Cat stuck down an air duct ... help!

[giddyupgo]

We adopted our cat last week and she has been settling in very well, but she loves small spaces such as the area behind the washing machine and under our bed. I have no idea what my 10 year old son was thinking, but he removed the cover from the floor vent, and the cat went into the ducting.

For a while I could hear her meowing and scrabbling around in there, but then she went completely silent. I think she must have climbed way down into the ductwork where she can't hear me anymore. 

It is usually quite easy to get her to come out of small spaces by calling her, but this time ... I'm at a loss. I actually called a HVAC guy to come out here in a couple of hours to get her out, but I'm afraid it will be expensive. On the other hand, I don't know what the ductwork is like under the house or if it's even possible for her to get back out once she drops down the vertical parts of the duct work. I tried putting some stinky cat food at the mouth of the ducts, I tried opening up other vents, I tried walking around the outside of the house calling through the outside vents and I've just heard nothing but silence.

Should I have the HVAC guy come or wait it out? I really feel like she's too far away to hear me calling her, or she would have come, and I'm afraid if I just wait it out she's going to become stressed and then be a lot harder to retrieve. Any advice?

 

[artiemom]

Get the HVAC guy to come in!! ASAP!

Try putting some food near the opening, hoping your kitty will smell it and is able to come back up and out.

Call the Fire Department!!! They are good about these things...you know, cat stuck up a tree, etc..

Get some help somehow! Poor baby... She may not be able to get out.....you do not want her to die! 

 

[giddyupgo]

Thanks. I tried the fire department and they were most unhelpful. They are a small all-volunteer operation so they're not equipped to help with things like this. I'm hoping that the HVAC guy will be able to find her, or that she will come back out on her own. I've got a very stinky can of cat food next to the opening and a piece of cardboard sprayed with catnip, but I'm just afraid she's so far under the house that she won't be able to smell it. 

 

[mollyblue]

How long has she been in there?  If it has only been a couple hours, she may be having a cat nap.  Cats have a very good sense of smell, and she should be able to smell the food. Not sure how the ductwork is or if your calling her maybe echoing around and she may get confused about which way the sound is coming from.

 

[giddyupgo]

She's been in there for about three hours now. I tried shining a flashlight down there too to help her get her bearings but no joy. 

 

[di and bob]

I hope you had enough presence of mind to turn the heat and/or air conditioner off, if she dropped into the furnace she could be hurt or dead. The silence is not a good thing.  I would definitely call HVAC to come, they might have some kind of sensor. Plumbers have a camera that they stick down pipes, you might call them.  Then I would have a good talk to that son, it could have been a baby that crawled in there, he needs to learn some responsibility, he could get badly hurt if he takes things apart that are electric. Is this a house, or part of a larger apartment bldg.? I feel for you, the wait must be awful! Please keep us posted!

 

[catpack]

I second getting the HVAC people out to the house. I've been thru something similar and wouldn't hesitate to make a similar call as you have if I was unable to locate the cat in a decent timeframe. Being that you've only had kitty for a week or less, I think this is absolutely the right thing to do.

My experience:
One of my cats succeeded in getting the cover off one of the return vents in our den (it's on the floor.) I was in and out if the house that day and knew I hadn't seen 2 of them for a few hours. I spent about 30 mins calling for them and looking in closets, the garage and cabinets. I was down in our (finished) basement calling for them when I heard someone meowing. I opened the door that goes into the crawl space and the 3 kitties came out.

Do you have access to the crawl space under the house? Have you tried calling her from there? Also, talk with the HVAC person and make sure there are no outside exits that she could slip through.

Please let us know how things turn out!

 

[cutykitty]

Oh my goodness, the poor baby.  I'd be worried sick!  I posted a few links of people dealing with the same situation.     

http://ask.metafilter.com/133915/Help-Cat-stuck-in-duct

http://kittiesinthecity.com/how-to-help-a-cat-stuck-in-the-air-duct/

http://www.ehow.com/how_7687269_cat-out-heating-duct.html

http://blog.oregonlive.com/cats/2009/11/cat_rescue_1.html

This last link mentioned contacting the Humane Society.. 

 

[giddyupgo]

The furnace is above ground so there's no way she could drop down into it. And yes the system is off, so hopefully it can't hurt her in any way.

I did try calling her through the crawlspace but I don't think there is any way out of the ducting. It is a house and I was looking at some maps of the way the ducting systems are constructed in similar homes--if ours is like the maps then theoretically she should be able to get out. It doesn't look like there are any long vertical drops or anything, it just looks like it moves around horizontally under the house. Still, she is a very vocal cat and usually meows when she hears a voice, so her silence is really concerning. I suppose she could just be all the way at the other end of the house but I would think I'd be able to hear her at at least one of the other vents.

Hopefully the HVAC guy will be on time. They told me "after one" so that's in about an hour. I will keep you posted.

 

[red top rescue]

We are ALL waiting to hear the outcome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  As long as the system is off, she should not be in danger.

