Mystery of 'Fuerteventura' cat found in Muchalls garage in Aberdeenshire Published duration 31 January 2014

image caption 'Juanita' was traced to Fuerteventura

Mystery surrounds the discovery of a cat in an Aberdeenshire garage which has been traced via its identity chip to Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands.

BBC Scotland has learned the cat was found by a family in Muchalls on Thursday.

They contacted Cats Protection before taking it to a vet, and the cat was traced to the Spanish island through an international database after the national one drew a blank.

It has been named Juanita.

Vet check

Efforts have been made to make contact via the chip's registration details, but without success.

Rosy Long, who found the cat, said: "I opened the garage and we found this small cat.

"We think she had just got shut in, she must have been desperate to get out of the cold."

Her efforts to find a possible owner locally failed, and the cat was taken to the vet.

She added: "The vet said 'bingo' when it came back she was from the Canary Islands."

'Missing her greatly'

Juanita will be found a new home if the owners cannot be traced.

A Cats Protection spokesperson said: "We were very surprised to hear about a cat with a Spanish microchip turning up.

"She is clearly extremely friendly so we suspect there must be an owner who is missing her greatly. We're currently doing our best to help find her owner, and are keeping our fingers crossed for a happy reunion as soon as possible.