Sparky, the family cat, has been reunited with the Bogush family after six years on his own.
The now 12-year-old cat went missing after it went outside one day and never returned home.
"We wish he could tell the story," said John Bogush, of Brandon.
The Tampa firefighter has been on a lot of calls, but the call over the weekend was one he wasn't expecting.
"It was shocking," he said.
Bogush spoke to a veterinarian in Levy County saying they found a microchip on a cat that turned out to be Sparky.
"I called my wife up and told her she better be sitting down, it was a pretty big surprise," he said.
Sparky was a gift to their now teen daughter, Sophia.
"A lot has changed for us in six years, so we can't imagine what's changed for Sparky in six years," Bogush said.
Despite not knowing where Sparky has been, he's in pretty good shape.
The gray and white cat is a little more frail, and has lost quite a bit of weight, but is expected to be just fine.
After a two-hour drive to pick up Sparky, it was like he never left. He ran straight to the food and water bowl near the back door of the house.
"Our biggest hope is, and I'm sure we'll probably never know, we hope wherever he was, he was well cared for and loved," he said.
