AN ECSTATIC cat owner was ‘lost for words’ when her long-lost feline friend, who had been missing for 18 months, was found just hours after she woke up from a dream about her.

Jemma Lee Bolton, from Clayton-le-Moors, was sure she’d never see 13-year-old Lucy again after she went missing from their home.

The part-time model spent months scouring the streets, reaching out to vets and posting on Facebook, but had no luck until a friend saw a cat on the social media site that looked remarkably similar to Lucy.

The poster had seen the cat living feral near Avenue Parade, Accrington.

Speaking about the reappearance of Lucy, Miss Bolton said: “I’ve been looking non-stop but she’s never been anywhere to be seen.

“All of a sudden the other night I had a dream about her where I was holding her and she was back with us all.

“I woke up crying because I missed her so much and went to my boyfriend about it and told him how I couldn’t get over how she’s just disappeared.

“Just like that I was then contacted by somebody saying they thought they’d found her. Just like that after all this time.”

The friend then showed Miss Bolton the photo she had seen on Facebook and she knew right away that the cat was Lucy. She went to Avenue Parade and found her after 10 minutes.

As soon as the pair were reunited Miss Bolton took Lucy straight to the vets as she had no idea what state she was in.

She said: “She’s now been treated for worms and fleas but we’ve got to go back for more tests. She’s in a bad state but I’m going to get her back to health – she’s forever grounded!”

She suspects that the cat has been in and around the Avenue Parade area of Accrington for some time.

Miss Bolton, who works part-time at Aldi, said: “She’s still the same happy cat but very cautious around people and other cats. I think she’s been fighting a lot. All that matters is we have her back now."