Usually when I go to shows and it involves an overnight stay, I leave my cat (Zelli) in my house with a large amount of food which sustains her until my return.   She is a pedigree cat & stays indoors anyway so using a litter tray is routine for her.   However last weekend it was Windsor, which is a bit further and my sister has been badgering me to let her have Zelli.  My sister knows Zelli doesn't get out & that you have to be vigilant with open doors & windows etc.    Well she wasn't that vigilant and Zelli got out - I was phoned just as I drove into Windsor, yes I had a wonderful show day but a day full of worry too.

Anyway, Zelli has been seen by me, one of my sister's neighbours and a dog walker just in the area between the houses and beach (My sister lives near Carnoustie), I've tried calling her even in the very early morning when it's dark & very quiet but she will be very scared now so I have got a loan of a humane trap from the CPL.   The trap was laid by some upturned boats she's been seen going under, has anyone any experience of catching a cat this way, success stories etc?

As you can imagine I'm so worried, she's such a little cat who's no street sense and her colouring gives away the fact she's not a moggie.

Ah I really feel for you, you must be worried sick and I know just how you feel.  Unfortunately the only cat of mine to go missing (my other too were RTA's :() has not returned but he was an outdoor cat anyway and liked to wonder, he was seen a couple of time and I spent weeks wondering round trying to find him and putting posters up etc but due to things I have been told I believe that a neighbours lurchers got him as they also killed 3 feral kittens so I think he would have returned if he could.

Now, on the positive side!  I know of someone who's cat recently got spooked and ran out, he too was an indoor cat and also deaf so was out of safe boundaries big time however his mummy was woken up 2 days later by him meowing at the back door and other than a bit of a bad paw he was fine - as you have spotted Zelli she will be fine and will find her way home in time....she is probably enjoying fishing LOL!

I hope you fine her soon x

Well I don't want her to find her way home as I live in Inchture and my sister by Carnoustie, that's 23 miles and she'd have to get across Dundee City Centre! 

Hi Christine

Many years ago now a Persian of mine got out by accident -we never saw it happen so didn''t realise for a few hours. We couldn't find her anywhere, contacted the local paper who ran a piece (I exagerrated a bit and said she was a show winning pedigree cat when in fact she wasn't show quality), put up notices everywhere etc. After 17 days, my husband stepped outside the front door at midnight to take the rubbish out and there she was. Filthy, covered in fleas, but back home.  We have no idea where she had been or how she found her way home, but she did. She'd never been outside in her life.

I know peple who have used humane traps successfully. Have you thought of putting something in it that smells of you, like a item of clothing?

Keeping everything crossed for you, I know the worry.

Hi Marianne,

I've put the black fleece blanket in there that she sleeps on and also covered the trap in a large towel from home so it has familiar smells to it.    I'm glad she's been seen but I just want her back home with me.

When I was a child we moved 45 miles away and despite keeping our cat indoors for 3 weeks he failed to come home one evening. Four weeks later he turned up at our old house having crossed motorways and major roads so there is every chance that your cat will do the same.

Oooppsss- sorry, should have read the post properly, thought that you and your sister lived near each other......I really hope the trap works!  My OH's grandparents had a cat go missing and he turned up 6 months later at their old home - again quite a distance!

A friend had a cat escape from a cattery, she was devastated but by keeping going to the area she did get her back, not quite sure how, think she sat quietly all day and kept doing that every day, so it can happen :)

Good luck, will keep fingers crossed,

Lindsay
x

So sorry, Christine, know how you worry. Linis, my cat got out when I was at work (I work nights) many years ago. She had never been an outdoor cat, knew nothing about cars or anything else for that matter. Spent five worried days looking and calling. Finally found her, not far away from where we live. She let me take her home quite calmly,didn't seem frightened, but not overly excited about being found either. A bit thinner but otherwise no worse for wear. Good idea is to use the birds' callings to help you know if a cat is near. Never had given that much thought before I went looking for Linis. Especially early mornings and late at night, when it's quiet, the birds will tell when a cat is approaching.
Good luck, hope you'll have her back home soon.
Karen

Aww Christine :-( I hope you find your cat.

I had a cat some years ago, and she got out i was worried sick, i looked everywhere for her, in the end...i made posters with a picture of her and posted them through letterbox's, a few weeks later i got a knock on my door from a lady up the road, she had my cat :-)

Good Luck x

Sorry to hear this Christine, Always my fear with Betty also. I will my fingers and toes crossed she returns safely.

