Lost cat

Cat rescues would have the Havaharts to loan (possibly for free with a deposit). Just make sure you clean it out good (bleach and rinse with water). If you want more tips on how to trap, I or others can point you in the direction for into on that. (I've used Havaharts to trap a mommy kitty to get her spayed and then one of her older babies.)

You can also buy them at Lowe's/Home Depot. They'll be where the bug spray and deer repellent sprays are. I want to say they're $40 or so?

When you go out with food, get the nastiest smelling stuff - canned sardines, etc. Something that reaks (heat will help too) and will travel through air well. Their noses are more sensitive than ours.

I am not sure about distance travelled. Too bad the little pawprints couldn't be followed the whole way! Doesn't hurt to ask neighbors farther down in case he has moved on farther.

This is probably ridiculous, but maybe bring a laser point with you too. Maybe be too scared to "go" for something like that, but you never know I guess.

Interesting idea about the laser pointer ... he sure did love chasing that at home! I'll try it.

My husband is getting a humane trap from our local Farm & Fleet store. He tells me it's illegal to trap in our city. OK? Well it's also illegal to post flyers anywhere but your own property, and it's illegal to put flyers in mailboxes and it's illegal to put flyers on cars in parking lots and it's illegal to go in other peoples' yards and look for him ... EVERYTHING is illegal. The only legal thing I can do is sit and call his name from my front porch! This is all so ridiculous. I'll just make sure the trap isn't standing out in the open, which is bad because if I hide it, then it's hidden from the cat too!

My husband feels he is no longer in the area. But when he WAS in the area for 2 1/2 days, we certainly didn't "feel" it and he certainly didn't respond to our calls or the food and used litter we put out. So what scares us is that we could not attract him to our house thus far, and he's likely to be even farther away now than when we first tried attracting him to our house. I really feel like he just doesn't smell it, doesn't know it's our house, and wants to come home but doesn't know how.

This will be my last effort, I guess ... putting out the trap and smelly food and dirty clothes. We have to just live our lives at some point. We can't keep going out every day and doing the same thing over and over, calling him and walking around and using flashlights and he is never spotted.

A local breeder called my husband today when she saw the ad in the paper. First, she asked why we were only giving a $100 reward for a Bengal ... she said those are expensive purebred animals, people sell them for a lot more than that, why wouldn't we offer more? He explained that he's been neutered and isn't breedable and he's just our pet. She asked what we've done so far and had some suggestions similar to what I'm getting here on Cat Site. She told him she breeds Bengals but also takes in strays and has lots of cats of her own and has never lost one. One temporarily ran away for TWO YEARS and then came back. She said don't underestimate him, he can come home. I just feel that his days are numbered ... we've seen a fox and a coyote in our RESIDENTIAL neighborhood, and last night saw two possums .... HUGE .. one walked down the sidewalk and then slithered into a sewer! Interesting what you see when you actually look late at night. The wildlife that is around is scary, and he's also fighting the elements and hunger and I just can't believe his little body can withstand all that for very long.

What an emotional roller coaster it is when your beloved pet runs away! It's just completely draining.

I agree with the breeder to not underestimate your cat, but she probably came off a bit harsh and judgmental. Maybe she was implying that if someone found your pet, they'd be more likely to sell it to someone else who wanted an exotic - rather than give it back to you for a reward... I guess it depends on who finds your kitty! Obviously a moral person wouldn't do that...

If people can go door to door and sell Girl Scout cookies, I don't see why it's bad going door to door asking about a lost pet. With the Havahart, be sure to keep an eye on it so a) it's not stolen b) if it catches something (even something like a skunk or raccoon!!) that it's not in the trap too long. You may want to line the trap with newspaper - but be sure it'll still trigger.

I still feel optimistic... and I'll tell you this. I have two cockatiels and on a message board I used to visit, they had a lost and found - and there were a LOT of happy found stories. These are birds that can fly very very far from home - and they don't have the advantage of cat to run in a tree away from a predator. If a cockatiel can be found safely, I don't see why not a bengal cat could. I think your kitty has an advantage - and hope shouldn't be given up yet. for you and your husband and your kitty. Maybe as kitty gets hungrier, he'll get more desperate and make himself more visible.

Oh! And make sure you do have a cat carrier out with you when you're hanging out at night with food caling him. In case you do see him and are able to grab him... He may freak out and still run away, so you'd want to plop him in the carrier.