 

[artiemom]

Getting worried because their is no update. Hoping the kitten did not get caught in something. And the HVAC guy was able to help.
Thinking and wishing good results.

 

[giddyupgo]

She is still down there. I paid the HVAC guy $120 to basically tell me there's nothing he can do. He heard her meowing and he cut open the duct to try to get her out, and she ran the other way. He went down there another two times and didn't hear her again, so he put the vent back together and said, "I wish there was more I could do."

He did verify that the way our duct work is he doesn't think there's anywhere she could get trapped--no vertical drops or steep bits she couldn't climb out of. She can't get out of the venting to the outside either. So he thinks she will come out on her own. I hope he's right. 

I wish I had better news. Thank you all for being concerned. 

 

[catapault]

Just before you go to bed tonight sift some flour in front of the open duct. That way, in the morning you'll be able to see if there are any tracks, and she perhaps came out and then went back in again.

Fingers cross that she decides it is too early for extended spooky Halloween tunnel / duct adventures!

 

[misterwhiskers]

Can you call your local tv station?? Maybe if your story was publicized you could get some help.

 

[artiemom]

I  am so sad the HVAC was not helpful! That sounds so wrong....

I really do like the idea of called a television station!!! Great human interest story---ask them for help/advice...

Just thought of this: local humane society!! and ASPCA!!!

They would definitely help..Tell them it is an emergency. The kitten has been down there too long....

Call a lot of VETS----maybe they can help!!!

Put it on Facebook!!!

so worried about here....poor thing. She may be so frightened that she has lost her way..  ? a tiny bit of catnip?

Dangle a string toy down the duct.

Catnip?

Just throwing some ideas out there....stinky, fishy tuna?  a can of stinky people sardines?

I know this means putting your ife on hold for this kitty, but it is life or death at this point. Keep calling until you get results...Even another HVAC person...

Please get your son involved in this...he is too old to be doing mischief as he did. He needs to learn from this...sorry--sounds harsh but this is a life or death situation right now...

and if the worst does happen, you will have a bigger problem on your hands...

Please, if you are able to, keep us updated...we are all so worried about her....

((hugs)))

 

[mollyblue]

This is why kitties have 9 lives .  Can't wait until you come back on and tell us everything is fine!  Keeping positive thoughts until then.

 

[giddyupgo]

I spent the night in the living room so if she decided to come out I would hear her. Unfortunately she did not have the same plans as me. The good news is, though, this morning I was calling for her down one of the vents and I heard her meowing, and then I briefly saw her down there looking up at me. I even petted her, but she ran off before I could coax her out.

Maybe she's found some mice down there and has been having a feast. One thing is for sure, she's not coming out while my four noisy kids are at home, so hopefully after they go to school she'll venture out.

Another good piece of news--the guy who owns the HVAC company saw my post about this on Facebook and wants me to call him, so I don't know if this means he's going to send someone else out ... maybe someone who is a little more motivated to actually get her out of the duct.

Will keep you all posted ...

 

[Draco]

Oh wow. I am glad you got to see her at least and know shes OK for the time being. I'd ask the kids to stay out of that room while she's in there.

Try dangling one of her string toys down there. she may be inticed to play and you can "fish" her out?

 

[artiemom]

So Glad you saw her this morning! Yes, try the wand toy, even if you have to drench it in food....have any baby food? or tuna juice?

Hopefully the HVAC's company's owner will be able to help. Please call him. It is a shame for the company that the service guy was not committed to helping you out. 

That is bad publicity for them; never mind being heartless and cruel...

To you have any toys with bells on them? that may help also...just trying to think what would entice a kitten...Maybe throw a few treats in a certain spot so she can come over and you could grab her?

yes, tell the kids to be quiet while they are in the house...could you send them to a friend or relative just until this nightmare is over?

You do not want the kitten to be more scared than what she is now..

 

[giddyupgo]

OK so I spoke to the HVAC guy and unfortunately didn't get anywhere. The way our house is constructed, the ductwork is sealed between the floorboards and a layer of insulation, and it's all one piece. So taking it apart would be a major construction project, which now I'm seeing a little more clearly. So I don't blame the HVAC people for not being able to help, because clearly the way our house is laid out there is just no way in through the ductwork. 

The HVAC guy, however, feels quite sure she will eventually come out. Clearly she knows the way out, since I saw her at one of the openings this morning.

The thing that has me most concerned, however, is if she can actually physically get out. I've just been going on the assumption that if she could get in, she could get out again, but my husband is not so sure. Does anyone have any reassurance? Just how contortionist are most cats? She's pretty small but not tiny (she's about a year old) and it definitely looks like a tight squeeze for her. However it's not like she's been hanging out at the exits crying because she can't figure out how to get out, either.

Gah. I am out of ideas. Stinky tuna didn't work, cat food didn't work, string didn't work, catnip didn't work, calling her didn't work ... I'm really starting to feel like she's got her own colony of mice down there and she's not coming home until she's finished them all off ....