps from Montreal, who returned home with him to Montreal."

Sylvester turned up last Friday in a suburb north of Montreal, scuffed up, limping and malnourished.

Marie Chevarie, a resident of Lorraine, found Sylvester whimpering in a parking lot and took him in. He looked scrawny and tired, but came to Chevarie when she called.

Chevarie fed him a can of tuna which he eagerly gobbled up and took in the cat, who'd lost half his body weight.

Using a telephone number on Sylvester's collar, she called Nease in the USA.

"She had no idea where she was calling," said Nease.(Edmontonsun.com)

"He's always been a bit of a wanderer, but I said 'Montreal, Canada?'," Nease said.

Sylvester is still recovering and getting great vet care in Montreal, but Nease says she's having trouble finding a way to get both of them home. Sylvester's too weak to fly, so she may have to make other arrangements.

"He's 17-years-old but he doesn't look a day over five," said Nease.