Feral Cats Disappeared?

[vicki kelley]

Your story sounds a lot like the story here in my townhouse complex. My little Missy disappeared on August 5th, no sign of her since. I have cared for her for seven years. I made a comfortable home for two feral cats on my deck some years back - Missy and Bud Boy.

There are owls that hunt at night. I was not aware they were coming so close. I saw a bird with a good size wing span flying across our complex, they could easily snatch a small cat from a clearing and leave very little evidence of a struggle. Mine is not the only one that has disappeared, three others in the complex that I've heard about. 

My second feral was killed 17 months ago (hit by a van).  To loose track of Missy now has been heartbreaking. 

I would say one or more predators may be in the area, possible a hawk, eagle, owl, or fox, coyote, something. Even man could snatch them as they use cats for exercising fight dogs.

They may have decided to pack and move out, something may have interrupted their peace and security. I keep fresh water outside all of the time and I've posted her picture in conservative locations.

I hope she is safe and comfortable, maybe in a different home.

They say cats have nine lives, maybe another chapter has opened up somewhere for yours and for my Missy.

 

[kimmieskats]

Just an afterthought - you mentioned that you tried trapping the cats at various times.  I recently read that you should try to trap them all at once, because when some see others being trapped they may vacate the area for a while.

But, what I want to know, is why would a male, unfixed feral (possibly stray) cat want to leave the nice shelter we provided and 3 squares?  We had one male, Shadow, that would often disappear for a few days to a week.  Then one day, he never came back.  However, he got another feral (possibly stray) cat, Scamp, pregnant, and now Scamp and her 3 little kittens are happy, indoor cats. Actually, we have 3 other indoor, formerly stray/feral, cats, all in our den, and we strongly suspect that all 7 and Shadow are related according to a DNA test.  It was right around the time that the kittens appeared that Shadow disappeared, apparently for good (two years ago).  

After Shadow, one of the other 7 showed up one day, Felix.  The vet said that Felix was probably hanging out and watching us from afar to see how nicely we treated Scamp and the kittens before bringing them indoors, because as soon as Felix appeared, he jumped in my lap and asked me if he could come in and join the others!

Another feral cat, Mystery (because we couldn't tell what kind of animal it was at first - he's black and white like a skunk, has Groucho like eyebrows that make him look like a panda, and was seen eating bird food next to a skunk, Skonkers, one night!) , took over the territory last winter.  It took some time, but we finally were able to get him to sniff a finger before running away.  He never did get too close although my wife got to pet him a little one day as he was sleeping in the patio.  He disappeared a week ago, and we're still hoping he'll come back.  

But, where do they go during those absences!?  We're surrounded by woods and hills so I assume they take off out there somewhere, but where do they hide?  Are they starting colonies?  I know there are coyotes out there from their howls, does semi-taming the feral cats make them more vulnerable in the wild?

 

[alex134]

I fell encouraged knowing that your cats returned, though it took some time. I have a single neutered male living in my back yard, over a year and a half. I last saw him March 8, 2016 and it is now over a month that he has disappeared. I have noticed a new unneutered Tom in the area that probably scared him out of the territory. My guy is not combative and probably chose to leave rather than get into a battle. There were spray marks on his kitty condo, which I immediately cleaned off. I have searched everywhere and alerted neighbors but there are no sightings as yet. I will trap the new male on the block and have him fixed and hope that stops the territory issue. That is always a challenge. Just want my guy to come back!

 

[GALeopardLady]

I am new here and have three ferals I have been feeding and even trapped and got fixed and vaccinated. They have been here several months and even let me pet them. All of a sudden this week all three have gone missing (mom and both babies) -- been gone 4 days. The feral dad who I rarely see has been hanging here like he's looking for them too. I am so worried about them and miss them. Wonder if anyone else has had them disappear for days and then return.

 

[ca052477]

I am new here and have three ferals I have been feeding and even trapped and got fixed and vaccinated. They have been here several months and even let me pet them. All of a sudden this week all three have gone missing (mom and both babies) -- been gone 4 days. The feral dad who I rarely see has been hanging here like he's looking for them too. I am so worried about them and miss them. Wonder if anyone else has had them disappear for days and then return.

I'm going through the same thing right now. My feral is not neutered (will not go into the trap) and I haven't seen him in 9 days. I'm devastated and I've been searching for him every night.