San Joaquin County, CA Lost Female Cat, Thea Is Missing

Facebook Community Response

Angela S.

1 month ago

Your cat is most likely very close to your home. Most indoor only cats are found within 1.5 houses of the house they escaped from. Indoor only cats will be hiding out during the day and typically come out at night when it's dark and quiet as they feel more safe. The best thing to do is to talk to your neighbors during the day to see if they have seen your cat. Do NOT rely on social media. The best way to find your cat is on foot by talking to people during the day and looking outside very LATE at night. See if your neighbors can leave their garages and sheds open for a few hours. Your cat may not come out right away once the doors are opened. This is because when cats are in survival mode, they typically do not act normal. Your cat may be scared to come out when others are around. You can also print mini flyers and attach them to your neighbors' doors if they are not home. You can use painter's tape so that it is easy for the homeowner to remove. Also, post on Nextdoor to alert neighbors. Please make sure that your cat has a way to get back into your house 24/7. You want to leave open a garage door (including the door that goes from the garage to the house) sliding glass door, or window that they exited from as well as some of your recently worn clothing outside of the entry way. ***Do NOT put your cat's litter box outside as it can attract predators.*** You will have the best chance to find your cat from 11 PM until 6 AM. Cats become most active at 3 AM. Use a flashlight and shake a bag of their favorite treats while CALMLY talking (in a normal voice) to your cat. This website below ⬇️ has fantastic tips for locating missing cats from a woman experienced in cat rescue as well as templates for missing cat flyers. 🐱 ✅Go to top of page where it says, "Click here for Important Tips on how to find your Lost Cat." www.happycatlady.com Best wishes! 🙏

Angela S.

1 month ago

TIPS TO HELP FIND YOUR LOST CAT: - Check the house thoroughly as they sometimes hide in the house in unexpected places. -Check underneath your cars, in the car engine area, wheel wells and around the bumpers. -Ask neighbors around you to check garages and sheds as they can sneak in undetected. -See if your neighbors can leave their garages and sheds open for a few hours. Your cat may not come out right away once the doors are open. This is because when cats are in survival mode, they don't always act normal. Your cat may be scared to come out when others are around. - Put a piece of your unwashed clothing outside the last door he/she exited the house from and leave that door open at night so that they can get back inside. - Hang flyers with his/her picture and post all over your neighborhood & surrounding areas. - Take the flyers door to door asking if anyone has seen him/her. -Walk your neighborhood especially at night calling his/her name and listening as he/she may be hiding in the bushes or under something. - Take a flyer to the shelter. - Put a sign in your yard with his/her picture stating he/she is missing. - Check the shelters in person. - Review shelter's found reports. - File a lost report with the shelters. Indoor only cats and limited outdoor access cats never go far. They go into survival mode and hide in silence. They will not always respond to you, most do not. Between midnight to 5am are ideal times to find a missing indoor only cat. 3 AM is the best time to find a cat as this is the time they become most active and responsive. ***DO NOT leave litter box outside, it can attract predators and aggressive Tom cats.*** Place some recently worn socks or shirts outside your home, & especially around the point the cat exited the house from. Your scent will attract your kitty. Leave a way for your cat to get back inside 24/7: If you have a garage, place your recently worn clothing items or shoes near the garage door and crack the door enough for the cat to get back in. If your cat exited a window, leave the window open for your cat to get back inside. Because indoor only cats hide so well they are not as likely to be killed by a predator. Don't give up, it can take weeks to find a missing indoor only cat. Use a flashlight as late at night as you can to look in trees, under cars and in bushes. Try to look for the glow of the eyes. Calmly call your cat. Make mini flyers and hand them out to your neighbors. Most people don't pay attention to posted flyers. It's VERY important that you look for the cat as late at night as you can. If you have other cats, watch them. If they are spending a lot of time looking out a certain window, that’s a good indication the missing cat is in that area. Wildlife and motion activated cameras are also helpful. You may want to leave some wet food just inside of the door as well. Kibble tends to attract raccoons so it's not recommended. If you get a camera that is pointed at the door, you can see if your cat is coming to feed at night. One lady's indoor only cat was missing for 3 weeks and it was coming to eat the food but was too scared to come inside. She didn't know that it was coming back to the house until she got a camera. She had to get a trap to get the cat back inside. If you decide to trap, make sure that you do not leave the trap unattended as doing so makes the cat very vulnerable to being attacked by predators. Sending prayers for your cat's swift and speedy return. 💕🙏💕

Suzan R.

1 month ago

General Information: Set up a scent station. Hang clothes with your scent on it (Worn clothing from owner) high up outside so the familiar scent can travel and guide the cat back home. Ask your neighbors to check their yard/could be accidently stuck in their garage or shed. (If applicable) Check doorbell or home camera - or ask neighbors to check their camera. Post Fliers with a picture of the cat and your contact information in the area the cat went missing. Not everyone is on Social Media and posters have worked in that if spotted a location can be provided. If a cat is scared they make themselves safe by finding a good hiding spot and often times hide in silence. Look in bushes - bring a flashlight and look for shining eyes. Best time to find your cat is in the early morning hours when the noise level is low and they feel safe. Leave an access point open for the cat to return. This is important if they do come back in the middle of the night. Prayers your cat returns/ or is found safely. Beware of scammers.

Chris G.

1 month ago

If you haven't already done so, post to Nextdoor, Felines 209 (there is a duplicate group so make sure you are posting to the Felines 209 group with 23k+ members), the Ring app, Lostmykitty, and 24Petconnect (they will contact all shelters in the area) to cover all your bases as not everyone is on social media. If cat is microchipped, contact microchip company and also update your address with them, if needed. Talk to your neighbors to see if they saw your cat, if they would look at security camera video to see which direction he wandered off, and for them to check their garage/shed in case your cat got locked inside. Put up brightly colored flyers in the neighborhood and extend out to 1.5 miles as cats travel. Indoor-outdoor cats travel up to a 17-house radius, from home. If safe, go out late at night/very early morning and rattle the cat's favorite food/treats. Use a flashlight as cats eyes are reflective in the dark when a light is aimed at them. If your cat is an inside cat, they normally do not wander off too far so chances are it is nearby so check under bushes and up in trees. Indoor only cats tend to only travel 54 yards, or roughly a 2.5-house radius, from their homes. People expect that if they call for the cat, the cat’s going to come to them, but they won’t because they’re terrified. Also, if safe, leave garage door open just enough for the cat to squeeze through if he tries to get in. If your cat escaped from a window, leave that window open as your cat may try getting back in the same way it escaped. You can also leave some of your worn clothing outside as cats have a keen sense of smell. Praying your cat returns home soon.

Carrie B.

1 month ago

Immediately (NOW)walk area shake treat bag or Bang on cat food can calling for your cat multiple times during the day-and-night especially when it's quiet out. Look under all bushes and in between houses. Ask your neighbors to check cameras garage, shed backyard. Post on nextdoor, get family & friends to search every day. Search at midnight-5am too call for ur kitten, listen for her meow

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