Should I Still Be Hoping My Missing Cat Will Come Home?

[kittycatkate]

My niece's cat was missing for 5 months and was randomly seen by one of her friends not to far from her house. She was perfectly healthy and obviously finding food! lol I hope that gives some people hope out there. 

 

[papermoon]

@Norachan: Thanks for the advice. Reading other people's posts does give me hope that my T.K. is still alive somewhere. I didn't ask my vet if there was a feral cat community around because it's 8 minutes away from my house and I'am unsure if they're familiar with my area=/. TBH I noticed the cats in my neighborhood hang around the reservoir. I did have T.K. follow me outside of our housing development one time, but then he got scared and ran off. I also swore he stopped by cause my garage smelled like cat piss again after forever and I heard two cats fighting last night so I thought it was my T.K. but if he was close by I assumed he would come on over to get some food. Ugh, the other neighborhood cat keeps eating the food I leave it so that keeps giving me false hope its T.K. and I keep telling them if they see T.K., tell him to come back home!

I may do a late night walk around to see if I notice him!

@KittyCatKate
Thanks for the story! 5 months is remarkable!!

 

[papermoon]

Just a mini update
So after 5 weeks I got a call from a UPS lady who said she noticed my flyer for my cat and claims she saw him (or his doppelganger) napping in front of someone's house this past thursday around 4pm. The house location was a 12min walk from my house, and by the time I got there I didn't see him. I tried calling for him  with a bag of treats but he didn't respond. I also tried contacting the neighbors house he was infront of but they didn't answer =/. I spoke to the neighbors across from them and they didn't notice anything...but if it was him, I'm happy he's alive!

 

 

[Norachan]

Hi Papermoon,

That's great news, I hope it really was him. Do you think he could be getting fed at the other house? Maybe they, or the people across the street you spoke to, would let you set up a trail camera to see if he's hanging around there regularly. Cats like their routines, maybe that's his afternoon spot.

Good luck, keep us posted.

 

[Norachan]

Hi @papermoon  @Bita  @buffy2011  and anyone else who might be missing their cat.

I just wanted to say you're all in my thoughts and I'm longing for a Christmas Miracle. Lets hope some of those lost cats make it home soon.

 

[theonekittykat]

My cat went missing for a year and came home he will come back

 

[Norachan]

My cat went missing for a year and came home he will come back

You're really lucky. Can you tell us what happened? How did you get your cat back?

 

[petunia42]

I have a feral cat named Blue who is an indoor cat like the rest. Always knew that if he ever got out he would be lost and not return- too afraid of motion, noise- anything. He'd be paralyzed. We live in the woods on 2 acres teaming with coyotes. And sure enough, husband accidentally left the door open and bye bye Blue.

The first nite I heard him mewing in some bushes. After that no more, despite leaving out stinky food and walking miles around our property for days. I got a trap- caught a few raccoons and a neighbor kitty. After a month I gave up.

I even got another kitty from the shelter. But one night, after a month, out of the blue (pun), I set the trap out with his favorite stinky food. Next morning Blue was in the trap very upset.

We got him back.

To anyone: 1) Don't give up. 2) Get a good trap.... $40-60 on Amazon

 

[cleopatras mom]

Cleopatra got out several weeks ago, and I was frantic. She had NEVER spent a day outside in her life, except for once(a whole night with 80 degree weather). We just recently moved a month or two ago, and we have several neighbors that have mean dogs and cats. And then the assrtment of wild predatory animals. Her first night outside was about 20 degrees. The next day passed and then nigth arrived. The temperature was -10 degrees! I was sure she wouldn't make it, and in the spring I'de find her dead in a snow pile. She had no food or water other than snow. The next night was warmer, and then the next was even warmer. But she still had no access to any food  whatsoever. Well, the warmest night, she came back. Around 2 a.m. She had been gone for nearly 4 days in horrible weather without any sustenance, and not many cozy spots. But she survived! And found her way home. I hope this will make others have more hope that their cat can survive. Their very hardy creatures that need more credit. Also,ifyou have a scared kitty, chances are they won't come to you. They could only be a few feet away, and choose not to respond. Uusally you have to find them. During the evening and morning they will be most active, and once used to surroundings, they will move around more.

Although I do not think Animal Communicators are any help at all, I think, just to be sure, you should goinspect the areas around your place, Buffy. Where she said she was. Look for any sort of shelter your cat would use. We'll never know what exactly made her get lost, and I think sometimes Animal Communicators can use that for their advantage, in a sense. Nonetheless, I hope that your kitty returns to you, and that the Animal Communicator is right. Sending thoughts and wishes your way.

 

[cleopatras mom]

I also just remembered a 4 years ago we had a little kitty that we got from the shelter. After having her for 2 years she escaped and left. She was gone for six months, so we got Cleopatra from a neighbor. The next day our cat came back! She stayed for several days and elft again. We never saw her after that. But after beign gone for months, we're sure she's still alive.

