HappyCatLady .
6 months ago
💖 TONIGHT as soon as there is a BREAK in the RAIN - GO OUT the 'escape' door and CALL For kitty in a very calm and NORMAL voice. Keep calling gently over and over. If kitty likes the sound of crinkling a treat bag or opening a can of TUNA then try that. Call for kitty for 30 minutes at a time. It’s best to sit /crouch down in one spot and call calmly for a while - then read the rest of this post to learn what to do. Do not lose hope, take action 🙏
🐱💜Dear Guardian. Please know you can find your sweet kitty by taking action to cover ALL possibilities, whether your kitty is HIDING or STUCK. #1 mistake is Waiting to take action. Glad you posted. Taking ACTION IN PERSON IS CRITICAL; Here is exactly what to do 🙏
🐱 INDOOR-ONLY CATS that are not used to being outside (or are INDOOR / OUTDOOR and get spooked by something) will find the 1st place to HIDE and HUNKER DOWN in SILENCE. They tend to remain VERY VERY NEAR, typically within 1-3 residences and many times right next door or UNDER the house, HIDING. Kitty is in survival mode and meowing would give away the hiding spot to predators. Outside is SCARY for an INDOOR cat, with wind & LOUD noises. Be patient. Kitty is out there nearby. Cats in a foreign environment will be SCARED and will often NOT meow - though Kitty needs to hear your kind voice…until kitty THINKS it’s safe to come forward on your 40th or 400th call!
🐱 INDOOR and INDOOR/OUTDOOR cats HIDE and GET STUCK in garages, crawl spaces, under porches, under buildings, in storage areas. Most lost cats are found within the block - though keep open to the possibility of further out if you live on a street that is mostly covered in cement out front (no place to hide)
🐱 DO Not put out LITTER BOX - the scent could attract aggressive animals
💥 IMPORTANT 💥 SEARCH & CALL for kitty sweetly and calmly ESPECIALLY AT NIGHT from Sunset until SUNRISE when it’s quiet, dark and cats feel ‘safer’ to move. Set your alarm for 11pm 1AM, 3AM, 5AM call for kitty in your NORMAL, CALM voice...crinkle the treat bag or shake kitty’s favorite noisy toy. I can’t tell you how many kitties come out of hiding during LATE NIGHT (or you can hear meows if trapped ina garage or backyard for example) Sit down in 1 spot for at least 10 minutes at a time and call CALMLY. Be patient. Scared cats are the best hiders.
🐱 LEAVE A WAY BACK INSIDE 24/7 in case kitty sneaks back LATE NIGHT. Leave the ‘escape’ DOOR/WINDOW wedged OPEN 5” with wet food and water just inside. Place your dirty laundry by the escape point. If kitty escaped from the front (and you have a garage) leave garage door OPEN 5" with WET food & water placed just inside the garage with camera AIMED at the food to send movement notifications to your PHone. THEN place kitty’s BEDDING deep inside the garage (FAR AWAY from food) . If no garage, leave wet food and water near escape point - out of plain sight of humans walking by.
💥 IMPORTANT 💥 PLACE A CAMERA (motion activated) AIMED at WET FOOD (not dry) and water you leave by the escape point (if possible wedge door open 5” with food inside ). The food may attract other cats in the neighborhood, but one of those cats might be yours if you’re lucky! Replace food AM + PM (raccoons LOVE DRY cat food so only offer WET) You can't believe how often a cat will return home at night and has no way of getting back inside (or is too scared to go inside ) Without the camera aimed at food, guardians would never know kitty is AROUND. Once spotted on Camera, BUT still hiding when you call, THEN the next step is to humanely TRAP your kitty. I can Loan you a TRAP if you live in SF - OR you can RENT from any shelter.
💥💥WiFI Camera on amazon: $35 Mini Blink camera: https://a.co/ihc7BSy
🐱Your ACTUAL neighbors on your block will NOT see these online posts. And they won't do anything if they see a cat unless they know YOUR cat is missing! This is why you must go door to door with FLYERS and post up flyers around your neighborhood on both sides of lamposts..
