La Mesa, CA Lost Female Cat, Echo Is Missing

Facebook Community Response

Judith W.

4 weeks ago

Pet Scammers Pet Scammers may contact you. They particularly appear when a reward is offered. Some will tell you they have your pet, some that they can locate them and others they can get your pet back to you. THEY DON’T AND THEY CAN’T! What they want is your money. If anyone requires you send any money to get your pet back; like your offered reward money, money to get your pet back if no reward money offered, money for food, toy, treats, for gas money to bring cat to you, and/or money for surgery (may even send a fake itemized list of surgery needed for prepayment) stop and take a good look at the offer. And if requested to send money to an untraceable pay site like Venmo, Pay Pal, Apple Pay etc. that’s a RED FLAG. There is a nationwide pet scam that has various versions and have been very successful. Owners of missing pets have sent hundreds and thousands of dollars to these pet scammers. A pet scammer contacts a person with a missing pet and claims to be a real vet or a real facility, like the Humane Society. A real name and possibly a real phone number appear on the phone screen, called doing. They will report your pet has been brought in injured and needs immediate surgery. They may also offer to send a “fake” invoice…and if you say yes, will do so. Some places don't do surgery and if they do, they don’t use pay sites for payment. Another RED FLAG, that a payment is required to be sent to an untraceable pay site. Tell pet scammer if you think this person is that you need time to put the money they are requiring together, get off the phone and contact the vet or facility on the phone screen or fake invoice and call to confirm all this when open. You look up the phone number, don't use the one on the screen or they offer as it may be theirs or a friend’s number. Here are some recent reports. 1. Telling an owner they have the pet when they don’t and demanding money, see above. Require a photo or video of the caller and your pet (selfie) or of your pet…even if they have told you your pet is in surgery. (A pet scammer won’t have a photo as they don’t have your pet but you can check out their reaction when you ask for it.) But be aware AI, Artificial Intelligence can alter an original photo or video so check closely. One person on ND reported getting a lot of these calls and when she requested a photo, the scammers hung up. If they tell you they can’t get you a photo, like their phone screen is cracked, there’s about a 0% chance they have your pet. Be suious! 2. They will ask the owner for their Google 6 digit telephone number or ask the owner to create one and give it to them. Having that number can cause the scammer to have access to personal accounts and do financial and other damage. Don’t do it! 3. Demand microchip number and if your pet not microchipped, please get that done when pet back and if microchipped, notify the microchip company. Pet Scammers don’t want to reveal the microchip number when asked because they don’t have it. Request if the photos that you have put out onto sites doesn’t have the whole body, like the tail, ask them to describe it, how it wags, etc. How does your cat walk? Meow if unusual? Sleep? And any other things, like behaviors…but these things are just filling in the blank, photos/videos and microchips numbers are still more important. 4. Will tell owner they are from a pet tracking company or are a pet tracker and can track your pet. Unfortunately, there are now pet scammers involved in this. To be safe, it’s better not to hire this company or individual. I have seen correspondence between a scammer pet tracking company and a person with a missing pet and they were very professional. Enough so the owner paid the requested amount and of course, never saw his pet or the money, $500.00. 5. Will tell owner they know the location of the missing pet and will tell them for money. Demand photo. IF they tell you they can’t provide one because where the pet is it is hiding and moves too fast for a photo, you will have to trust your gut on this one. Talk to friends and family after you are contacted, a neutral party, before you consider doing anything, see what they think, scam or not, particularly sending money. These pet scammers know owners of missing pets are vulnerable to scams, desperate to bring their pet home. Please DM me with info if a pet scammer contacts you. That’s how I got the info I have. Judith Morgan. Thank you. These probably aren’t the only pet scams, just the ones I have heard about or people have told me about. There have been owners of lost pets who have reported that they have received fake reports of their missing pet’s condition. There are also cruel people who call and say terrible things about their pet. When your cat has returned, consider getting them a GPS pet tracker. Pet owners of indoor only and indoor/outdoor pets get them. They are reasonably priced and are great for peace of mind. They attach to your pet’s collar and sync to your phone. Some have a monthly subscription, some don’t. Some let you create a visual perimeter and will let you know if your cat has crossed the line. Some also track medical information. Amazon has a bunch of them. Read the buyer reviews of any you are interested in. Not an Apple Air Tag. They aren't as precise as a GPS tracker. They don’t work in open fields or neighborhoods where there are no Apple devices as they bounce off of them. It’s embarrassing as several people on Next Door have reported that they followed the tracking information to a home. When they spoke to the homeowner, they found out the owner did not have the lost cat and didn’t like being accused of having it. You can teach your cat clicker training so that they will return, like out of hiding, for a treat when the clicker is used and for many other behaviors. Clickers are available online or at pet stores. Use online training videos. Clicker training can include “come” which will help if they have escaped to the outside. “Stay” in which the cat is trained to stay on a mat away from the door so they don’t run out the door. Treats are always important in clicker training and both kittens and adult cats can be clicker trained. There are collars available on Amazon that contact information can be embroidered into them before purchase. I wrote my missing and found pet guides to help pet owners. You can use whatever information to use that you. I got it from research and talking to pet owners on ND who have had lost or found dogs or cats.

Judith W.

4 weeks ago

Sorry I duplicated one of the paragraphs. I'm not used to sending this guide on Pawboost.

Judith W.