I agree with Mr. Blanche - don't give up hoping!! JC has socialized with foxes before and I'm sure that a Bengal is probably about his size. The coyotes used to patrol our neighborhood, but I allow the kids to "mark territory" and that made coyotes circumvent our area. also, I keep odd hours, so I "patrol" the field with a large flashlight.
for the record, JC once got out & was gone for 6 days & 5 nights and was found at the edge of a creek, over a mile away, in a cow pasture, hunting He was fine & happy & came right up to me, all cuddly & waving his tail, very pleased with himself. He was in an area away from civilization, with lots of coyotes, foxes, raccoons, skunks, bobcats & yup, cougar. So sending mega prayers and vibes that your boy comes safely home soon

Thanks again so much to all of your for your helpful insight! Question ... many of you mention having personal stories or stories you have heard where a cat was missing for a long time and then came back, but I'm wondering what the weather was like in those cases. It's been in the 20's at night here and is now warming up to almost 40 during the day, 30's at night (at least for now). Today more animals are out than I have seen lately, including 2 cats that I saw walking around. We got a Havahart trap from a store and lined it with newspaper, then put smelly tuna and salmon cat food cans inside (just opened, but full including juices). We then loaded the top and sides of the trap and surrounding area with dirty laundry (LOL). Then we littered catnip on the snow leading up the driveway. We walked around with flashlights at night prior to doing this, looking for new tracks, and saw none. It "feels" like he's moved somewhere else.

My husband woke up at 2:30 am and looked outside to see a stray cat (not ours) hesitantly walking up our driveway towards the trap. The cat spotted him in the window and got spooked and ran away. We've never seen the cat before and don't know where it came from, but it was definitely drawn to the tuna. I have no idea what kind of distance he came from. No more activity occurred throughout the night.

We feel that our home isn't a good location to catch Snickers. We have no bushes or foliage in front of the house. Neighbors don't have extensive foliage in front of theirs either and we've noticed that Snickers' tracks in other yards show that he walks along the bushes and stays close to cover. I do not think he is in our area anymore but have no idea if he is 1 block away, 2, or 3 ... or in which direction. Our postcards were delivered this morning to 200 neighbors and they include several photos of him and several phone numbers to call us, as well as a reward offering for his safe return.

My husband was at the vet this morning to drop off a postcard and the vet thought the postcards were a super good idea, he had never heard of anything like that done. He didn't think the trap would work but couldn't hurt. He thought walking around calling wouldn't work at all since cats hide and won't respond to calling from anyone, even their owners. He had a cat once that ran away and was gone 3-4 days, then came back. It seemed to be dying to get out ever since and ran away regularly after that. Each time, he was gone longer than the time before. The last time, he never came back and the vet found him dead in the alley, having been hit by a vehicle. He felt the cat would've probably kept coming back if it hadn't run into misfortune. He said the elements are probably taking their toll on our cat right now, but not enough to kill him, and that it all depends on where he is staying and whether he is eating/drinking.

I am going to move our trap to the neighbor's yard across the street tonight, since that is where Snickers ran after he got out and that is where the tracks are from earlier this week. It is also a few houses down from where he peeked in a neighbor's front window on Monday. If he is still in that area at all, I'm hoping the food draws him in. If not, and if we don't see new tracks, then I am probably going to give up the intensive search and just hope people see him and call based on the postcards. I still still put a fresh can of tuna out every night by my house in hopes we can become known as the "cat feeder" house and draw him in, but my hopes are definitely diminishing. I do not know if he doesn't recognize our home or if he doesn't want to go out in the open to come to our home, but he has not been in the area of our home since he ran almost a week ago. There are zero cat tracks in my yard and all of my neighbors' yards on our block. He spent a majority of his first days in the yards across the street, front and back yards.

Originally Posted by Bengal Lover

My husband woke up at 2:30 am and looked outside to see a stray cat (not ours) hesitantly walking up our driveway towards the trap. The cat spotted him in the window and got spooked and ran away. We've never seen the cat before and don't know where it came from, but it was definitely drawn to the tuna. I have no idea what kind of distance he came from. No more activity occurred throughout the night.

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When you put the food in the trap, I would put it on a paper plate - if the can is in there with the top, there could be injury. If you accidentally trap a stray, it can/will thrash around (because being trapped is scary) and the sharp metal could injure the kitty. Paper plate is safer.

I hope you have success with your post cards. I imagine you will get some phone calls at least of spottings.

If you put trap in someone else's property be sure to let them know and get permission. Use a sharpee to put your name and phone number on the trap in case it gets stolen or in case someone wonders about the trap.

