KITTEN RAN AWAY :(

[dnell]

My kitten (8 months old) always sleeps with someone at night and will switch off sleeping with my brother and me. Someone left the door open last night and she must have gotten out. Unfortunately, I assumed she was sleeping with my brother and did not realize she was missing until the next morning.

I searched the entire neighborhood and surrounding ones all day while calling out her name, shaking her treat bag, and squeeking her favorite toy. We went back out at night and did the same thing with flashlights but we were unable to find her.

We have recently moved to a new home and Whiz (our cat) has only lived here for a couple months and is not used to the neighborhood. The house is also in the country so it is by many big country roads and coyotes which are the main two worries.

The main problem is it has been non-stop raining since I have noticed she was gone!! So she may not want to come out yet. 

I've left out tuna, water, treats, food, and catnip in our garage. I also put a heating pad in her favorite carrier in case she finds her way home.

What are the chances that she will return home/ have any of you had similar things happen?

Any advice?

 

[dnell]

If it helps, she was neutered and microchipped. However, she would fight with her collar whenever I put it on so I kept it off.

 

[Norachan]

Hi dnell,

Sorry to hear your kitten is missing. 2 months is plenty of time for her to realise this is her new home. If she isn't used to going outside she is probably hiding somewhere close by. It's actually a good thing that it's raining as it means she will stay put and not wander further away.

It sounds like you've done the right thing already by leaving food out for her. Look around your house for any places she could be sheltering from the weather. Could she be under a car or a porch, in some bushes, any sheds or barns she could have got into? Have you asked your neighbours to keep an eye out for her? Would the neighbours let you check their yards and garages?

Get your brother to go with you when you go and talk to the neighbours, don't forget about your own safety.

My cat Lizzie was gone for ten days once, It was snowing really heavily at the time, I think she found herself a warm barn and stayed there until the snow melted.

Good luck, I hope your kitten comes back soon.

 

[cleopatras mom]

I know it's been a while, and you might not have found her yet, but I had a nearly indentical case to yours only a couple weeks ago! Cleopatra is a strictly indoor cat, and she got out. I thought the same thing! We just moved, so she wouldn't be familiar with anything! It's also the middle of winter! She only weighs 5 pounds, and she's rather skinny. It's how she's always been. She escaped durign the night, and the next morning when we discovered her gone, I was frantic! I searched for hours, and the next night I was miserable. The temps were at -9F, she was skinny, hadn't eaten for over a day, and there was over a foot of snow with horrible winds. Tons of stray animals and mean dogs. I thought she would freeze. Nonetheless, 3 days later, around 2 AM there was meows from under our porch. She had come back! She was perfectly fine, but slept and ate the whole time for a day or two. I was horrible, though! After weeping my eyes out for 4 days at a non-stop pace. I hope this helps, cats are resilient creatures, and even my cat survived sub zero temperatures without any sustenance, and she's never had a cold day in her life!

 

[hexiesfriend]

I think the chances are high. She is somewhere around your house but she's not going to come out if it's still raining no matter how hard you try. You have some good
advice already. Have you driven around in the car calling her? You can cover more territory and she can follow your voice back to your house if she's lost. When my cats have escaped their average days missing have been 2 or 3 days. If it's constantly raining probably will be longer. Another good trick is to take clothes that you have worn and put them around the perimeter of your house. I live in a neighborhood of houses that all look alike and Id make sure I put articles of
clothing on the drive way corners and around the house. It also works with articles with your own cat's scent. I know it
sounds strange but after looking and looking for my cat one day I finally found him sitting in the driveway on my tshirt. I know it's raining now maybe after it stops. It's hard to be patient but you'll find her. Notifying neighbors is a good idea as well.

 

[hexiesfriend]

Any news? I'm sorry I didn't catch the date of your original post I thought it was yesterday [emoji]128532[/emoji]