Sorry for my english, but I need your help/opinion.
My cat has been missing since 13th december. He is a 4yo, outdoor-access cat and spayed.
He doesn't like people, except our family. When strangers appear he is shy and hiding.
I put up a lot of posters and created and shared my facebook posts about him.
Some people saw him in the first week but he ran away and when we arrived we couldn't find him. He was wandering in the first 5 days and traveled 3 km (~2miles) until he found a spot beside the highroad and he was seen there twice, on 18th and 20th December. There is a lot of bushes, canals, little woods and possible hiding places and the area is huge. It';s far from houses and the city. I placed a humane trap 3days ago and I caught 2 cats but not mine. And nobody has seen my cat since then.
Do you think he is still there and hiding and I could continue the trapping? Or maybe he has left the area?
Thank you very much!!
lost cat behavior
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Ruth B
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- Posts: 1998
- Joined: Wed Jun 15, 2016 11:31 am
- No. of cats in household: 3
- Location: Wolverhampton
Re: lost cat behavior
I really wish I could help and give more advise, but it is really hard to know what a cat is going to do when they run off.
He may still be in the same place, it does sound like a good place for a cat to hole up, not too many people, lots of small animals for food etc, the road is the only concern. However if there are other cats in the area, which you have found to be true through the trapping then they may have driven him off and he has already moved on.
My suggestion is to hold off trapping for a while to see if you get any more sightings. Constant trapping in one area might distress the cats that are there and drive any or all to a different location. ~If you do get another sighting then see if you or someone in that area could start putting food out for him to keep him coming back to the same area, That way you have the best chance at trapping him.
If you have any sightings closer to home it might be worth trying the old trick of hanging dirty washing on a cloth line, your scent will carry on the breeze and can help guide a lost cat home, it is after all the scent of safety. At 3 km he might be a bit far away for it to work, but it still might be worth a try if he is still wandering looking for somewhere.
I will also say I'm no expert on this so if others have different views don't be surprised.
I do hope you get him home safe and sound.
He may still be in the same place, it does sound like a good place for a cat to hole up, not too many people, lots of small animals for food etc, the road is the only concern. However if there are other cats in the area, which you have found to be true through the trapping then they may have driven him off and he has already moved on.
My suggestion is to hold off trapping for a while to see if you get any more sightings. Constant trapping in one area might distress the cats that are there and drive any or all to a different location. ~If you do get another sighting then see if you or someone in that area could start putting food out for him to keep him coming back to the same area, That way you have the best chance at trapping him.
If you have any sightings closer to home it might be worth trying the old trick of hanging dirty washing on a cloth line, your scent will carry on the breeze and can help guide a lost cat home, it is after all the scent of safety. At 3 km he might be a bit far away for it to work, but it still might be worth a try if he is still wandering looking for somewhere.
I will also say I'm no expert on this so if others have different views don't be surprised.
I do hope you get him home safe and sound.
Re: lost cat behavior
Thank you for the reply!
I created some maps:
https://imgur.com/JpcHzRb
https://imgur.com/Eb3QHIQ
https://imgur.com/a/VUu16JE#iSNLBkY
The snow was melted away ~1 week ago.
I caught little cats, I think they are females or kitties. The trap was empty in this morning, but the bait was touched. Maybe I'll buy a wildlife camera.
I created some maps:
https://imgur.com/JpcHzRb
https://imgur.com/Eb3QHIQ
https://imgur.com/a/VUu16JE#iSNLBkY
The snow was melted away ~1 week ago.
I caught little cats, I think they are females or kitties. The trap was empty in this morning, but the bait was touched. Maybe I'll buy a wildlife camera.