I'm taking over this thread.
I've had this kind of experience with my cat and want to know your thoughts.
I was about 12 years old when it happened. My cat went missing and wasn't seen for a few days (which was pretty unusual for her). One day my father came home and told me that he found her lying dead on the roadside. We gave her a burial. I was very sad, and I kept thinking that it can't be my cat (it was pretty hard to identify with all the blood and overall gore after being ran over by a car, but the size, color etc. matched and both me and my parents recognized her as my cat) so it was just denial of the facts on my part.
The next day (or few days, I don't remember exactly) I was walking the road to my home when I saw my cat walking out of a forest next to my house. She had this strange glow around her, I don't know how to describe it properly. Like someone turned up the brightness on her. The whites of her fur were brighter and she literally seemed like she was glowing. I took her home and she lived with us for another 8 years until dying from cancer.
I asked my mother if there is something strange about her (we assumed we buried the wrong cat) and I mentioned that she seems to be "glowing" but my mother said she can't see anything. This effect faded after a week or two.