Herndon, VA Lost Male Cat, Push Is Missing

Comments on this Facebook alert

Jessica P.

1 week ago

Mimi Ryan When he comes home, please consider keeping your cat indoor only. Indoor/outdoor cats come home until they don’t :( There are a lot of bad people out there; native/wild animals; cars; and plants/chemicals in the environment that could cause harm or even a cat. Outdoor cats also affect native species and wildlife in negative ways and this is preventable. Not only do they injure/ so many birds, rabbits, etc., they are also the host for and spread diseases like Toxoplasmosis. This protozoan parasite causes, for example, hydrocephalus in baby foxes. Hydrocephalus is a congenital abnormality and, unfortunately, the brain damage it causes is not treatable; the fox pup will be abandoned by its parent and will die or have to be euthanized. If you really insist on letting your cat outside, you can train them to wear a harness and leash and walk with them around your yard/safe places.

Jessica P.

1 week ago

Mimi Ryan Other tips from a fellow foster/trapper/volunteer with an animal rescue group: - [ ] Look on Pawboost.com to see if someone posted a FOUND listing. If not, - [ ] Create a free posting of your kitty on Pawboost.com with good photos and as much information as you have about where/when s/he went missing. They’ll create a proxy email for you to avoid spammers/phishers. - [ ] Create free flyers from Pawboost that you can print and post around your neighborhood. - [ ] Contact Fairfax (petresourcecenter@fairfaxcounty.gov) and Loudoun county animal shelters ((703) 777-0406) as well in case someone has turned him/her in and file a LOST CAT report. Share your photos with them and when you have time, go to their facilities in person to check if your cat is there. The staff doesn’t always have time to do a thorough check among the cats in house. - [ ] Start walking around your neighborhood after dusk with a flashlight, slowly and quietly, looking under bushes and decks, in open garages, calling for him/her and then listening for him/her to respond. You can bring food with you, but most cats are too scared to come immediately to the smell of food. - [ ] If you do spot him/her, call somebody to bring a carrier over with the food in it to try and attract him/her; do not try to pull him/her out from under a bush or garage or wherever you find him/her. Most cats will withdraw further because they’re scared. - [ ] Last thing, put something that smells like you on your porch. Cats will be attracted back to a familiar smell and this may be a good way to get him/her to come back on her own. Chances are high that s/he’s only within one street of your house if s/he lives indoors normally. Best of luck to you and I hope you get him/her back very soon.

Jessica P.

1 week ago

Mimi Ryan I’m so sorry about your lost cat. Some immediate actions to take and what worked for us to find our lost cat who was missing for over two months: Please check in and around your house - even “doors no one has opened today” or places your cat “could never get into” including closets, bedrooms, behind/in walls, attics, garages, up in trees, etc.. Go out at night with a strong-beamed flashlight to look for eye shine and call out softly for your cat. Also ask your neighbors to check garages, attics, cellars, window wells, etc.. Is he/she microchipped? If so, report them lost with the microchip company (and make sure your contact information is correct!). If anyone scans it, you will be notified. Also contact (and visit in person!!) all rescues, all animal shelters, and all vets in the immediate and the surrounding areas to give them: - the microchip number - pictures from different angles Here are some local VA shelters’ contact info: - Fairfax County - https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/animalservices/lostandfoundpets/filereport - Loudoun County - https://www.loudoun.gov/545/Lost-Found-Pets - Prince William County - https://www.pwcva.gov/department/animal-services/report-lost-and-found-pets/ Make flyers and hand them out to everyone you can; not everyone is on social media. Also post flyers around the area. Ask for people to report sightings so you can narrow down the search. (This is what worked for us - we posted flyers and 1-2 weeks later posted flyers again in a wider area; found our lost cat after almost 2 months because someone had been seeing the cat and then contacted us after seeing a flyer from the second posting of flyers. We then set up a trap at the sighting location and checked it every 1-2 hours. Finally trapped him 3 days after setting the trap.) Post on social media: - Bring Ace Home - PawBoost - Petco LoveLost - Local lost pet pages - Neighbors (free app by Ring; you don’t need to have a Ring product) - Nextdoor Rescues in the area should also be able to lend you a humane trap. Make sure you check it every 1-2 hours and don’t leave it overnight (unless you can keep checking it every 1-2 hours). Raccoons can seriously injure a trapped cat. Put food and water down at your home every day and have a camera on the feeding station. Good luck ❤️

Nayak S.

2 weeks ago