If there's a stray, maybe someone is feeding it - and maybe your kitty will find this food source to thrive until he is found by someone.

If there's snow on the ground, kitty has a water source.

Good luck.

Oh, I forgot to mention that I absolutely have already gotten my neighbor's permission to put the trap in her yard! LOL I would never just put a trap somewhere without permission. In fact, someone told me it's illegal to trap (hunting laws) so I called our Animal Control and our Humane Society to make sure, and they both said it's perfectly legal. It's not like I'm trying to trap any other animals, only my own, on private property. My neighbor, years ago, trapped and caught some squirrels and called Animal Control to ask what they wanted him to do with them and they told him it was illegal for him to do that. I could see that being illegal, trying to trap animals and upset the balance of nature or hunt out of season, but my case is entirely different. I may accidentally catch something else (I hope not), but if I do, I just let it go immediately.

As for the cans, lids were removed but I suppose the cans themselves could have sharp edges too. I don't want to use a paper plate because it's super cold out and windy, and I don't want the food drying so it doesn't smell as much, but I can put the food in small bowls instead for safety reasons. Thanks so much for the suggestions!

I hope you have some good luck with this and do get some calls. Cats are resilient. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you.

And if you don't hear from anyone - I would still keep looking at pet ads, especially if there's all of a sudden a bengal cat for sale...

Thank you for keeping us updated I am continuing to send mega prayers and vibes out for his safe return
* a thought - if he did get taken in, he might have to wait to escape again. Some people really want a Bengal, and some people just assume that the owner lets the cat be an outside cat and make the mistaken judgment that the owner doesn't deserve the cat

You know, at this point I'd even be really happy if someone took him in because they thought he was an outside cat and his owner didn't deserve him .... I just wish I KNEW he was safe for sure. It rained out yesterday and through the night, with temps in the upper and mid 30's. Today the sun came out for about an hour and a half ... he SO loves the sun! It really warmed things up and dried the ground, but then it got cold and it's in the 20's again, with a brisk wind. I've just lost all hope and can only picture him getting hypothermia and shaking with cold and finally falling asleep for good. It kills me that there was only probably 5 minutes between him and warm food and shelter ... if he had only come home or come out of hiding.

If he WAS taken in, I would be so grateful that someone was kind enough to save him from the elements, but it would be only humane for them to let his owner know, even in an anonymous phone call....and better yet, return him to his rightful owner and family who loves him and raised him.

A local no-kill shelter told my husband that she lived in North Dakota and her cat ran away and was gone for 35 days in snow, wind and 7 degree weather. She put food in a trap for him every day for 35 days and finally caught him. She told us not to give up and we won't, but we aren't sure just how long we should have hope.

Thanks again everyone. I hope all those good vibes help in some way!

There is always hope. I would maintain the Lost Cat signs/newspaper/online site ads and possibly expand the area (in case kitty has traveled far).

Since you saw a feral cat in your neighborhood, there are probably lots of places for shelter your cat will find. Maybe he has just found good places for shelter and is getting by on that right now.

Hang in there. This is really tough. But many positive vibes for you and your kitty for a happy reunion!

Wow, you must have ESP! This morning I got a call as a result of one of my postcards ... a woman spotted Snickers outside her home near her front window last MONDAY (same day as the other man saw him) and she speaks in broken English, but she said she has an indoor only cat and feeds a local stray every night. She opened her front door to put the food out and saw my Bengal. She said she was afraid of him and thought, "What IS that, is that a lynx? That belongs in the zoo!" She said she didn't know he was our cat, of course, but that she "saw his necklace" ... (rhinestone collar) that I mentioned in the postcard and so I knew for sure it was him.

She lives ON our block but on the other side of the street and up almost 2 blocks. She is at the end of the block, and then our elementary school/park takes over from there. That is actually farther than we have been looking, although we did search there once or twice in the past week.

So ... this morning the next batch of 300 postcards went out, expanding to a larger area, and I'm going to work on another batch when I get home tonight and send out as many as 400-500 MORE, in even farther areas but in that general direction.

It was a whole week ago that these 2 people saw him, which is just heartbreaking, and no one has said they've seen him beyond that, but then again he is clearly traveling and I haven't sent postcards to outerlying areas yet. If I can get these out quickly enough, maybe we can catch him AS he is seen somewhere or at least get a more recent trail.

That explains why he hasn't come for our food that we leave out each night; he is probably too far to smell it. But we will still put it out in case he gets back into our area.

That's today's update!

