My kitty disappeared 8-( ..... but 24 hours later i finally found her! 8-)

[Garion_55]

We moved into a new apartment complex 2 weeks ago and the cats are still getting used to the new property.

I have been letting them outside for 30 minutes or so a night while i watch them. WE are on the ground floor in a back area of the complex where there is only one way to drive in and out so not much traffic at all or people.

This one decided to slip away last night about 11:00 out of my view. I spent the next 6 hours or so going out and calling for her every half hour or so. Didnt find her. Then i spent all day going out and calling for her. Still nothing.

Finally as I am starting to lose hope i would see her again I went out again and called for her. She must have heard me because she popped her head out of the sewer to see If it was me. Reunion!!!

So now she is grounded. Indoor cat for awhile.

Misplacing a pet is a serious nerve wracking experience. One i dont want to go through again anytime soon.

So check your pets! make sure they are where they are supposed to be and then give them a huge hug for me!

[drray23]

1. years ago the exact same thing happened to us.

our cat had gone into a sewer just in front of the apartment. we found her a few hours later when we heard a pituful meow. it took us a good half hour to coax her out with treats and milk. After that, she was promoted to strictly indoor cat.

[bdamomma]

2. aw what a

beautiful kitty, hold him or her tight.

[canetoad]

3. So glad she (?) is home

Many years ago I adopted a 10 month old cat. He settled in well for several weeks then one day he was gone. Of course, I searched, letterboxed, put up signs but after a week was losing hope.

I rang the woman who had facilitated the adoption to let her know the bad news. She told me something I didn't know; when cats move location, if they decide they like their new home, after time, they will do a North, South, East, West expedition. That is, travel a day in each direction to familiarize themselves with their new neighbourhood and learn the extent of a day's journey.

Sure enough, on the morning of the ninth day, Louis came barrelling through the cat door, howling, purring, swarming all over me. He was a bit thinner, but happy to be home and never left me again.

[jeffreyi]

11. I hope that's true

One of mine left on Monday or Tuesday. Thers are lots of predators around here but she's a very savvy cat. Would love for her to come home.

[More_Cowbell]

17. Fingers crossed

And I told my cat to think good thoughts.

[KT2000]

33. Check garages around you

My cat entered a cat door in the vacant house nest door and it locked behind him. I was lucky that some realtors came to check out the house and found him. They said cats getting into vacant houses/garages is a problem they run into.

[jeffreyi]

38. She came home!!

After nine days, too. Pretty neat, I had resigned myself to her being gone for good. She got special kitty treats, which seemed appreciated. I'll never doubt anything I read on the internets ever again!
Thanks for the good thoughts sent our way.

[Phoenix61]

4. I bought a house 4 doors down from an apartment

I lived in for 12 years. I didn't want to have to go fetch my cat every night so I didn't let him out of the house for a week. Surprisingly, he never asked to go out. He is perfectly content to hang on the front porch. I'm actually happier with him being an indoor cat only. He's 17 and he's safer inside.

[rainbow4321]

5. Been there, done that

My daughter was frantic a few weeks ago when our cat got out. After 2 sad, scary, heartbreaking days the cat strolled back home. It must of scared the cat, too, cuz she stopped begging to go outside after she returned. Longest we have had one gone is 3 days. That time, same thing..came nonchalantly walking down around the cul de sac, not having a care in the world. I heard her collar jingling before I actually saw her.
One trick I read about during the last MIA incident was putting their used cat litter box outside, supposedly they smell familiar territory if they are around the area. It never got to that point for us, though.
It is heartbreaking when they are missing..all sorts of scenarios run thru your mind...none good.

[calimary]

6. Awwwww... GOOD! I love happy endings!

I highly recommend indoor "catting." Ours certainly are. The oldest is now pushing 18 with no signs of stopping or slowing down!?!

I've read that cats have significantly longer lives when they're indoor cats anyway. That's certainly true around our neighborhood - where coyotes prowl and red tail hawks patrol overhead. Not a week goes by without yet another in a continuing series of "Lost Cat" or "Lost Small Dog" posters go up around here. More often than not, it's because the lost one has become some other critter's dinner.

[shenmue]

7. Extra hugs!!

[malaise]

8. Brush a little butter on their feet

inside the new place

[procon]

9. Your kitty has a very sweet face.

Can't she stay safe indoors? Cats adjust quite nicely to the indoor life and now there are all kinds of cute harnesses and light leads made especially for cats to go outside and stay safe while they have fun adventures under your supervision.

