Cats know where they’ve been fed and cared for. They can smell their home. I don’t live in a heavily populated area, but in a sense, it’s worse. I live in a fairly rural area with lots of coyotes and fishers and assorted other wildlife prowling at night for snacks. Also lots of small rodents to go chasing. I live close to the town center so there’s a fair number of houses in the immediate area, as well. Lots of places to get lost, but the Cat Came Back two weeks later. Don’t give up hope!
Don’t give up hope TiggrKitty. A few miles is nothing to an animal. I’ve heard tons of stories of pets that travel cross-country to their old homes when their owners move to a new place. I even think they did a scientific study that found animals could return home from miles away even if they had been taken by car and had never walked the route before. I can’t give a cite though, just some comforting examples.
Thanks everyone your words of kindness.
It is day 6 of the missing kitty saga…
Last night our other 3 cats were fitted with brand new, light reflecting, jingle bell collars with ident tags with their name and both our cell phone numbers. It was rather humorous. The kittens were running all over the place chasing each other’s jingle noise. Sebastian did not see the fun nor the humor in any of it. In fact he looked rather ticked off because every time he took a step he made noise and he would flatten his ears. The collars are the kind that will break away if the cat gets snagged on something but at least we can “hear” where they are now. I even bought Sabrina a purple one for her return home.
I put out more flyers last night and got one call. A lady that lived two streets over left a message that she had noticed one of her neighbors has two new grey cats hanging around her house; and oh by the way, there is a coyote in the area that had eaten one of her cats. :eek: Now we do not live in the country, and there are not many open fields around our house…but a coyote lives close by eating house cats? Good lord why doesn’t animal control do something like capture it and relocate it? The lady was nice enough to leave her street address so we can go check out the story. I think our neighborhood has around 1000 houses in the subdivision and we are surround by more subdivisions and apartment complexes. Coyotes…
Anyway the search continues…
In case anyone wants to see kitty pictures:
They tend to cheer me up a lot here lately.
Cheer up…it’s still one day less than Daisi’s trip out. 
We lived in an apartment complex with over 300 units, in a college town with tons of other apartments and duplexes, just down from a major road, in a pit bull neighborhood.
Here’s an excerpt from one of my favorite songs:
The Cat Came Back
*Old Mr. Johnson had trouble all his own
He had a yellow cat that wouldn’t leave his home
He tried in every way to keep that cat away
Took him up to Canada and told him for to stay
But the cat came back the very next day
The cat came back, they thought he was a goner
But the cat came back, he just wouldn’t stay away
On a telegraph wire the birds were sitting in a bunch
He saw an even number, said he’d have 'em for his lunch
Climbed softly up the pole until he reached the top
Put his foot upon the 'lectric wire, tied him in a knot
But the cat came back the very next day
The cat came back, they thought he was a goner
But the cat came back, he just wouldn’t stay away*
I like the song Harmless 
It made me laugh.
Day 7 of the lost kitty saga…
Nothing to report. No sightings. No calls. sighs Hopefully Ms furrball will show up today on her own.
I just wanted to say I love my neighbors.
I got a call today from a lady and gentleman, whom I have never met because they live on the street behind us and are about 20 houses up. They called to let me know that they had lost their cat a few weeks ago and it turned up 10 days later. They pretty much told me not to give up hope.
The man called back about 2 minutes later and asked if I had a trap. I said no, and he said come on up the street and pick ours up, you are probably going to need it. Keep it as long as you want.
So, to my wonderful neighbors up the street from me, thank you And thank all of you dopers that have come in here to keep my spirits high. There are some really great people in the world and I am glad I found you guys/gals.
Loki wanted me to tell you “Hi, and thanks” (he is curled up in front of me batting the keyboard)
I would never have thought of that!
Makes sense, though.
I’m glad that song made you laugh…it just kept going through my head while reading this thread. 
It used to come on Nickelodian (sp?) all the time.
Here’s hoping you find a very pissed off Sabrina in the morning!
Maybe you could lay a blanket or towel or something of the sort with your “family” scent over the top of the cage…to hide fact it’s a cage and give her a little more incentive to go in.
My sister-in-law and her daughter live upstairs from my husband and I. When one pair goes on vacation, the other will take care of their pets. The day those two were leaving for one trip, their cat slipped out the door and was nowhere to be found. They were worried but had plane tickets, etc., so we promised we’d keep an eye out. We left the back door open, left food nearby, etc, nothing. The day after they returned, the cat sauntered in like nothing had happened. :smack:
Glad to hear your neighbors are looking out for you, and hopefully kitty will come wandering back safe and sound.
There’s a place in the liturgy of my church where prayers or thanksgivings are invited to be said, by members of the congregation. One hears a quiet murmuring of names and situations. Today I will be sure to add “for the return of a lost friend to those who care for him.”
I sure hope you cat comes back. Don’t give up hope.
I’ll keep checking here in the thread too (I live in Carrollton, too). We used to have neighbors with cats, and one would climb up a tree and get so far up it was too frightened to come down (they didn’t own those long tall ladders for no reason!). So you might keep an ear open for high-up meows while you’re jiggling the treats can!
