My Beloved Cat Is Missing! Please Help Me!

[Catlover!]

I suggest you go out looking for him with your parents or family either early morning or at night and call him by his name. He is neutered so should not have gone far and will respond if he hears your voice. He may be somewhere in the park or your neighborhood. Placing the litter box outside the house is also a good idea. You should also try leaving the door open early mornings or at night. He may try to come back after dark. Cats are self sufficient so he wont be hungry or cold. They are very good at finding food and shelter. My seriously injured cat had escaped and I never had thought I will find her alive after 12 days.

My wishes are with you

I'm so relieved after seeing you say that he won't be hungry or cold. Ive searched an knocked on peoples doors but no news, I also would want to try to look through the park early morning and late night but it closes at around 6PM when it usually gets dark and recently theres been some attacks in the UK so police and teachers told my parents to not let people (who are around my age) out in the park anymore because its not safe so the only time I can search in the park is after school in broad daylight which Im guessing won't be very useful but maybe. Should I leave his litter box outside during the night? I just hope hes okay, hes so innocent so it worries me that hes hurt or really stressed. Ive never had dreams and things but recently I keep thinking about him and now I keep on having dreams about him and I can't sleep. This is really affecting me in school as well. I just want him back with me. Thank you so much for your advice and wishes and I'll try not to lose hope and hopefully I'll find him.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Litter box outside has been known to do the trick. It is what MOST has his scent on it.

 

[Catlover!]

I know that you have talked with your neighbors, but have you put flyers out? A typical male cat's home range (the are in which they move but may not fight to defend) is almost two acres, and for males can be more. I've read of cats who moved as much as a square mile, with home about in the center, so you want to check more than JUST your neighborhood.

Yeah I have put flyers out as well but no one has seen him, for some reason I have a feeling he is with another cat right now because hes really social and outgoing and he always makes friends with other cats so hopefully he is safe with another more experienced cat. I don't bother checking really busy places because I know he is too afraid to go there so I'll keep on knocking on doors further down my neighbourhood to see if any of the people have seen him anywhere. Thanks so much for the advice.

 

[Catlover!]

Litter box outside has been known to do the trick. It is what MOST has his scent on it.

What time of the day should I leave it out and for how long?

 

[Mamanyt1953]

LOL...whenever to whenever. If it were I, I'd put it out late in the afternoon and leave it out until morning. Cats are crepuscular, meaning that they are most active by nature at twilight and dawn. AND they also hunt at night. Those are the prime times.

 

[Catlover!]

LOL...whenever to whenever. If it were I, I'd put it out late in the afternoon and leave it out until morning. Cats are crepuscular, meaning that they are most active by nature at twilight and dawn. AND they also hunt at night. Those are the prime times.

okay, will do. thx for the advice

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Sending lots of and a your way!

 

[Jason607]

Catlover I'm so sorry you are going through this. We do understand how you feel and how your mom "getting you another one" is not a solution. You are bonded with your cat and he cant just be replaced. Many people have found their pets before after they went missing for a while. I have a friend who had a cat go missing for months only to come back one day. Here are some more tips in addition to what people already posted to give you the best chance in finding your beloved cat:

-Leave out food with the litter box. This may not necessarily attract your cat immediately but outdoor cats are attracted to any source of easy food. So if a stray is attracted to the food it may lead to other stray's coming for the food too. Eventually if your cat is hanging out with any of these cats (since he is social) he may just come back to you by following these cats to your house. Make sure to leave A LOT of food out every day (enough to feed 5-6 cats). It can be cheap food. I don't know if they have Meow Mix in the UK but that works well. Also make sure to check on the food to make sure other animals are not eating it up.

-You said he is micro chipped. I wanted to mention a few things about that. Is your registration information up to date? If not it would be a good idea to do so. Also not all microchip scanners read all microchips. Nor do all shelters regularly scan animals bought into the shelter. Therefore, I would advise you to call and ask every animal shelter within a 10 mile radius of your house. Give them a description of your cat, tell them he is micro chipped and see if they have him. Even if they don't have him they will most likely remember your call because most people aren't dedicated enough to make these calls. So if he is found they will remember you and scan him to get in touch with you.

-Unfortunately, most people don't care about animals like me and you. However, most people do care about money. So if your able to do so, try to offer a $200-$300 reward for his return. This will motivate even animal haters to keep an eye out for your cat. Also, try to put up the posters in a wide range of areas. I understand your 14 so your safety is also important. So ask your mom if she would just take 1 hour to drive you around to put up the new posters with the reward offer. You can cover a HUGE area with a car in that time. This will give your posters the most amount of exposure.