Both my cats have always been indoor kitties, but when I inherited my mom's old cat, he was used to going out as he pleased. Poor old guy was really battered from fighting and I was determined he was going to stay safe and secure at home, so he became an indoor cat overnight. At first he really wanted outside so we worked at distracting him with lots of play activities and brought him bunches of fresh grass, twigs and leaves and flowers to sniff and chomp on. It took maybe a week for him to stop begging to go out, but he settled into his new life and we had peace of mind not worrying that he was going to make it home.

[orangecrush]

10. Welcome home

Kitty!

[3catwoman3]

12. Ours are indoor cats, and I tell them...

...that are trading their freedom for their longevity, and that it is a damn good deal.

Many years ago, one of ours got out without our knowing it, and was hit by car before we even knew she'd gotten out. A neighbor came and told us. She was only 3 years old, one of the sweetest cats ever, and it broke my heart to think that she ended her little life in fear and pain. We never did figure out how she escaped. I never want to go thru that again.

Because of this, whenever one of our current 4 decides to hide somewhere in the house, I am immediately panic-stricken that we have had another escape. Two of them have developed the talent of hiding to a fine art. As a result, they have the Tile device on their collars, so I can beep them when I can't find them. This is especially handy with our oldest one, a 13 yr old Lynx point Siamese. She has gone stone deaf in the past couple of years, and cannot hear me if I am calling her.

Great peace of mind.

I'm so glad your kitty came back.

[spanone]

13. she's a beautiful girl

[tblue37]

14. Out in the country predators abound--especially at night. I have 4 cats. My 4-yr-old

Was a 2-yr-old feral when I adopted him. He was feral born, but he is very loving. However, unlike my 3 girl kitties, he goes nuts if I don't let him out one or two hours a day to mark his territory.

I NEVER let him out of it is even dusk. It must be full light outside. Cats are nocturnal predators, too, so once it is dark there is too much of interest to get them to come in from.

I also clap loudly to call my cats (I used to have indoor/outdoor cats years ago). I have found they respond better to clapping than to calling. I never let him out or let him stay out unless I am home to check on him and bring him in within a couple of hours. And again, only in full daylight!

I have seen large owls, hawks, and foxes in the vicinity--the raptors in my back yard, the foxes within a few blocks of my home--even though I am in the center of a bustling college town.

If you are in a less trafficked area, I guarantee you have raptors and foxes, and they DO prey on cats and other pets.

A friend lost a cat to an owl many years ago. When she ran out after the owl, it turned on her and if she hadn't had a broom to beat it off, she would have been badly injured.

But her cat was killed as soon as it was pierced by those talons.

[ginnyinWI]

24. that's interesting about the clapping.

When I want my cats to come in from the porch, I clap and say, "let's go!" and they respond right away and come in. My daughter does the same with her cats.

[tblue37]

36. They are probably responding to the clapping, not the comment. No doubt you have

read about the study that showed cats recognize their human's voice, but usually just choose not to respond to it.

I suspect the clapping sound annoys them enough that they come to make us stop doing it. Or maybe they just respond to appropriate applause for their self-evident awesomeness.

I have a slightly damaged larynx, so I can't yell loudly without discomfort. That is what started me with the cat clapping back in 1970. I have always clapped for my cats.

[flyingfysh]

15. Get your cats chipped

It doesn't cost much, and you can get your cat back if it is taken to a vet or animal shelter. Its a simple procedure.

One of my cats disappeared for two seeks, and eventually we got a call from a local vet. Someone had taken him in, and taken him to a vet for a check. He had somehow made his way a long way west of the house.

[Garion_55]

29. my problem is that my cats are anti social like me

ive taught them to be afraid of humans and odds are no one would be able to catch them let alone see them.

this one ive had for 15 years and it was hiding 50 feet from my apartment in a sewer. one i called into at least a dozen times over a 20 hour period yelling her name and she didnt even pop out for me till she was hungry that little rat lol

[tblue37]

37. Try clapping them in. It usually works. nt

[Bernardo de La Paz]

16. I lost a cat for a few days, twice.

I always train my cats to come when I whistle. It's very easy. Just always give them food or a treat when you do. I whistled the whistle every single time I opened a can of their cat food and put their bowl down.

First time, I went up and down the street each night for several days, whistling the special code. Finally I faintly heard meowing. The cat had gotten itself locked in a garage behind a house.