last year at work we were trying to capture a tom cat that was covering a lot of queens in the area we borrowed a trap from the rspca, and caught him almost imediatley, unfortunely the day we caugth him was a sunday so we couldnt leave him in the trap until the monday morning when the vets opened so w tried to put him in a crate, we got him in one only for the trap to get caught on the door and he escaped, we moved the trap as we knew he wouldnt go back in it in the same place, he never came back but we did catch a few of the queens and get them spayed , the friendlier ones were rehomed the others were released back where they were caught (they were all feral). I also had an incidience of when taking my own cats to the cattery the carrier broke on the way round and the two cats escaped we spent two hours looking for them and just as we were about to give up they were spotted a bit of quick thinking from one of the stable girls who threw a heavy new zealand rug over them and we were able to catch them.
so there is hope all the time someone sees her in the area she went missing keep the trap set up, put tuna or chicken init much more tasty and inviting to a frightened cat.

tanya

I must admit despondancy is setting in as she hasn't been seen for over 24 hours or I wonder if she has a new hideout becuase there was a lot of activity going on around the upturned boats too.    I'm trying so hard to remain positive but as every day goes past a little bit more of me thinks I'll never see her again and it's breaking my heart.

Pam, I thought you had rehomed Betty, so you won't have that worry now?

My friend's cat was on the lam for about two weeks and then waltzed home.  A neighbour found one of their's after SIX months in a distant town.  So don't give up hope.  We've live trapped several kitties so may I offer some suggestions?  Use really smelly canned food to attract them.  Kitten food is good.  Don't otherwise feed the cat, if you know the area it is hanging out in.  If you put the food in a little dish attach the dish to the back of the cage; some cats are smart and agile enough to fish the dish out without setting the trap off.  If there are skunks where you live, carry an old blanket with you to put over the trap in case you get a skunk; they won't spray if the trap is covered and must spray backwards at you, though the smell can envelop you no matter what the direction.  Release skunks by propping the door open, cage still covered, and leave for a while.  You can uncover it when you leave.  Check the trap often, from a distance if you can.  At least once a day is law where I live for trapping wild animals so use that as a guideline modified by weather conditions.

Skunks   Thankfully we don't have them in the UK :)

Are you sure? There are a few I could name...... ;)

Christine, I hope Zelli turns up. She is a beautiful cat, even though she didn't want to say hi when I first saw her!

our cat went missing for three weeks once and then came waltzing in demanding her breakfast so please don,t give up hope.

I'm bumping this as Zelli has now been spotted in the same area for 3 nights running, so the humane trap has duly been set with smelly fish in it..........but the little minx has fathomed out the way to get into it, eat the contents and get out without setting it off!  Does anyone have any ideas to make sure the trap goes off when she's in it?   

i have experience of working with cat charities that trap ferals for neutering and they make sure that the food is secured right at the very back of the trap, they use the traps that have a large plate that covers the base of the trap a little way in from the entrance so as soon as the cat steps on it the trap door closes behind them.  so if you have one of these traps put the food UNDER the plate that needs to be stepped on to trigger the door closing, so she cat just nick the food and run!
what kind of trap are they using?
one of my cats went missing for quite a few weeks and came up thin and covered in fleas but none the worse off so dont give up hope!
have a look here
http://www.feralcat.com/trapinst.html
http://www.trap-man.com/cat-trap.htm
for more hints and tips

Scratchy, it's the one in the trap-man link that we've borrowed from the CPL.  My sister has such some fish on the tread plate tonight hoping that her eating it will trigger the door to shut.   Thing is she's not the heaviest cat in the world which probably doesn't help.

goodluckeverything crossed here that zelli has a safe return :)

try putting the fish UNDER the plate.  if it is just on top she can probably get to it without even standing on the plate.  put it under and hopefully she will put enough weight on to trigger the door or put the food right at the back of the trap so she has to walk right over the plate to get to food.

The food was under the plate but it's in that area she can get to it without triggering off the door!   Next time I'm having a male cat, far more obliging and certainly less brains! :rolleyes:

ah i see sorry misunderstood!  move the food right to the very back of the trap and secure the dish or if using a decent size chunk of food, tie that to cage to prevent food pulled.  hopefully if she is taking the food from the trap she will not associate it with anything horrid and will be more likely to walk fully into the trap.  certainly is a little minx! :-) dont worry about her not being heavy enough to set it as the cat charities regularily trap youngsters that barely weigh 1.5kg so she should trigger it, just need to get her to actually stand on the plate!  good luck, sure you will get her back soon,
kelly

My local cattery did use one of these traps to re-capture a cat that escaped from them, and it did work they got him back, he had not been there long, but still returned as he was hungry and was captured again.

The only thing I can say to re-assure you is that your cat even though an indoor cat will recognise her territory even seen from a window, along with scents.  She has probably over explored, been scared away or is in hiding, unless she is picked up by someone, she will eventually make her way back to familiar sights and scents so be patient, it may take weeks, cats even house cats are a lot more resiliant than any other creature, and the weather has been very kind lately. Shady, dark small places are the most likely places to find her. I hope she is home soon.

Christine,

My cat went missing 2 weeks and came home LAST NIGHT!!!!!! He looked a bit thin so I suspect he may have been trapped in someones garage while they have been on holiday.

