Lost Kitten In Apartment Wall. Owner Evicted.

[Shadofortuna]

Hey, so it's been two days and I've only heard about this last night.

So my mom was evicted from her apartment, but she had a very skittish 6 month old kitten that had squeezed into an opening in the wall and is now lost in there. Because of the rules of the building, she wasn't allowed to leave food or water for him in case he came back. She's more or less given up on finding him, leaving it all up to a neighbor who called the regional manager of the apartment building.

I called the apartment building this morning, and from what I gather she's left a report about the missing cat. They told me that they left food out for him, but it has remained untouched (something I find hard to believe because I know they have mice), and no other neighbors have heard any meowing within the walls. They've opened service panels, checked the chimney, and check the apartment at least once a day to see if he's come back.

I'm really scared right now for this cat. He's virtually homeless, lost within walls of an apartment complex, and he hasn't eaten or had any water for two days. How long can he last? If he's not meowing, is it because he's really weak? What dangers could he run into in the walls? Would he even be able to find his way back now with everything he knew before gone?

 

[Purr-fect]

He may have got out of the building, he may be in the attic or area below the roof. Buildings have many utility poke thru holes for piping, drains, venting, wiring ect.

Other tenant's pets (dogs) may be reacting strangely to the presence of your mother's kitten. This would be clue to its whereabouts.

When eviction looked imminent, the cat should have been removed.

If the weather is cold, the cat may freeze if cold air penetrates the walls thru cracks or holes. I would walk the building and examine the exterior for holes, a cat's paw poking thru, sounds ect (if you are allowed to). Night time would be the quietest and best time to hear anything.

I suspect the landlord would be accommodating as they may be cat lovers themselves and at the very least wont want it dying in the walls and causing health and legal issues with the other tenants.

 

[Shadofortuna]

My mom used to live on the fourth floor, which was the top floor, and as far as I know the neighbors only had cats. Should I check with the office again and ask if they checked under the roof? It is pretty cold out here.

 

[FeebysOwner]

I would check again with the office, and also ask them if there is any way you can be allowed to look for the cat yourself as well. You might want to consider making posters with a pic of the cat indicating it is lost - and, post them where ever you are allowed to within the apartment complex as well as outside in close by areas.

I suspect he found a way out, but there is no way to know that unless someone sees him. If there are mice in the apartments, he may be eating them.

 

[mazie]

Absolutely everything YES to what FeebysOwner is saying, my biggest concern is the very young age of this kitten. Has not lived long enough to develop any so called "street smarts". Please do what FeebysOwner says.

 

[Shadofortuna]

My mom is staying with a neighbor over the weekend and she's asked her neighbors to keep an eye and ear out for him. They're all friends on Facebook too, so she shared photos of him so they know what he looks like. I still contacted the office and left a voicemail asking to check outside, and asked my mom to check too. She doesn't think there's any way outside from the fourth floor walls.

 

[FelisCatus]

This is a tough one... some suggestions.

-putting out the cat litter box the kitty used, he would be attracted to the scent of his old cat litter
-did the neighbours try placing traps to catch them? Either on the roof or in the unit.

As others have mentioned, it is very cold in between the walls of an apartment building. When I used to need to open the service areas in my old unit under the sink you could feel the freezing cold air coming in from outside. They are certainly not sealed properly.

I would place the lost kitten posters up around the area.

 

[FelisCatus]

Has animal control been contacted? They would have more power than you in asking for access and might have a better chance in finding him. Not sure if they would let you keep the kitten after though.

 

[Shadofortuna]

Has animal control been contacted? They would have more power than you in asking for access and might have a better chance in finding him. Not sure if they would let you keep the kitten after though.

I contacted animal control earlier, but I asked them for any suggestions and if there were any steps to take before going into the property in order to search for him without running into any legal bumps of trespassing. The most they told me was to just call the leasing office and ask for updates.

 

[FelisCatus]

At this point you might not have a choice and need them involved. It’s been TWO days. Everything I have found online says this is serious and death is highly likely unless they have already gotten out somewhere. At which point death is still likely since they are young.

If the cat is heard near any of the walls, a hole will need to be made to get them out. If you hear pushback from the property caretaker tell them would they rather have a patced hole or the smell of dead kitten they cannot get out?

Have you looked for any rescue organizations in your area that specialize in this? If you give your location I can help look.

 

[Shadofortuna]

At this point you might not have a choice and need them involved. It’s been TWO days. Everything I have found online says this is serious and death is highly likely unless they have already gotten out somewhere. At which point death is still likely since they are young.

If the cat is heard near any of the walls, a hole will need to be made to get them out. If you hear pushback from the property caretaker tell them would they rather have a patced hole or the smell of dead kitten they cannot get out?

Have you looked for any rescue organizations in your area that specialize in this? If you give your location I can help look.

Philadelphia 19111

 

[Shadofortuna]

At this point you might not have a choice and need them involved. It’s been TWO days. Everything I have found online says this is serious and death is highly likely unless they have already gotten out somewhere. At which point death is still likely since they are young.

