Have you lost your cat? The concern rises and you don’t know how to find him. In this article, we explain how to find your cat, with the list of ALL the solutions to put in place, whether your cat is not found at home or outside.
We will also explain how to avoid recurrences, which is essential, because a lost cat is always bad news, even if it is not in danger, because the fact of not coming back can be linked to other causes. .
How to find your cat: Understanding the causes
The first thing to find your cat is to understand the possible causes of his estrangement, here is everything that can lead your cat not to be with you:
He likes to hunt
Cats love hunting, it is also to train for hunting that cats play so much when they are young, and that they can even get their claws out when they play with you. If your cat left at night, he probably went hunting and doesn’t need to come home to eat, but that’s no reason not to look for your cat.
If your cat has found a corner where he can hunt mice or rabbits, he will spend a lot of time there hunting and eating his prey, he can even sleep there after eating to recover from his effort, if the place is not dangerous in his eyes.
A cat that does not eat before going out will often tend to hunt because it has an empty stomach and above all it will be hungry. The younger a cat is, the more it will like to hunt small animals even if they are located high up like birds.
He went to join other cats
The younger your cat is, the greater the chances that it will go to its congeners, and even more so if it is not neutered, seeking mating, the same for females, which when they are not sterilized seek the coupling.
The most social cats can join feral cats and those who have domestic cats nearby can also go play with them.
He went for a walk
Cats love to walk in the tall grass or go to a corner of trees to perch there, your cat may have chosen to go for a walk far and this is a possible reason for his absence at the moment .
The more your environment represents opportunities for him, the more he will go for a walk there to rest, sleep or enjoy the sun during hot periods. If it is hot, he will go for a walk in corners of water, he will also go in the trees to take advantage of the height and may also like certain plants to purge himself there.
How long is this normal?
Cats are used to coming home quickly, so if yours isn’t home at the usual time or if it hasn’t been home for 12 hours, you can start looking for it, because the more the time is short, the more likely you are to find it.
From 24 hours, put all the necessary tools in place to be able to find your cat because this threshold indicates something abnormal, and there is a good chance that it will not fit if you do not go looking for it.
In the House
If you haven’t taken your cat outside, it’s probably hidden or stuck somewhere. It is vital to put the following things in place if your cat is nowhere to be found.
Call it
The first thing to do is to call him, in a reassuring tone, like when you play with him, because he may be just in his world, sleeping somewhere for example. Check all the rooms carefully, even the storage room or storage room if you have one.
You can also put a mouse noise via video on smartphone so that it will join you when you look for it, even if it is stuck, it will make noise to get out of it, allowing you to detect it.
Attract it
A second solution is to entice him with things he likes, such as lukewarm food, smells better than cold, chicken or tuna are good ideas, salmon oil is the must for him to come.
There too, animal noises via your smartphone will be very effective, a soothing spray also allows you to stimulate it at the nasal level and bring it out of its den.
Search in every corner
Your cat may be stuck, and you will therefore have to make sure to find it by searching all the corners of the room, such as the boxes , which it loves, or the places full of mess where it may have be wanted to play before getting stuck in it.
Also (and especially) check in height, for example in the shelves or a closet storage, do not forget that felines love to have a view of their entire environment and that they feel very good in height.
How to avoid recurrences?
When you find your cat, make sure that it does not go back to the same situation in the future. Here’s everything you need to put in place once you’ve found your cat.
Watch out for places where it might get stuck
Pay attention to places where your cat might get stuck, it is vital that he does not get stuck there anymore, especially if he is young and does not channel his energy much.
Reassure him
It is essential to reassure him because your cat may have taken refuge because of stress, which can be caused by changes such as a new animal or a move, once the source of stress has been found, accustom it to it or remove it. the cause if it is legitimate.
Outside
Outside, the situation is more problematic, but fortunately, there are many solutions so that your cat can be found, so apply the following tips carefully to find your feline home.