I was wondering if anyone had called! That is wonderful. And he may still be eating there and just not being spotted by her anymore. Or he's moved on to someone else who also has an outside cat or feeds a stray. You're basically doing detective work and trying to guess where he's going.

Since you're sending more postcards, this may not apply but: You may want to flood all vets within 20 miles or so with Lost ads. A lot of people drive far away to go to their preferred vet. So someone may live close to you but go to a far away vet (or pet store). And put ads in a grocery store bulletin board. And I would keep calling animal shelters just in case they did get him brought in but didn't call you. If you're close to another county, make sure you call that neighboring county shelter(s) too.

Did you put an ad on Petfinder and Craigslist? (If on Craigslist, you should post every day so it shows up daily in case people see the kitty today but don't scroll down a week ago.)

I read on one website that asking a newspaper delivery person and mailman whether they have seen the cat - since they are covering a large distance. I don't know if that would apply since it's during the day - but maybe wouldn't hurt! Especially if paper carrier is early morning - when kitty may be awake.

Good luck. Thanks for updating!

Glad the leads are coming in Now that he's out of his territory, it will really be up to you on locating him. Fortunately, there are many good-hearted people with kind souls who will help him in out in many ways - cats are very adept at finding shelter, too. Continuing the mega prayers & vibes that you get your boy home soon

All I can say is dont give up hope..I mean that..I have a thread in this section titled "after four long months he's home"..read it and see what I went thru..a lot similar to what you are going thru..

Did the grocery store postings .... luckily, we have a regulation here in the Milwaukee area that all shelters, police departments, veterinarians, etc. ... if they receive an animal, they must turn it in to Milwaukee Animal Control so I only have ONE source to look at instead of trying to check all the shelters. Milwaukee Animal Control (MAC) keeps the animals for 7 days, then evaluates them for adoption and places them with humane societies and no-kill shelters. We never want to let 7 days go by because once that time period passes, MAC owns the animal. One of our family members goes every 2-3 days to view all the animals. There is a really good website where they put photos of all their animals as they come in, but we don't rely on the site, even though we do check every day.

As for the mailman? My daughter asked him if he had seen a cat and he laughed and said ... I'm delivering all your postcards! I'm well aware there is a cat missing and I haven't seen him yet but will let you know right away if I do! So there is someone (several mailmen in fact) on our side, walking to everyone's house EVERY DAY. We are now up to a count of 750 U.S. Post Office delivered postcards and 250 hand delivered postcards on cars in our area for apartments and condos that cannot be delivered by U.S. Mail. That's 1,000 postcards. We're about tapped out on those and I have a map of our area and think these are the most likely homes he would be frequenting.

I'm going to go read that story about the 4-month return cat! I need that inspiration. I see it was the Illinois area too, so that's good ... same type of weather hopefully.

I'll keep you all posted, thanks so much for the encouragement!

Hang in there, I know what you are going through. I am thinking of your cat all of the time and hoping he comes home soon!

I'm sorry I don't have any experience to share with you, but dont' give up hope! We see stories on this site and news articles online all the time about cats returning home after an extended period of time.

Is it possible to get a 2nd trap and have it put by someone's house in another area? You mentioned he was spotted almost 2 blocks away. Maybe they would let you put one there?

I have heard the kentucky fried chicken is a cat magnet and many groups that trap feral colonies use it as bait in the traps. I haven't met a cat yet that can resist it.

I will be keeping you and Snickers in my prayers.

My husband and I are getting so encouraged right now because Snickers hasn't been spotted in 8 days. And then I think ... well does ANYone ever get calls saying their cat was spotted before they finally return? Probably not. Our postcards have given us a little edge, at least giving us information on his whereabouts almost 3 days after he ran. But it IS very disappointing and discouraging that he hasn't been seen for 8 days now ... does that mean he's dead? Taken in by someone? Farther away?

We have now gotten a cold front and it is quite cold out....low 20's during the day and single digits at night. For the next 3 days, it will be very very cold, with wind chills making it feel even colder. Can a little cat actually live through that? It's been 10 days, 11 tomorrow morning. When we do go out and walk and call, we see no sign of any animal life. Animals are probably hunkered in for the night as soon as the sun goes down because it feels so much colder at night with no sunlight. And can he really survive this weather on the ground, which is so so cold and unforgiving?

The thought of all this drives me crazy, to think of that poor little kitty out there freezing to death and there is nothing I can do about it. I wish I could go back 10 days and push him away from the door before I opened it. *sigh* This roller coaster is just draining.