💜🙏 🐱 KNOCK ON YOUR NEIGHBORS DOORS, starting with the first 10 residences in ALL directions from you. Stay organized. Take notes on a PRINTED Google map of your block - note which people you spoke to and who wasn’t home so you can GO BACK later and keep trying until you talk to all neighbors on your block.
🐱ASK neighbors to check RING CAMERAS, Garages, sheds, storage units, crawl spaces, under porches, pipe drain area. Kitty could be STUCK ( happens all the time!!) and talking to neighbors HELPS to get them to look!
🐱 GAIN ACCESS TO YOUR NEIGHBORS YARDS: ASK to check backyards - use a flashlight even during the day to catch the reflection of kitty’s EYE under decks and crawl spaces, As to be ALONE while you search .
🐯PRINT MAP OF YOUR BLOCK: BELOW is an example of taking notes on a map as I go door to door KNOCKING. F = flyered (not home, tape flyer directly onto front doors using painter’s tape. I write down names (or smiley face) which folks I spoke to. The goal is to talk to all your neighbors in order to best engage them - ASK to check RING CAMERAS, garages, storage units,, sheds, crawl spaces and to CALL if they THINK see kitty (take a photo!) Keeping track on a map is a HUGE HELP - I keep returning until I talk to everyone and again a few days / 1 week later to remind folks!
🐱💜 PRINT 150+ FLYERS (or Mini flyers) for going door to door and POST FULL page flyers around your block 1st then expanding 2 Blocks out in all directions. Place FLYERS (that you post up on lampposts) inside a clear “protective sheet cover” with the opening facing down so weather doesn’t ruin them. Google: “clear sheet protector” Buy on amazon or at a FEDEX PRINT store. You can submit print order online for pick up even if FEDEX is closed. Call once open ask if they can PRINT right away due to urgency. Fedex Print stores sell sheet protectors, packing tape & duct tape for posting Flyers on lampposts and blue ‘painters tape’ for adhering flyers onto front doors and mailboxes without any damage.
Download a FLYER ‘template’ on www.happycatlady.com Offer a reward $ for a PHOTO of your Kitty And NOT to approach - call you instead.
Download LOST CAT MINI FLYERS (5 on 1 page): use ‘painters tape’ to tape these to every front door around your block. Does not replace full page flyers for posting on lampposts: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1lpD_hsqdPD1AFLYZmhyMEXvirsI0rNv1F5ebgxyNCxY/edit?usp=sharing
ONLINE:
🐱 Post on www.Nextdoor com in your neighborhood’ and ADD an address range. EXAMPLE 100-150 Kitty Avenue
NEXTDOOR: https://nextdoor.com/invite/tlpjrfjfsfzzypgctspp
🐱Report to Animal Care & control / animal shelters near you
OAKLAND - ‘FOUND’ CATS:
https://www.oaklandanimalservices.org/services/lost-and-found/found-animals/found-cats/
🙏💜DON’T GIVE UP! Lost Cat ‘Clementine’ was FOUND after 29 days only 2 backyards away! Her guardian had to trap her because kitty was in survival mode and kept hiding in the bushes.
LOST CAT ‘Lina’ was spotted on camera 2 weeks later, eating food left by the open door but she would NOT come inside. Her guardian coaxed her for several nights to get her inside! Without a camera she would have NEVER known Lina was around. Cat acts differently when in survival mode - be patient.
Sending LOVE & unwavering determination
💖🙏 damia foti 💖🙏 650-339-6619 ( www.happycatlady.com)
💖LINK TO PDF OF LOST CAT FLYER / GOOGLE MAP GRAPHIC EXAMPLE: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1cYfhp2o-m2C_OKPvdEriHZxYscDmeL5U/view?usp=sharing
