Some people will go to the ends of the earth to find their missing cat.

For one Putney couple, that included calling in a group of pet detectives

Animal Search UK’s professional 'missing pet search team' were contacted by Olga and Charlie Corlett whose three-year-old cat, Sooty, went missing from their home on or around September 2 while they were on holiday and he was in the care of a cat sitter.

Former police officer Tom Watkins has more than 20 years of investigative experience under his belt and is leading the investigation.

"Normally Sooty is an indoor cat but luckily Olga did the right thing and had him neutered and chipped," Mr Watkins said.

Your Local Guardian:

Sooty

"Because he is black there could be lookalikes. We would urge the public in the Wandsworth area near to Oak Court and Friars Avenue to report any sightings of a black cat they don’t recall seeing before.

"Anyone that takes a photo would be helping enormously too. He was described as ‘fat’ when he went missing but may have lost weight since. One distinctive feature is that the tip of his tail is missing.”

The service operates a 24-hour Freephone number for members of the public to call with anonymous information (if necessary) or straightforward sightings of the missing pet.

Mr Watkins said that most missing pets are found within a mile of their home.

Your Local Guardian:

A poster put out by the team

"The challenge faced by owners, is making sure that as many people as possible know that their pet has gone missing and encouraging them to be vigilant in keeping an eye out for them,” he added.

“Unfortunately, work and family commitments often mean that owners don’t have as much time as they’d like to devote scouring the area looking for their missing pet, and this is one of the ways in which Animal Search UK can help.

"Visiting neighbours throughout the community can be daunting for owners so the team have insurance and the expertise to enter gardens, garages and outbuildings with after gaining permission to conduct a thorough search.

"Our professional, uniformed specialist search teams can usually be at any location in the UK within 48 hours.”

If you see Sooty you are asked to call 0800 432 0340 and quote reference: ALP374527