My semi feral cat has disappeared

alex134

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So happy to have found this site, I have been searching for a source to help me with my feral cat's disappearance. I call him semi-feral, because he displays traits that tell me he was once owned, but that was probably a long time ago. Our boy has lived in our back garden for over a year and a half. He wandered in and we let him stay. I have always had cats, but never outdoor cats. If I had my choice I would have brought him inside, but he would have none of that. The only inside time he had was during some meals, where he would come into the entry hall, wait until I left, and eat his meal. He has never let me touch him, but he would wait for the car to pull into the driveway, and follow me into the doorway for food. He would also emerge if we were sitting or working in the garden. He has places to sleep in our garage, an insulted kitty condo, and plenty of food all year round. There is an area in my garden that serves as a cat path way, I suspect a neutral territory, where several cats come an go, including neighborhood pets. This never posed a problem until recently. Our boy disappeared on March 8.  There was no sign of a fight, he was just gone, did not eat his morning meal. Most times, he would wander off for a day or two at most, and during the night I am sure he went on excursions, but was usually back in the morning.  A few nights after he disappeared, I noticed a strange cat in the back yard at 1:30 am, eating from the bowl of food I had left out for our boy. I realized this cat probably scared him off. The next day I noticed spray marks on our boy's kitty condo, which I immediately cleaned with odor neutralizer. I am trying to trap the interloper to have him neutered and vaccinated, and evaluated for adoption. Meanwhile, I just want my boy to return!

Has anyone had a similar  experience, and if so, what did you do to try to encourage your feral(s) to return? We have looked everywhere throughout the neighborhood, but there is no sign of him. Some earlier threads indicated that some people waited many months for their feral cats to return after having been scared off. Is this typical?

I was advised to leave things out that have his scent on them and I have done this. What else can I do?
 

Norachan

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Hi @Alex134  Welcome to The Cat Site.

It's always a worry when ferals disappear isn't it? I guess this boy has been neutered already? If he hadn't been I'm sure you would have heard some noisy fights between your feral and the newcomer.

Getting the new cat neutered will definitely help matters, but it can take up to a month for tom cats to loss the urge to mate and fight. Your boy could be close by but just choosing to lay low.

I have known young male cats that have been driven off by their fathers to return as much as a year later, after the resident tom either passes away or is neutered. If he's been fending for himself for a while he'll be OK. He might even be sneaking back to eat when the other cat is not there.

Continue putting food out for him as usual. Even if the new cat starts coming by every day to eat it will make it easier for you to catch him.

Do you have a trail camera? You could set that up near the food to see if your cat is coming back sometimes.

I use one like this, but there are plenty of others available.

http://oldboysoutdoors.com/
 
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alex134

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Hi @Norachan,

Thanks so much for the information, and the encouragement. A trail camera is a great idea. Last night when I arrived home from work, I saw the interloper in the garage, I had the door propped up in case my guy returned. The Tom ran off when I approached, but he came back a short time later after I had set food out near the front door. 

It did not occur to me that my guy could be close by, or that he might come by to eat. If he is, he is hiding very, very well. Yes, my boy is neutered. He has been in the neighborhood for at least 2 1/2 years. He has been fed by at least one other person during that time but mostly by me in the last year and a half. And he lived on our property full time. I have never actually seen him hunt for anything, but I could be wrong about that. At least he never killed anything in my back yard. 

I hope you are right about him being close by. I was torn between setting out food and not setting out food, because I did not want to exacerbate the problem of the Tom being present. I will set out food regularly. 

There are quite a few cats in this neighborhood, many people let their house pets out. Most get along very well. There is also another, older Tom that everyone knows, and I believe the new interloper and he have had some squabbles, as the older Tom's face is pretty scratched up.  The older Tom also comes onto my property but he and my guy seemed to have worked out an agreement of sorts. 

Meanwhile, I have ordered a trap and it is on the way. I will do whatever I can to get my boy home!

Also - do you think I should continue to leave the garage door propped open?

Thanks again,

Alex134
 

calicosrspecial

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Alex134,

When one of mine goes missing the first thing I do is check animal control or the humane society. Sometimes someone in the neighborhood traps and takes them to animal control. They have 10 days before they are put down. 

Is your guy microchipped? Even if so, always check animal control if someone goes missing.