Second time, she was gone for about six or seven days. I was living in a duplex at the time in a university town. Sitting talking with friends on the front step I heard meowing from inside the other half. Being summer it was empty but the landlord had gone in to check something and my cat had slipped inside.

[murielm99]

18. We had a cat who adopted us.

He belonged to a lady who lives about a mile down the road. He used to go out just to sit on her porch. For some reason, he wandered down to our house and decided he liked it here. She used to come and take him home. He just came back here. She visited him for awhile, then decided he was our cat, so she stopped visiting.

[JoeOtterbein]

19. Great!

We lost Mr. Tubs on 9/11/15. I will never stop searching and hoping for him. Thanks for the post and sharing some hope!

[Xolodno]

20. Ours are indoor only.

We live in a rural area, so Coyote's, Owl's, Mountain Lions, the occasional bear...not to mention speeding cars down a local highway....

they need to stay in.

[Garion_55]

30. we have 4-5 feral cats on this property.

because of that i feel safe to let mine out temporarily at night. if the outside cats start disappearing then id start being afraid to let mine out lol

[Xolodno]

31. Yeah...there aren't many feral cats where were at....

...and when we do see them....we don't see them for long. Doesn't matter, our cats seem to be actually afraid of going outside. One got out due to the screen separating, whined crazy loud, when we heard him and opened the door, he hauled ass back in....he was only five feet away.

[radical noodle]

21. I've stopped letting my cats out

Years ago one of mine went out and came back with a big gash in her hip. A mad dash to an emergency vet to get antibiotics and stitches was bad enough, but then she hid under the sofa for a couple of weeks because it had freaked her out so badly. She never went out again and I've never let any of my others out either. BTW, the kitty lived to be a happy 20 year old lady.

So happy to hear your baby made it home!

[ginnyinWI]

25. Very expensive to have an outdoor cat!

When I was young and didn't know any better, we had a cat who went outdoors. She got into the neighbor's car engine and got side-swiped by the fan. Luckily didn't kill her, but she had some internal injuries resulting in the need for surgery.

Another time she got bitten by some animal and got very sick until we realized what was wrong and got her on antibiotics.

She would bring back mice and deposit them on the back step. And wasn't such a good companion during the summer months because she'd be out all night doing who knows what, and then come into the house in the morning and just sleep all day!

Overall: Not. Worth. It!

[radical noodle]

27. Yep!

We lost of outdoor stray kitties that way. The fan is especially bad. Sometimes they'd disappear and never return. I always fed strays but couldn't take all of them in.

[iluvtennis]

22. Happy for you

[ginnyinWI]

23. 550 square feet.

That's all you need, per cat, for them to have a comfortable and safe indoor life. Have perches at the window, a cat tower, toys and a soft bed and they will be happy. If you have a screened in porch, they will be in heaven.

The negatives of letting them go out: cars, getting lost, animal attacks, picking up parasites, fleas, ticks etc., getting hurt on broken glass or something similar. Allergies to grass and other things.

Our house has 2200 sq. ft. so theoretically we could have four cats. We have two, but I also foster.

[Warpy]

26. Indoor cats occasionally go walkabout

but studies have shown most don't stray more than 100 yards or so from the exit point. They stay out for a few days, driving their people crazy, and come home filthy and deranged, with a "where the hell have YOU been?" look on their little faces.

Glad yours is home, the little jerk.

[herding cats]

28. She's beautiful, and I'm so glad she's home!

I'm not preaching, but I'm an advocate for kitties living inside. My kitties do (did).

The end of last February I lost one of my kitties to kidney cancer, she was in her early 20's at the time. It ripped my heart to shreds, and devastated her housemate, a young 13 year old Siamese.

He, an exclusively indoor kitty, actually snuck outside during my grieving period of inattention. Someone, or something, poisoned him while he was out for those few hours. Luckily he came home, and I got him to the vet, but now we're fighting liver disease from the poisoning. He's currently back in the hospital for the third time in as many months. Which is really bad for his long term prognosis. Basically, I'm about lose my second and last kitty in just over 3 months because I accidentally let him sneak out one evening because I was crying and not paying attention.

I only posted this so others might learn from my mistake. Watch your feet, and don't be so distracted your kitty sneaks out on you. Bad things truly can happen.

[StarryNite]

32. She's gorgeous!

What a precious face! So happy she's back safe and sound.

[KT2000]

34. Good looking cat!

She looks smart too.

[DarthDem]

35. Awwwwww!! She's Adorable!!

She's really pretty! Very sweet face. So glad she came back to you!