 

[petunia42]

Agree with Cleopatra's Mom about searching ever possible hideout for your kitty. My closest neighbor has a massive 2000 square foot deck that is close to ground level and a perfect hideout. I called under that deck for days and heard nothing back, but KNOW that's where he was. He was just too frightened to answer. It would be a perfect hiding place to hide to trap mice and ground squirrels.

If you're pretty sure that your cat would respond to you, think of any place he or she would hide. Knock on doors to see if you can look in neighbor's yards, and plan to spend time just sitting and calling in that yard. If your cat is freaked out like mine was it might take awhile for him or her to respond. My heart goes out to anyone who loses their kitty for any length of time.

 

[misterwhiskers]

A lady in my city's cat ran off and she put an ad in the local papers lost and found. Have you tried that? It took over 6 months but her cat was found.

Sending you best wishes he is found too.

 

[cleopatras mom]

I looked like such a strange person walking down the road with my pg's and messy hair, shaking some cat food and calling her name. I even heard our neighbor's talking about us. But I was beside myself. She was my best friend for years, ya'know? She was a feral little kitten that was the size of the palm of my hand when we first got her. She was six weeks old. She would maul us if we touched her food. She's much better now, but she really only likes me. Also, if it's snowy and you know when she/he gets out, follow their pawprints! That helped me alot, because the night before Cleo dissapeared for 4 days, she got out and I followed her pawprints and found her tucked under our porch. The next night she got out and I followed pawprints leadign to our neighbr's shed. I stood there forever calling her and she didn't come. But my hypothesis is that she WAS there, but was too scaredto respond. Their instincts kick in, and they don't want to draw attention towards themselves. Find the best locations they would hide, and search for them.

 

[papermoon]

an update:
I finally saw the Tuxedo cat that someone called me about, but it wasn't T.K. =(
...*sighs* I stopped putting out food for a week, but ima start up again tonight.

 

[rodentsncats]

I hope you find your cat, mine has been missing for 1 year already, I've looked every where but still no baby Princess.

 

[Margret]

I spent all morning yesterday reading the first seven (of 20) pages of this thread, and weeping. Then I cancelled my previous plans for next Sunday so that I can go to my Palm Pilot group, where there's a person who can help me retrieve the only picture I have of Floppy from my old Clié.

Floppy disappeared two years ago. She was 13 years old and had always been an indoor cat until some house guests managed to destroy our old cat door (lockable) and replaced it with a cat flap instead, at a time when my husband and I were too distracted by my recent brain surgery to pay proper attention. We visited shelters, but she wasn't there, and I concluded that she'd probably been eaten by coyotes. And I very much wish that I had insisted on evicting the house guests after I realized they were responsible for her loss; it would have kept me from being physically abused by one of these same house guests later. And every time I hear a cat crying outside, I check, and then I have a good cry, because it's never Floppy. (The cat flap has been sealed with packing tape, because Jasmine is an indoor only cat, and if I can ever find Floppy, they'll just have to learn to get along with each other, because this will become a two cat household.)

And now I have to ask, Norachan, did you ever find George? ShadowsRescue, how is Patches doing now? How about Kuzon, Simon, and Princess? Were they ever found?

Margret

 

[Norachan]

Hi Margret,

I'm so sorry to hear about Floppy. No, I never did find George. I searched for him every day for a year and spent a fortune on posters, fliers, local TV adverts, a trial camera, animal psychics, everything I could think of. There was never any sign of him after the night he went missing and this is a quiet rural area with no large predators. I can't imagine what happened to him.

I learnt my lesson though. Losing George was one of the worst things I've ever been through and I never wanted to go through that again. Last year my husband and I bought a house with a big piece of land so we could put up a cat-proof fence and keep our house cats and all the feral cats that adopted us safe.

I'm glad you still have Jasmine to keep you company. Yes, keep her indoors. This world is too dangerous to let cats roam around outside.

Big hug. 

 

[Margret]

Darn! I was hoping for good news about George. So sorry.

I figure there's one chance for Floppy; if one of the neighbors decided she was a stray and took her in, and is keeping her as an indoor only cat. It's worth posting pictures in the two closest grocery stores, and taking them door to door in the neighborhood, but the first step is getting at them, which is why I'll be "celebrating" my birthday with Palm group.

We got Jasmine several months after Floppy disappeared; it was time. She's the only cat I've ever met who actually understands that to get uncaught from fabric she has to retract her claws, not pull harder. That's her in my avatar. I can only go so long without a cat. My husband doesn't really understand, but he knows that for me it's a genuine need, so he copes.

Margret

 

[shadowsrescue]

I had several cats appear to me that I thought might be my Patches.  Sadly none of them turned out to be Patches.  The first look alike ended up quite ill and i had to euthanize him.  The second look alike was completely feral and it took me months to get a good look at him.  After 6 weeks of hanging around, I realized this cat also was not Patches.  It was a heartbreaking experience.  Patches never returned and I do believe he didn't survive. 

I wish you the best and hope that you can find peace.  It takes lots of time.

 

[rodentsncats]

aww....shadowsrescue that's so sad that it wasnt patches. I have yet to glimpse of Princess or have a close lead on her, but I haven't given up completely, not yet.