Take heart in knowing cats are very resourceful. They have natural hunting instincts and are able to survive on their own even if they have only been indoors. Also since they are so cute many people feed strays. Also since he is micro chipped he may be captured by a trapper and bought to a shelter. Or someone may take to a shelter where is is scanned. A bittersweet scenario might be where someone found him, fell in love and took him in. This is sad but at least he has a good home. I think there is a much greater chance he is alive rather then dead. So keep looking and don't lose heart. Chances are he is out somewhere waiting for you to find him. Good luck and keep us updated.

In regards to your question about UK pet detectives; I think they may be worth it if your willing to spend the money. I did a bit of research and I found a reputable company:

Animal Search UK · The UKs largest missing pet organisation
^^ They were featured on the telegraph and they say they have a 80% success rate in finding pets. They may be pricey though:
Meet the real-life pet detectives

I also found this other pet detective agency in UK:
The Pet Detectives

There was not that much information on them but it cant hurt for you to call them for advice and to get a quote.

 

[maggie101]

Hi everyone,
My beloved cat recently went missing and I can't stop thinking about him. He is a silver short haired tabby. He recently turned one years old. He went missing on a Sunday at around 12:00AM. My mums friends were over and one of them opened the door and my cat ran out. He is an indoor cat and I let him out sometimes when he gets really fussy. Anyway he just ran out and I came running downstairs and caught a glimpse of him. This has happened once before but he came back at around 5:00AM and quickly managed to slip in through the door when my brother opened it when he was coming in from work. When I woke up that morning I found my cat was sleeping next to me. I thought the same thing would happen this time too so I tried not to stress too much about it but he hasn't come back. I wish I stayed awake to open the door but I had school the next day so I had to go to sleep. I regret it so much, and because of that I've lost my cat. I can't stop the tears. Its now been 2 months and he still hasn't come back. I try not to think about it and just pray that one day I'll come back from school and see him waiting for me on my doorstep but that day hasn't come yet. His first birthday just passed and hes still not home. I've put up posters around my area but no one has called (some mean people tear them down but I keep putting more up). I also told my neighbours to check their sheds and gardens and handed out posters. I'm just praying that someone is taking care of him in their house at least and that hes not suffering. I can't sleep at night without wondering where is he, what hes doing, what hes eating and where is he sleeping. I just hope for the best and I hope someone here can help me get my beloved cat back. I've recently turned 14 years old and I'm starting to get more work at school which keeps me busy sometimes, but majority of the time in my day I can't stop thinking about him. I just don't want to lose him. All I know is that he is very afraid of roads so hopefully he hasn't been hit by a car but behind my house there is a big park and I'm scared he has maybe gone inside and can't find his way back or something. I just don't want him to suffer. My mum keeps trying to make me happy again by telling me that she will get another one for me and stuff but she doesn't understand that it's not the same, and I know all of the people here are quite experts and cat lovers (like myself) and you can understand what my point is. I've recently started thinking about hiring a pet detective person and I wanted to know that do those things really work because I know that they can be quite expensive and I really don't want to get scammed in any type of way. I just wanted to say that I live in the UK so the nights are quite cold and rainy so that adds more stress because I know my cat hates rain and cold. Luckily my cat is micro-chipped but no one has dropped him off anywhere or has had any trace of him. I got him micro-chipped when he had his operation to be neutered (this was suggested by the vet to do them both at the same time). I really wanted to know if there is a chance of him coming back and if one year old cats are even capable of surviving on their own for a couple of months. If any of you have any advice or hope, then please tell me. I will send regular updates on whats going on so far. Please pray for my beautiful cat. Thanks everyone <3

Join NextDoor(people that live near you ) and post lots of pics

 

[Catlover!]

Catlover I'm so sorry you are going through this. We do understand how you feel and how your mom "getting you another one" is not a solution. You are bonded with your cat and he cant just be replaced. Many people have found their pets before after they went missing for a while. I have a friend who had a cat go missing for months only to come back one day. Here are some more tips in addition to what people already posted to give you the best chance in finding your beloved cat:

-Leave out food with the litter box. This may not necessarily attract your cat immediately but outdoor cats are attracted to any source of easy food. So if a stray is attracted to the food it may lead to other stray's coming for the food too. Eventually if your cat is hanging out with any of these cats (since he is social) he may just come back to you by following these cats to your house. Make sure to leave A LOT of food out every day (enough to feed 5-6 cats). It can be cheap food. I don't know if they have Meow Mix in the UK but that works well. Also make sure to check on the food to make sure other animals are not eating it up.