If the cat is heard near any of the walls, a hole will need to be made to get them out. If you hear pushback from the property caretaker tell them would they rather have a patced hole or the smell of dead kitten they cannot get out?

Have you looked for any rescue organizations in your area that specialize in this? If you give your location I can help look.

The thing is, I don't live in this apartment building and it's my mother's cat. I don't know why nothing was done beforehand or why my mom neglected to tell me until last night.

 

[FelisCatus]

I am not an American, so forgive me for my geographical ignorance but there are quite a few results for animal rescuers in Philadelphia. Wether it’s west philly or east or whatever I assume they could go to the other part of the city. I would recommend calling a few of them asap.

Lynn's Animal Rescue | New Jersey Feline Adoption and Rescue Center

They do humane trapping and would have ideas, just explain the situation.

Project MEOW

The above is West Philly if that helps

Traps - Green Street Rescue

The guys above loan traps for a deposit.

Try posting the situation in the Philly subreddit
Philadelphia
and Facebook groups. There will definitely be cat lovers who could provide assistance in capturing if needed. I am in Ontario, Canada a few thousand KM (miles, whatever) away so i can only help so much....

Google results if you want to keep looking for other organizations:

LMGTFY

 

[Shadofortuna]

I contacted ACCT, they were the only ones open this morning. Every other one I found just opened in the afternoon, and I'm hoping to get a call from the building for an update. They said they would call in the afternoon.

I am not an American, so forgive me for my geographical ignorance but there are quite a few results for animal rescuers in Philadelphia. Wether it’s west philly or east or whatever I assume they could go to the other part of the city. I would recommend calling a few of them asap.

Lynn's Animal Rescue | New Jersey Feline Adoption and Rescue Center

They do humane trapping and would have ideas, just explain the situation.

Project MEOW

The above is West Philly if that helps

Traps - Green Street Rescue

The guys above loan traps for a deposit.

Try posting the situation in the Philly subreddit
Philadelphia
and Facebook groups. There will definitely be cat lovers who could provide assistance in capturing if needed. I am in Ontario, Canada a few thousand KM (miles, whatever) away so i can only help so much....

Google results if you want to keep looking for other organizations:

LMGTFY

 

[FelisCatus]

I contacted ACCT, they were the only ones open this morning. Every other one I found just opened in the afternoon, and I'm hoping to get a call from the building for an update. They said they would call in the afternoon.

With it being 2 days already, time is of the essence. Unless someone found the kitten and took them in they will not survive long without food and water. I don’t know how well a kitten can hunt mice in a wall, I don’t assume well since they would be at a disadvantage due to the limited space and darkness. Cats still need a sliver of light to activate their night vision. In pitch black they are just as blind as humans. So they would be relying on their sense of smell and whiskers. On top of that if this is an older building there could be bad stuff in the walls like asbestos and such.

 

[FelisCatus]

As for your earlier comment on why your mum didn’t mention it before... she was being evicted and I imagine emotions were high. Not everyone would think of their pets in the first place when in a bad situation. Maybe she only just started to calm down and brought it up. This is all just speculation of course without actually asking her.

 

[FelisCatus]

Any updates? Were you able to contact other organizations now that it’s the afternoon? Did you hear back from the apartment building people?

 

[Shadofortuna]

Any updates? Were you able to contact other organizations now that it’s the afternoon? Did you hear back from the apartment building people?

From what the building manager said, the walls of the apartment that the cat had entered are connected between two units, one being my mom's neighbor that's looking for him. The floors are concrete and they're separate from the stairwells so he shouldn't be able to access any higher levels, nor should he be going any lower. The apartment staff have decided not to call animal rescue because the damages would be billed to my mom, who owns the cat and is already having some financial issues. It could potentially be up to a thousand dollars which she wouldn't be able to pay off before February 1st, which is when the unit is open to renting again. My mom has gotten permission from the neighbor bring the cat's empty litter box into her apartment, and to use her adjoining access panel, since the cat is very attached to my mom and hasn't been exposed to anyone or any smell familiar to his home. She's going to be looking for him tonight for a few hours. The building manager had contacted the regional manager, but hasn't received any reply to my mom's request to stay overnight to search.

 

[FelisCatus]

Okay, this is goodish news. Make sure your mum is prepared as who knows if this is the only time she will get these few hours.

-treats
-laser pointer
-cat toys
-cat litter box
-cat food bag for shaking
-flashlight
-thickish gloves if she needs to grab them
-water in a bowl since they would be dehydrated

I can’t remember exactly what it was, but a while ago someone mentioned they use Asian Fish Sauce to lure cats. This should only cost a few dollars at a Walmart or Asian store.

So add
-Asian fish sauce
-saucer for the above

————————————————————

If it’s just those 2 units it’s hard to believe the neighbour did not hear meowing/cries for help....

 

[FelisCatus]

Let us know how it goes, we’re rooting for ya.

If you end up going with your mum and have data feel free to pop online and ask for more advice. If you hear the faintest meow you’ll need to figure out how to lure them to a service panel (that’s where the laser pointer and treats or Asian fish sauce come in handy).