Lost your Cat

If you’re ‘feline’ sad, wait! You have good options

It can happen in a blink of an eye. Suddenly your indoor cat is outdoors and has disappeared. Time to act. Most cats, especially indoor ones, will not go very far but they will hide.

Here are some things you should do, the sooner the better.

—Assuming your cat has a microchip, check that your online information is up to date. If your cat is not chipped, that is something you should do as soon as your cat returns.

—Make a poster with your cat’s picture and details and include your contact phone number. Photocopy to post in your neighborhood. Having one or more photos of your cat is always a good idea. You can make your own poster or some sites (check the Lost Pets of Ontario link at the bottom) will create a poster for you.

—Call your local vet and animal shelter to let them know the cat has disappeared and leave your contact number.

—Ask neighbors to check garages and sheds in case kitty is trapped inside and let neighbors know you are looking for kitty. Show them a photo (preferably in color) of your kitty.

—If you live in a house, trying leaving your garage door ajar and kitty may sneak back in there.

—Be absolutely sure kitty is not hiding somewhere inside. He/she may have made a dash for the door and was scared back inside and is now hiding.

—Once it starts to get dark, start walking your street calling for kitty. Don’t call frantically-use your normal voice as if you were calling kitty at home for attention. Shake kitty’s treat jar. Don’t forget to look up in case kitty climbed a tree or is on a fence. Keep listening for sounds of your cat meowing outside.

—If you have moved recently, check your old neighborhood too in case kitty returned there.

—Put out food (the stinkier the better) and water for kitty and monitor to see if the food is eaten (also keep an eye on the food as it might also draw racoons and other critters).

—You might borrow a humane trap and set it in your yard.

—If your cat does not have a microchip, visit local humane society and rescue shelters and look for your cat. Vets and shelters will always check for a microchip.

There are many online lost and found websites, including Kijiji and Facebook – Lost Pets Ontario in an example. Search for sites in your area and post there. Don’t forget to search “Found” cat reports on these sites as well. Post to your personal Facebook and/or Twitter accounts.

Do not lose faith because cats are resourceful and have been known to return after very long periods of time.