On Sat, 15 Jul 2006 06:07:19 -0700, miles wrote:

Could it be that he did go further/much further afield but returned?

Definitely, yes. A cat that's outside might be frightened off by, for
example, a dog ... or it might just decide to go exploring. A breeding
age male that's not neutered is almost guaranteed to wander. If they're
very lucky and evade danger, have a good homing instinct, and liked
"home", they'll usually return. One difficulty with moving breeding cats
in particular is that if they're let outside at their new residence, they
very well may take off for "home".