A cat has been reunited with his owners in Swansea, Wales, after going missing for eight years.

The now 11-year-old cat named Mo escaped from a cattery while his owners were on vacation, living in another home before the RSPCA identified him by microchip.

“Today, the wonderful RSPCA reunited us with our beautiful long lost boy," owner Izzy Harris, 23, wrote on Twitter.

“We honestly never thought we'd see him again. Miracles do happen!"

Mo, who went missing in 2012 at the age of three, is said to be in good health, but “wary" of the family's two new adopted cats.

“We took him and our other cat to a cattery whilst we went on holiday and unfortunately the cattery allowed him to escape," Ms. Harris, a student mental health nurse and mental health blogger, told the PA news agency.

“We spent months searching the area for him and putting up fliers and adverts in newspapers. We wanted to believe someone kind had taken him in but we did assume he'd been run over."

“We got a call yesterday from the RSPCA who had found him at the house of an old lady who had died, not far from the cattery where he went missing.

Mo the cat before he went missing in 2012 (Izzy Harris/PA)

“We don't know how long he'd been living with the old lady, but she seems to have taken good care of him so we're really grateful for that, and sorry to hear that she passed away."

Ms. Harris stressed the importance of getting pets microchipped, as Mo was returned home by an RSPCA volunteer due to being registered at the family's address.

“We heard about stories of cats being reunited with their owners after many years but we never thought it would happen to us," she told PA.

“If it hadn't been for his microchip being scanned and up to date, he wouldn't have made his way back to us."

Paula Milton, an RSPCA animal rescue officer, said:

“A tiny microchip can make a huge difference. Mo is a great example of how pets can be returned home years and years later, all thanks to identifying an animal in this way."

“We're absolutely thrilled to see Mo settling back into his new home … This was one of my best ever jobs as an RSPCA rescuer."