She’s a beautiful kitty.
Where about in Carrollton? Shoot me an email and perhaps we can get together.
Day 8 of the kitty saga and she is still a no show. I think I need to camo the trap because something is eating the few tidbits of food leading up to the trap however they are not about to step inside. :mad:
At this point I don’t know if I am more mad or worried.
I wouldn’t leave tidbits of food outside the trap. All this will do is make the animal eat outisde, get full (or full enough) , and not go inside. They see no point in going inside a small enclosed area if they can get their fill out in the open.
Not sure what you’re baiting the trap with, but something that smells strongly of fish works the best. Tuna or canned mackerel is good. In my experience, most cats won’t go in for just regular cat food. It’s not worth the risk unless they are really starving.
Believe it or not, my cats HATE fish/seafood mixes. We tried all brands and they won’t touch that stuff. Give them a can of chicken or turkey tidbits and they go nuts. When I make tuna salad, they hear the can opener and think chicken or turkey; when I put the empty can down on the floor for them to smell, they look at me as if I have gone insane.
The guy that loaned me the trap said to put a few bites of food outside the trap for a few days to get the animal to come around the trap and not look at it as a threat. After a few days, the cat should see the trap as nothing more than a “cat carrier” and go in for a meal. So that is what I am trying
Day 11 of the Lost Kitty saga …
Last night before nightfall, I baited the trap with the stinky wet chicken giblets canned catfood, and did not put out any dry tidbits like the last few nights. I figured putting the trap under my Pathfinder would help break up the lines that screamed cage, plus if it started to rain the truck would act as a giant umbrella. Also if we caught anything, it would help guard the trapped animal from bigger animals trying to get it. My theory anyway, not sure how close to reality that is.
I woke up at my normal 5 am to get ready for work and woke up Cardsfan; this is not our normal routine, mainly because Cardsfan doesn’t have to be at work until 9 am. Today however is different; he leaves to go deer hunting for 10 days, so he requested I wake him up so he can pack up the car and get out of Dallas before rush hour. As he is walking me out to the garage I hit the door opener and peek at the trap that is under my truck. …
:: it’s really dark outside, and we can’t see ::
What is that? Hey, the trap has been sprung. Cards! We got a cat!
Waitaminute…that looks like Sabrina. Is it Sabrina? I can’t see damnit. Holy crap!
[COLOR=Sienna]**IT IS SABRINA!!! ** [/COLOR]
She looked frightened, but once she heard our voices, she started to meow and arch her back. As if to say, why in the hell haven’t you guys let me inside!!! It’s cold out here.
Instead of catching one of the neighbor’s cats which I was afraid of, we caught our own! Sabrina is home! Actually, she has probably been home this whole time, just hiding outside of our eyesight. She looks pretty good for being an outdoor cat for 11 days. I put down some more food for her and she pretty much dove in. She is going to need a bath when I get home from work today, plus a visit to the vet for a check up. (She smells really bad)
Sabrina is now sporting a fine purple collar, equiped with a bell and she has been reunited with the dog. We are keeping her away from the other cats until the visit with the vet. No telling what she has been exposed to at this point and I don’t want to risk the health of our other cats. (Fleas, worms, icky stuff) The dog is current on all her shots and she has had flea stuff applied last week along with the other critters in the house. The other cats are due up on their shots this month so I don’t want to risk a lapse in vaccines. Again, not sure if this is the correct thing to do, however is was reasonable to my brain at 5:30 am before caffiene. Another thought had crossed my mind was if Sabrina had been exposed to rabies or something weird, the dog weighing in at 75 pounds and fully vaccinated could pin the cat down if the cat attacked. The other cats would be at the mercy of Sabrina’s rath. I wish I could have stayed home today to take care of things, however; I have 4 morning meetings that I can’t miss.
I need coffee.
I want to say thanks to all of you Dopers for hanging in there with me and keeping my hopes and spirits up. It has really meant a lot to me to have such nice friends.
Any suggestions on a gift idea for the lady and gentleman that loaned us the trap? I would like to get them a thank you gift for being so generious in offering us the use of their trap to help bring Sabrina home safe.
I’m SO happy to hear this! 
So she was probably just hanging around your place the whole time.
It would look that way. She may have been hiding out in one of our neighbor’s backyards. She hasn’t been cared for because she is matted up, skinny and really dirty. On a quick look over this morning it didn’t look like she had been in any fights, so she has been under cover away from other animals. She is probably the one that has been nibbling on the tidbits of food I have been leaving out on the driveway at night. She couldn’t resist the stinky chicken giblets I put out last night. Her tummy was probably screaming FOOD!!!
She is NEVER getting outside again.
CONGRATULATIONS!! I’m so happy for you and for Sabrina.
StG
That is so phenomenally cool, and a really great thread to start my day.
Excellent
YAY!!! (And you didn’t even have to buy a parakeet). I’m so happy for you and for Sabrina! The poor thing. Bet she’s clicking her little paws together and thinking, “There’s no place like home. There’s no place like home.”