Mandy W.
1 month ago
From VOKRA - Vancouver Orphan Kitten Rescue Association
VORKA
These tips are for indoor and indoor/outdoor kitties.
Many indoor cats return when its quiet and dark usually 10pm-6:30am so if possible, leave your door/window open slightly for them to return. BUT - MAKE SURE the cat is not hiding in your house first. This method works well for indoor cats who escape.
Put out some worn clothing with your scent and keep calling for them frequently, as they will hear your voice. It may take a few days or so for them to gain the confidence to return, but the main thing is, they need a way inside when it’s quiet.
Secure any other pets in a room so they can't escape. If you have a garage, you can open the door 3-4 inches so they can go in. Put water outside. Check your yard and your neighbour’s yards/patios/garage/sheds/bushes thoroughly.
Leave your door open as most cats come back at night. Check all garages and sheds in your neighbourhood.
Here’s some tips:
https://www.vokra.ca/lost-cat
When searching for your indoor cat do what heather did. Post ads with a photo of your pet, description, and your street (not your full address) on social media and download the Nextdoor app (it’s a neighbourhood social network).
If your cat is indoors only, search in the direction the cat headed if known. In heathers case, the cat ran to the back of the yard by the fence. There was a space against the fence to the neighbours yard to the south. We followed that fence searching with a flashlight, to the front of that house to the south.
Their front yard had a cement wall surrounding the property, up about three feet and then lattice fence on top and thick bushes.
Heather had already looked earlier that day under those bushes but she didn’t use a flashlight and look up the back cement wall and lattice fence above it.
When I searched, I saw the black cat in the corner right angle of the cement wall where the lattice was, with his blue leash hanging down. I walked around to the other side of that fence corner and blocked any ways for the cat to get out by stuffing a bedsheet in there. I then went around to the bushes and crawled very slowly, under the bush to where he was, with a towel and net.
I had a leather glove on and gently talked to him while slowly putting my right hand on the scruff of his neck. I held on tight while my left hand secured the rear of his body so that I had two hands on him. I slowly pulled him towards my body.
Still holding the scruff of his neck with my right hand not letting go, I used my left hand to wrap the towel around him tightly and move out slowly from under the bushes. I had a net ready and pushed his whole body in, tying it tight to get him home.
His owners have taken him outside for the first time on a collar and leash since the incident however, he is traumatized. I recommend he stay in their bedroom (somewhere he feels safe) for the first 24 hours, as he will be an escape risk for the next week.
