Hampton, VA Lost Female Cat, Avery Is Missing

Facebook Community Response

Dianne B.

8 months ago

Call softly late night early morning when it quite out .. For indoor cat if there is any way you could leave your door garage door or window slightly ajar if possible they know where they got out .. cats will hide during the day and are more active late evening near dark to early morning , daybreak ... have a spot light to shine to see eyes in the dark .. they are usually close by and will often come back to the door .. or hide under bushes or decks to feel safe ! Also check crawl spaces under houses , garages, sheds of neighbors nearby ... check culvert pipes .. storm drains .. up trees .. and under car hoods with colder weather and tires also ...this can happen and they could be miles from home . Cats in a new home need at least 30 days to adjust to a new area and may and will travel to get back to their old home .. A set trap may be needed and monitored! Trail cam help to monitor the areas! Post to Nextdoor ... Check with area Shelters, Animal Control, and Vets offices also put flyers ... Am sure you have tried most all of these! Don't give up!!

Sylvia B.

8 months ago

Hope Avery is found soon 🐱💕🙏

Ellyn T.

8 months ago

🙏

Nita D.

8 months ago

ALSO post on Lost and found Hampton Roads. This is a large site with lots of helpful eyes.

Peggy G.

8 months ago

Prayers for finding

Elaine J.

8 months ago

Step 1: The ABSOLUTE quickest and easiest way to find a lost indoor only cat is to open the exit it escaped for several days. Typically the cat will return back into the home on its own. If this is not possible, crack an attached garage door, enclosed porch, or window (providing something for the cat to step on). This is essentially using part of your home as a “trap”. Turn off lights outside the house. Keep it as quiet as possible outside the home especially at night. The key is to create an environment where the cat feels safe to return. Step 2: Put scent items outside the exit the cat escaped, or in the enclosed area you have cracked. Also, place scent items just outside the door of the “trap”. Cats have an amazing sense of smell, and the smell of home calms them and lures them back. Scent items can include (use as many as possible) litter box, slept on sheets/pillow case of owner, owner’s worn clothes/shoes, cat’s bedding, cat tree, and toys. Use items the cat is particularly attached to. Step 3: Post the cat on local lost and found pet sites. Include the cat’s identifying color, area lost (be specific with street name, neighborhood, city), and date last seen. This information helps others find your missing post through searchable key words. Nextdoor and Pawboost are free and commonly used across the country. Neighborhood sites are also important. For local pet owners, post on Lost and Found Pets Hampton Roads. There are also apps/sites with a fee that can send an email or text to neighbors in your area which include FindToto, Pet Alert, and Finding Rover. For a fee, Lost Pet Cards will also send 1,000 postcards directly to addresses in the area your pet was lost. Step 4: Make sure to visit your local animal control in person. File a lost report and bring the shelter a flier. Find out if your report becomes inactive after a certain number of days, and make sure to update as needed. Many pets find their way to the shelter months after becoming lost. Step 5: It is extremely important to use fliers for your area. In the case of an indoor only cat, a flier should be on every door in the 7 house radius. You will need approximately 150 fliers. This is work, but highly effective. Input your address in Google search, and draw a map of the 7 house length radius around your home. This is the area to blanket with fliers. Step 6: Physically searching for your cat can have some drawbacks. Walking the neighborhood calling can actually lure the kitty further from home, and also keep it more in hiding. Instead, it is best call from the exit the cat escaped. Make sure the calls are soft and familiar. The owner should be seated and have all lights outside turned off. This is less intimidating to the cat, and makes it feel safe. We do not recommend doing this in the early morning hours as this can keep the cat from returning home. Step 7: Should you search for your cat, make sure it is someone the cat is familiar with. A neighborhood search can also move the cat further from home and keep it in hiding. The cat needs time to settle down and movement will continue the survival mode mindset. Search quietly and softly looking under nearby sheds, open crawl spaces, decks, etc. At night utilize a flashlight to look for the cat’s eyes can be fruitful. Again, we do not recommend the search to be lengthy or during the early morning hours as this can prevent kitty from simply returning on their own. Noises of people walking around and doors opening can actually spook the cat while it is on high alert. Step 8: Place a baby monitor outside the door the cat escaped, preferably a video monitor. This can allow you to hear your cat meowing or scratching at the door. You may also want to use a trail camera. If you should put food by the door your cat escaped, it is highly recommended to have a camera on the food to know what animal is coming to eat. If it is not your cat eating the food, then you will either want to remove the food all together or trap the animal. Once you have your cat on camera eating, you will want to use a humane trap.

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