Lost cat-what can I do?

I'm absolutely heartbroken. My first rescue cat, Jay, is missing. He got out and my father (Jay is not a fan of him) tried catching him and accidentally ran him off. He's been missing since. Absolutely no sign of him. This has happened before but he came back within an hour. It's been 4 days now, and I don't know what to do. I've talked to neighbors, talked to the local animal shelter, posted on Facebook, posted on Craigslist. I live in the country so putting up missing posters would be near pointless. My nearest neighbors are a mile away and between us is woods.

My other cat, Tubby, passed away 3 months ago due to a feral cat living around us. The feral cat attacked and killed him. I believe Tubby would've rather died then be inside all day and I knew the risks and took them. Jay is a mere 5 months old and hasn't dealt with aggressive cats before. He walked right up to my adult cat who was growling and hissing. He's quite oblivious. I'm extremely worried he was attacked and is out there somewhere either dead or something physical is causing him not to return. Where should I look? About three times a day I go outside and call for him all over the yard but have seen no sign of him.

What else could I do? Sadly he doesn't have a collar or microchip. He's super friendly and would walk up to even someone who wanted to harm him. I don't know what else to do besides cry and wait, but I know every day it's less likely he will come home. Please give me any information you think can help.

Sorry to hear that your little guy got out. Was he being fed wet or dry food? Try keeping food out for him, somewhere that you can see easily from inside the house. Years ago we had a family cat get out, didn't even know it happened at first it was at night and we lived out in the boonies. We went out looking for him during the day, calling his name and looking through the field behind the house. A few days later saw him on the back deck but ran off before we could get him. Leaving food out and patiently trying to get him finally worked. Also if he likes treats try shaking the bag outside. I have cats that will come running from the opposite side of the apartment when they hear their treats being shaken.

I'm so sorry to hear that Jay is missing. I know how upsetting that can be. If he has been injured or scared by something he's probably holed up somewhere, waiting until it's safe to return.

One of my female cats, Spike, went missing for three days after being bitten by a large feral tom. I think she was just making sure he wasn't around before she came back home again.

This might be a long shot but does your family have a dog? Pet detectives use dogs that are trained to pick up the scent of missing cats and trace them, if you have a dog that knows Jay's scent you could take the dog when you go looking for him.

Another good idea is to take something that smells of home, either dirty litter from Jay's litter box or the dust bag from your vacuum cleaner, and sprinkle trails of it out from your house in all directions. If Jay's disorientated this could help him smell his way back to safety.

Good luck, I hope he shows up soon.

Check out the sticky at the top of this forum, Tips for Finding a Lost Cat. There are articles with lots of good suggestions.

I recently found a cat and have posted on Craig's List and here: http://www.missingpet.net

You can choose your state and search for pets posted as found or you can post you lost pet as well.

There are also missing pet sites on Facebook.  I've posted on the one for my state, NJ.

Good luck!

You may have posted somewhere else, but have you gotten Jay back?

Susank521 said:

You may have posted somewhere else, but have you gotten Jay back?

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No. Sadly he has not returned. The humane society is on lookout and so are all neighbors, but it isn't looking very hopeful. I set a live trap and no sign of any animal turned up. I'm hoping he wandered to a house and someone took him unknowingly. I posted in the paper, on Facebook (cat rescue for my state) and nobody has any news. :'( my poor friend.

haileey23 said:

No. Sadly he has not returned. The humane society is on lookout and so are all neighbors, but it isn't looking very hopeful. I set a live trap and no sign of any animal turned up. I'm hoping he wandered to a house and someone took him unknowingly. I posted in the paper, on Facebook (cat rescue for my state) and nobody has any news. :'( my poor friend.

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It is so hard for you and I am so sorry!   Let's hope that he has found a new home or comes back to you soon.