4 weeks ago

Search and post on online neighborhood sites besides this one and missing/found/pet sites. Post and search on free popular Pawboost.com. Next Door has a missing pet group. Facebook has a bunch of sites, including, Lost & Found Pets of San Diego County and Lost and Found Animals in San Diego County. Ring allows people with missing pets that don’t have Ring devices to post on their app. Keep up with checking them, multiple times per day, including here on Next Door. Posts scroll down so fast. So repost on a schedule you create. Also search and post on free, popular Pawboost.com. There are some other sites. d. Search shelters and missing pet sites regularly. Sometimes leaving a window or door open can bring a lost cat back inside. Cats have jumped back through the window they jumped out of, even days and weeks later. And cats have come back through a window or door they didn’t exit from. Place a chair below the screenless open window. Place treat on the chair and on the window sill. Can place cat’s used bedding or your or your family’s over back of chair. If not, leave a door open a little if you can, like a patio door. Cats have come back in sometimes days later using either method. Otherwise, your home may be a closed up box and they may return, look for an entrance and if don’t find it may not be able to hang around as area unsafe and flee and you will never know they were there and missed your chance to get Consider setting up a humane trap, and if so, ASAP. Some shelters loan them out. They are also available online and at stores like Tractor Supply. Around $45.00+. Getting from a store is faster than online, unless you have Amazon Prime. Sprinkle flour around to look for paw prints, only if ground is dry and will remain dry. Keep it out of sun and rain. Can wrap trap in cat’s scented bedding. Check trap periodically, remove any critters caught and reset. And make sure a coyote or bobcat isn’t hovering around trap if they are in your area. Renew food and water periodically. Consider setting up an wildlife or trail camera in conjunction with a trap, unless you have a yard security camera that can see the trap. These cameras start at around $35 online at Amazon. There is information about posting trail and wildlife cameras and also setting up humane traps on Missinganimalresponse.com. And other online sites. After searching the yard and while walking the neighborhood doing a physical search, shaking a treat box of the cat’s favorites and/or singing a song you sing to them. Or softly calling them out with a nickname you have for them Consider setting up a yard camera. It can be very helpful so you can see what animals come and go from your yard. You might see Echo. If you have one of them and set up a humane trap, you won't need a trail or wildlife camera.

Judith W.

4 weeks ago

o, Sorry to hear about Echo, I hope you find her soon. Your friend Karen K. posted on Next Door and I responded there but it looks like she took it down. So don’t know if she told you what I wrote. It is terrific you have the microchip number because you can use it when someone tells you they have Echo, like a pet scammer. And don’t say it aloud. And if you haven’t done so yet, contact the microchip company to tell them Echo is missing, as someone may contact them. I also included the name and contact number of a cat rescuer, who knows a lot about bengals and has tracked and trapped them before. Ask your friend for that information. This rescuer is a ND member. IF she doesn’t have it, contact me at mechaye269@gmail.com. I’m not going to give it out here because I don't have permission to do it on Pawboost. This is my Missing Indoor Only Cat Guide. It’s long and detailed so am sending it in more than one section. The guide is a template so there may be some things you have already done or don’t fit your situation. There is pet scammer info. Please keep up posted. Search and post on online neighborhood sites besides this one and missing/found/pet sites. Next Door has a missing pet group. Facebook has a bunch of sites, including, Lost & Found Pets of San Diego County and Lost and Found Animals in San Diego County. Ring allows people with missing pets that don’t have Ring devices to post on their app. Keep up with checking them, multiple times per day, including here on Next Door. Posts scroll down so fast. So repost on a schedule you create. Also search and post on free, popular Pawboost.com. There are some other sites. Direct Mail me if you have any questions about what I wrote. I can also send you Heather Martinez’ list of missing/found pet sites, direct mail me if interested. Search shelters and missing pet sites regularly. From Kat Albrecht, missing pet expert. Missinganimalresponse.com “If your indoor-only cat has escaped and is somewhere outside or in unfamiliar territory there is good news — your cat is probably not “lost” at all! In most cases, a cat that is unexpectedly transplanted into an unfamiliar area is considered a DISPLACED CAT. Most cases of displacement involve indoor-only cats that escape outside. However, outdoor-access cats can become displaced as well. When cats are displaced into an unfamiliar area, like in the yard for a missing indoor cat, the cat is most likely hiding in silence, at least at first, often not far from the escape point, and they will not meow! This is because cats are territorial and their primary protective measure from predators is to hide in silence. Cats that are afraid (and cats that are injured) will seek areas of concealment such as under a deck, under a house, under a porch, or in heavy brush and they will not meow! Meowing would give up their location to a predator. Their behavior has nothing to do with whether the cat loves you, whether it recognizes your voice, or whether it can smell you–it has everything to do with the fact that a frightened cat will hide in silence! So an active search, first starting in your yard is important, using a flashlight looking for eye shine. With your flashlight look all over, under bushes, up trees, etc., every small place. Leave some food and water out, if possible in an area a predator can’t get into and keep it fresh. Your kitty may come out at dawn, when quietest so you may check then. Sit in yard which may also help your cat come out from hiding. Listen, one person heard their cat meow at 3 am. In a Link for her cat behavior information: https: Kat’s website: missinganimalresponse.com website. There are always exceptions to anything written about missing animals, even to Kat’s information. The missing animal response website author has written that some people give up on the search for their missing pets including in shelters and rescues too soon because sometimes it can take a long time, even weeks or months, for them to show up there or anywhere else. Continue a regular daily online search for your kitty, shelter, rescues, etc. as postings may change. Can contact Animal Control Services to report your cat missing. Start looking at your closest shelter on a regular basis. Can do it person and/or online. Sometimes the pet may be transferred to the wrong shelter so look on more than one online shelter site. Animal Control Services and the Humane Society are closed Mondays and major holidays.

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