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10 months ago
Please place several pieces of your smelliest clothing (dirty socks, sweat-soaked t-shirts, sneakers, etc) in a protected place outside your home to create a scent trail. Add/change items daily to keep scent strong. Look at night, not just during the day. When calling, TRY to keep your voice calm and encouraging. Make contact and stay in touch with all nearby rescue groups and vets. Don"t give up.
Check under patios, in bats, in thick brush and high up in trees, in garages, sheds, boats, cars and trucks and campers.
Check in crawl spaces, closets, under box springs, in drawers and in closed toy boxes.
Ask your neighbors to please check in their sheds, garages and back yards.
Leave a piece of your unwashed clothing with your scent on it. Do not put out the litter box.
Put up posters in the neighborhood.
Most inside cats do not venture too far away unless they are chased or picked up. While looking in all those hiding spots at night use a flashlight as you may see their eyes reflection. Sometimes stress makes them disoriented, so it may be hiding under a neighbor’s house, or in a covered boat. Never give up hope... they are anxious to get home as well.
The suggestion of food is so that your cat does not go looking for food elsewhere if he/she is in their home yard.
Call relentlessly in a very high and intelligible voice for 5 minutes every half hour minimum.
Do this each evening for ten days if necessary. Stop and Listen for their meow. In general, your cat will hear you from the “first night”, but will not move, will identify you the “second night”, and identify where your voice comes from and will then try to get substantially closer as soon as he understands that he can rely on your voice to reorient himself and return. Use a flashlight at night and shine in bushes etc. Their eyes will shine in the dark.
Be consistent, many rescuers use this method as it works particularly well on indoor only cats...your cat will be close to home within 5 to 6 houses from your’s on either side. It will be scared and hiding, hunkered down under something...check under stairs porches and decks also under bushes at night time with a flashlight. Bring a bag of treats with you and shake it while you call. CONSISTENCY is KEY...do this ASAP, don’t wait, time is very important while your cat is close to home.
Good luck and never give up.