Fi

Oh Christine!! How frustrating!!
That girl can give David Blaine and Harry Houdini a run for their money cant she!! ;)
But just to say, Im glad to hear youve 'found' her thats half the battle hopefully and soo reasuuring.. good luck in finally capturing her, little wriggler! still thinking of you both xx

Thanks everyone...

There has been something positive out of this - for my sister anyway!    As she's been helped on her search this week by a Bono lookalike (Well she likes him!) single and just a bit older than her who has aspirations to open an animal sanctuary, all totally up her street!

Hi Christine,
My cat went missing for 6 weeks once....found her being fed scraps at the local pub :D
Hope you get yours back soon....and good luck to your sis with Bono ;)

>I suspect he may have been trapped in someones garage while they have been on holiday.

That happened to one of our cats...twice!! Once, she had been locked in a shed for two weeks and the other, it must have been a coal bunker as she turned up black (white cat) Have no idea how she survived but it didn't stop her wandering  either. She lived til she was 17.

She's back!  :D :D :D :D

My sister was out past midnight setting food inthe trap when this little face popped out from the undergrowth and my sister managed to coax her all the way back to her coattge, where the door was firmly shut behind her and she's spent the night totally clinging to my sister next to her in bed!

Yay! Fantastic news :D

Hope she's none the worse for her big adventure.

Let's just home in 7-8 weeks time I'm not joined by several little Zelli's as she isn't neutered!

Yikes! But I think we know what the odds are ... did you intend to neuter her or to breed?

So glad she's back to keep Maisie company, Christine. :D

M.

Well she was a show cat with the option to breed, I know the 2 cats in the area my sister lives are both neutered so lets just hope no one has come from afar and she hasn't called!

Ah well, better have her back and full of moggie kits than not have her back at all, whichever way it goes.

Being a cat, she will of course come back into your house, go straight to her favourite spot and give you a look as if to say 'where's my dinner?' as if she'd been waiting for YOU for a fortnight. :D

M.

Great news that she's back! :D :D If I was you though I'd play safe and get her blood tested (FeLV if she isn't vaccinated for it, and FIV) to make sure she hasn't caught anything nasty, especially if there is any chance of a mating having taken place OR if she ever is to be bred from it has to be done.

Hi Marianne,

When I phoned Sue, her breeder, this morning to tell her the good news she recommended the same although Zelli is totally up to date with all her vaccinations to cover everything!

She is terribly thin, so I am feeding her little & often.  I've just got back from my sister's - a quick trip to collect her turned into a 5 hour stay!  She is now home (Fanfare!), had a good walk about and has curled up in a corner, I think she'll need several good cat naps!  

Thank you everyone on this thread for all your thoughts, it has been a dreadful 2 & half weeks.

Christine

She can't be vaccinated for FIV (no vaccine in the UK for it) so that one is the worry. It's a small risk but best to play safe. :) I can SO imagine how relieved you must be, my cat that went missing years ago was gone for 17 days and it felt like 17 years!!

Yippee!  Wonderful news.  So pleased she has been found.

(((((Hoorah!!!!))))))
Oh today had been a great news for wanderers/travellers returning here on CD!
Christine..Im sooo delighted for you, what a relief!!!! Great News!! :D

And another wanderer returns!!! (Are you sure she hasn't been doing a bit of mystery cat business, accompanying Trevor in Beirut????)   Strange that the pair of them turn up together :D

That will be one pampered puss I reckon!

Margot

Oh Christine thats brilliant!
I can uncross my fingers now, they were beginning to ache :)
Really really pleased :) :) :)

So glad to hear Zelli is home safe and sound. :D Maybe that outside run is sounding a bit better now ;) At least then you would know she'd be safe :D

Oh, and NO I DO NOT WANT A KITTEN ;) :D

Really pleased that she has returned safe and sound. :)

YIPPPEEEE

Wonderful News

I have to confess to thinking that you wouldn't get her back now - what a relief!

The Kittens will be gorgeous I'm sure, and a small price to pay for safe return :D

SO GLAD she's back :) :)  WOO HOO!!

One of my dogs was missing for all of 15 minutes - I was a WRECK! :(  I can't imagine if one of my indoor cats had gone missing for this long I'd have been on tranx ;) ;)

Bet she's acting as if it was YOU missing :rolleyes: :) 

I have posted a document about making a garden safe for indoor cats.  It should be on CD somewhere, but if you want I can e-mail it to you :)

Hi Dill,

That would be great, I'm looking at making her an outside run especially if she gets her companion next month.   Surprisingly for Zelli, she is quite clingy & miaowy towards me - give her a day or 2 back into the old routine and she will start gracing me with her prescence when she wants not when I want her too!

Have sent you an e-mail.

It should have 3 attachments as the leaflet is 3 pages long.   If you don't get all 3 let me know and I'll send you the rest.

Thank Heavens Christine .. I was worried for you.