-You said he is micro chipped. I wanted to mention a few things about that. Is your registration information up to date? If not it would be a good idea to do so. Also not all microchip scanners read all microchips. Nor do all shelters regularly scan animals bought into the shelter. Therefore, I would advise you to call and ask every animal shelter within a 10 mile radius of your house. Give them a description of your cat, tell them he is micro chipped and see if they have him. Even if they don't have him they will most likely remember your call because most people aren't dedicated enough to make these calls. So if he is found they will remember you and scan him to get in touch with you.

-Unfortunately, most people don't care about animals like me and you. However, most people do care about money. So if your able to do so, try to offer a $200-$300 reward for his return. This will motivate even animal haters to keep an eye out for your cat. Also, try to put up the posters in a wide range of areas. I understand your 14 so your safety is also important. So ask your mom if she would just take 1 hour to drive you around to put up the new posters with the reward offer. You can cover a HUGE area with a car in that time. This will give your posters the most amount of exposure.

Take heart in knowing cats are very resourceful. They have natural hunting instincts and are able to survive on their own even if they have only been indoors. Also since they are so cute many people feed strays. Also since he is micro chipped he may be captured by a trapper and bought to a shelter. Or someone may take to a shelter where is is scanned. A bittersweet scenario might be where someone found him, fell in love and took him in. This is sad but at least he has a good home. I think there is a much greater chance he is alive rather then dead. So keep looking and don't lose heart. Chances are he is out somewhere waiting for you to find him. Good luck and keep us updated.

In regards to your question about UK pet detectives; I think they may be worth it if your willing to spend the money. I did a bit of research and I found a reputable company:

Animal Search UK · The UKs largest missing pet organisation
^^ They were featured on the telegraph and they say they have a 80% success rate in finding pets. They may be pricey though:
Meet the real-life pet detectives

I also found this other pet detective agency in UK:
The Pet Detectives

There was not that much information on them but it cant hurt for you to call them for advice and to get a quote.

Thank you so much for taking the time to write this. Ive got some more hope now and I will follow your advice. xx Ive literally been in tears for these past few days but your words have given me so much hope. I will also keep a check on his microchip info and go to pet stores & vets. Should I keep his litter tray out all the time? and would it still have the same effect as he hasn't used the new litter I put in minutes before he went out but he used the tray everyday? Also, when do I stop hoping? June is already here and soon he will be missing for 3 months and that just breaks my heart. I took him for granted and now hes gone and whenever I think about that I'm just filled with sadness and regret. Thank you so much xx

 

[Catlover!]

Join NextDoor(people that live near you ) and post lots of pics

Will do x Thanks

 

[Jason607]

Even with new litter it will have his scent so keep leaving it out. I think you have to decide for yourself when you want to stop searching. Many stop after a week and many keep searching even 6 months after. You can even set a time limit to stop searching. I really do believe that your cat is alive and out there. Stay positive, give it your full effort and with a little bit of luck he may back in your arms in no time!

 

[Catlover!]

I'm putting the litter box out daily now.

 

[Catlover!]

Even with new litter it will have his scent so keep leaving it out. I think you have to decide for yourself when you want to stop searching. Many stop after a week and many keep searching even 6 months after. You can even set a time limit to stop searching. I really do believe that your cat is alive and out there. Stay positive, give it your full effort and with a little bit of luck he may back in your arms in no time!

Thank you for the motivation, Ill keep on searching and stay positive. I'll also post updates. x

 

[Mamanyt1953]

We're all rooting for you. Keep it up until your heart tells you it is time to stop...and even if and when that time comes, there is every chance that your cat is living the life of Riley at another house somewhere. Which, although I know you miss him DREADFULLY, is a good thing, after all. The best thing next to being home with you! For now, though...keep trying! He could easily show back up, asking why on earth you were so worried. Their sense of time is very different from ours, you know.

 

[dustydiamond1]

Thank you for the motivation, Ill keep on searching and stay positive. I'll also post updates. x

My heart goes out to you. My thoughts and hopes are with you also. We are all wishing you the best. Thanks for letting us know how you are doing. Take care.

 

[Catlover!]

We're all rooting for you. Keep it up until your heart tells you it is time to stop...and even if and when that time comes, there is every chance that your cat is living the life of Riley at another house somewhere. Which, although I know you miss him DREADFULLY, is a good thing, after all. The best thing next to being home with you! For now, though...keep trying! He could easily show back up, asking why on earth you were so worried. Their sense of time is very different from ours, you know.

I will keep doing so and thank you so much for the support in a time like this x I'll keep everyone updated.

 

[Catlover!]

My heart goes out to you. My thoughts and hopes are with you also. We are all wishing you the best. Thanks for letting us know how you are doing. Take care.

Thank you so much for the support. The day he comes back to me I will remember the amazing people like you guys and how you supported me through it all. x I'll keep you guys updated.

 

[dustydiamond1]

Thinking of you

 

[Mamanyt1953]