Before seeing all the solutions to find your cat, know that outside, it will tend to expand its territory and can be more than 500 meters away if you are in the countryside unlike those in cities which are at 75% within a radius of 500 meters.
Call him looking for him at different times
Make rounds at different times by calling your cat, ideally, bring a smell (chicken, sardines…) that he loves and attracts him or at least makes him meow if he is stuck. Be careful to go to all the places he could potentially be.
Go to the most suspicious places
Cats can get stuck in a tree because they cannot control the descent, and can also get stuck in a garage or in piles of wood. So search all his places well to give yourself the best possible chance of finding him.
Attract it
This is a passive solution, you can put in front of your door a fragrant food that he loves, his cat tree or any other element likely to attract his attention. Do your best so that your choice can know of their presence.
You can also broadcast mouse or bird noises that will attract him to kill and drive them away.
Post posters
Posting posters with a photo of your cat, the number to call and possibly the name to which he responds will allow you to be reached if someone finds him. So, make sure to always post it in visible places and that covers all the territory in which it can be found.
Check the Facebook Pet Alert
You can regularly consult this service set up by Facebook to see if other people have found your cat. You can also put an ad there.
Go see the neighbors
Ask the neighbor if your cat is not at their house, he may have snuck in to eat, play or perhaps have gone to their yard because he loves their trees or bushes, your cat may have decided to go there for many reasons.
Put announcements in mailboxes
By putting an ad in each mailbox in the neighborhood always with a photo of the cat, its characteristics and especially your number, you increase the chances of finding it, so if you have a lot of neighbors, make sure to warn them all of this way.
Go to shelters, veterinary surgeries and the SPA or even the town hall
First of all, you can consult the announcements there, then you can contact the people who manage the places to find out if they do not have your cat because people who have found it may have taken it to these places, thinking that is a wild cat. In a small village, you can go see the town hall.
Use a drone
A drone will allow you to cover a long area while flying over the place, much more efficient than a classic search.
Go to the ICAD website
Going to the ICAD website will make it easier for you to find your cat thanks to all the information available there. This site depends on the Ministry of Agriculture.
How to avoid recurrences?
To prevent your cat from getting lost again, here is what to do:
Watch out for young cats
If you have a young kitten, it is vital to teach her step by step how to get out and come back, first holding her in your hands when you go outside, then walking her in a harness and teaching her not to go. in dangerous places, such as the road.
Put a GPS collar on him
A GPS collar can locate your cat at all times, whether it’s 8 meters or 1 kilometer away, so you can keep an eye on your cat at all times.
Castrate or sterilize it
Castrating or sterilizing it according to its sex allows you to have a cat that will take less risk outside, the life expectancy of these cats is also much shorter than that of castrated cats.
Put on a necklace with your contact details
This is the classic and effective way for someone who finds it to reach you, put your phone number. The people who find it will contact you directly so that you can pick it up.
Prevent him from climbing trees
There are certain devices that will prevent it from climbing trees, if it is yours, this is a perfect solution to prevent it. Trees and kittens often do not go well together because they do not control the descent.
Put a fence
If the environment is dangerous, putting up a cat fence will let him out in your yard while preventing him from putting himself in danger outside. This fence lets you see the outside and prevents the cat from climbing on it, it is an essential solution if your neighbor has a big dog or a highway is nearby.
Keep your vaccines up to date
By keeping your vaccines up to date, you limit the risk of infections, especially against fleas and ticks, but also against certain diseases such as coryza. Same for the dewormer. An unvaccinated and infected cat will have serious problems and will be weaker, possibly not having enough strength to go inside.
Beware of scams
Some people can make you believe that they have found your cat by asking for money to treat it, for example these are scams, these people have not found your cat.
How to find your cat: The final word
Finding your cat is greatly facilitated by a series of good practices and a search carried out early enough, ideally within 24 hours, the sooner you look for it, the easier you will find it.
If your cat is very young, you should always get him used to the outdoors as you go and not let him go unsupervised the first few times.