I am hoping that he was just chased off by an intact male. Once you take care of the intact male he should come home to his food, bed, etc.

Good luck, I hope he returns home soon.
 
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alex134

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Hi

@CalicosRSpecial

Thanks for your note and your suggestions.

Yes, I check with animal control often. I also live in a "community cat" friendly city. I know that does not account for the behavior of individuals. I do not believe he is micro-chipped. He was TNVR'd in April 2015. Not by me. There are numerous people in my area who care for ferals and routinely TNR. I have begun to connect with some local organizations where people are actually registered as caregivers. I have learned that there are at least 22 official caregivers in my postal code alone. Local organizations are very protective of caregivers and guard their confidentiality. There are other unofficial caregivers, like me. I have also become acquainted with neighbors who routinely feed outdoor kitties. I have learned a lot this past month, and my commitment to recovering my boy and assisting with long term efforts in my community is strong. 

Yes, he was chased off by an intact male, I am certain. I have encountered the Tom in question several times in the past ten days. He is very bold. I am learning his patterns, and see that he appears after 8pm to about 1:30 am. My trap will arrive tomorrow and, if all goes well with the trapping,  I will arrange to have him neutered by early next week. 

I pray for my boys safe return. I have been out early mornings and late evenings searching, but have not had any success locating him by the traditional methods for finding a lost cat. 
 

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Alex134,

I wish all communities had the support yours does, that is terrific for the cats.

Good luck on trapping that Tom. You'll get him and once he is neutered he'll be a better member of the community.

Given you have a very friendly community of caregivers it is very possible he may have found a new place (home) for food and shelter. Given that he is neutered sometimes a new cat can move into a colony. I have had a few join mine over the years, just depends on the other cats personalities. If food is ample it can be easier for them to join.

There was a colony near mine until a new male moved in. The one female was gone a year and she came back so they can return even after a long absence. 

There is always hope, I am wishing you the best on your boy's safe return. Good luck.
 

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Good luck with finding your guy! It is such a worry when they go missing. Right now I have one from the colony I take care of (there are only 5 in it) that's been gone for a day and a half, and in the year he's been here (he's TNR'd and almost to the point of trying him inside). And I'm trying not to let it consume me - - so I understand completely. I wish our community was as community cat friendly as yours. I would absolutely reach out to as many of the colony caretakers as possible in your area - if he was driven off by the male (certainly sounds as though that's a 99.9% certainty) he may have found another food source. And they certainly can go a distance! Plus if he's becoming a bit more comfortable with people, perhaps his fear of the new tom has emboldened him to approach someone else.

Likely he's nearby, and will return once he feels safe. But I think there's not alot of chance of that until the interloper is neutered. Good luck and keep us posted!
 
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alex134

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@CalicosRSpecial,

I so appreciate your perspective, especially with what I know about our boy. The fact that he was TNR'd during the time that he had befriended me, tells me he had some connections to another part of the neighborhood where there may have been a colony. My boyfriend has been telling me for weeks that he believes our boy is getting cared for by someone else, either a colony caregiver, or an individual. In fact, it was late April of last year that he returned neutered, and ear tipped. It was a traumatic event for him and he stayed close to our property, venturing only one or two houses to either side for the last year. So, it is very possible that someone is now very surprised to see him return! I do hope that is the case, as we have come to love this little guy as much as our indoor cats and want him to be well. BTW, one of our indoor kitties is a dilute calico, Maine Coon, and she is awesome!

Thank you, you have put my mind at ease for the first time in weeks. Imdomhave hope,I will see him again.

P.S. our city passed an ordinance on community cats and caregivers in 2013. It encourages individuals and groups to participate in TNR and mandates that any TNR cats inadvertently trapped returned to the area they were taken from.
 
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alex134

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@Kittychick,
I completely know how you feel. I have been unable to eat properly or sleep for weeks. I, too had worked with our boy to the point of increasing trust, even got him to take food from my hand on one occasion. He seemed very attached to us. I think you are right, making the choice to find a food source elsewhere and preserve his physical well being, makes perfect sense.

I hope your kitty returns soon, too.

The saga continues...thanks for the support!
 

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I know - I love our outside guys like they're my inside guys! And when one goes missing it's nervewracking. We did have one female we'd TNR'd injured last year - - fairly sure she broke a front leg but it's possible it was a bad sprain - - and we medicated for pain and gave antibiotics - in food as she couldn't be touched. Then the neighbor's pit bulls (one of our neighbors fosters pit bulls - so you can imagine we worry!) got out and into the yard and ripped her shelter to shreds - - we never saw her again. No blood at the site - but even if she got away safely I'm sure she was so terrified - - and we never saw her again. It broke mine and my husband's heart. I watched every morning and night at the feeding station and new shelters - spoke to neighbors, put out social media in the are - but nothing. But we've also had ones that we TNR'd and housed/fed daily - - - only to have them disappear suddenly - - and then we find out they've gone to another colony! So I do bet - since it sounds like he was getting much more comfortable with at least you - someone else was approached by him and since he's cute and sweet - started feeding him. We'll all hope for that (and I'll let you know if our guy comes back!)
 

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I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one with disappearing semi-ferals!

The cat in my avatar, Gin kun, was neutered about three years ago, but he still gets the urge to wander. He must be at least 13 years old now, if not older. My cats have a huge outdoor enclosure and a cat door so they can come in and out whenever they please. Every now and then one of them will manage to climb over or tunnel under the enclosure fence.

I haven't see Gin since Monday morning. I think this must be the 5th time he's gone missing in the past two years. He's usually gone between 10 and 15 days. I've no idea where he goes, but I live in the middle of a forest so I guess there is plenty for him to eat out there.

Of course I worry, but he's neutered, vaccinated and in very good health. I just have to keep my fingers crossed and trust in his ability to be a cat.

Hope your boy shows himself soon @Alex134

 
 
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alex134

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@kittychick, what a sad story about your injured female. So sorry! I d hope,your guy comes back. @Norachan, how could any cat resist an excursion into the forest? You are right, we must trust in their ability to be cats. Gin Kun is beautiful!
BTW- my interloper showed up right on schedule tonight, at 8:40 pm. A few more days of this schedule and he will be ready for trapping. He's a gorgeous cat, hope he can be homed.
 

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Alex134,

You are welcome. Cats are pretty amazing and resourceful and luckily you have a great city. Hang in there and have faith. Hope you see your boy soon. Good luck on getting the intact Tom. That will help a lot.

Very cool you have a calico. Sounds awesome.

I love your city, wish all would go that way!!  Maybe some day. keep up the great work!!  Thanks for all you do for them.
 
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alex134

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Thank you as well @CalicosRSpecial  

It takes a village to get things done. If you ever want any help with Community Cat advocacy, please call on me. It was our community of caregivers that were instrumental in helping to make positive change.
 

calicosrspecial

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Alex134,

Thank you very much, that is really a wonderful offer.

You really did make some great change. Just wonderful.

Thanks again and good luck on catching that male and getting your boy back to his true home.
 
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alex134

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Well the trap arrived yesterday and I tested it out this morning. Seems fairly simple to use. I will set it out for a few nights not triggered so the interloper gets used to it. He is a hungry guy, so I hope this will be easy. And he loves tuna!
 

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Alex134,

Great. I like to put a trail (a couple of pieces)  of stinky food (like Tuna) leading into the trap with the big helping of food at the back. I don't put it in the trap but the last piece is right before the opening. Sometimes it speeds things up at least for me.

Good luck.
 
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alex134

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@CalicosRSpecial,

Thanks, that is good advice.
 

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@Alex134  It sometimes help to have newspaper, straw or grass clippings in the bottom of the trap. Just enough to cover the wire so he doesn't realise he's stepping on something different. Make sure the trap door still springs shut even with the paper or grass in the bottom.

Once he's trapped you need to cover the trap with a sheet or a blanket until it's time to take him to the vet.

Cats will panic and try to claw their way out of the trap, but if it's covered they feel safe and just hunker down and wait. If he's going to be in the trap overnight you need to move it indoors, a garage or a shed are ideal. Stand the trap up on a couple of bricks so that if he pees it drains out of the bottom and he's not sitting on wet paper or straw.

Good luck!
 
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alex134

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@Norachan,

Thank you for the suggestions. I have a sheet ready, and the trap has a tray that fits underneath. I will place newspaper inside. The interloper came by right on schedule last night. I pray all will go smoothly.
 
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