Could once sweet and social kitten become wild and in a week of being outside?

Hello everyone! I need help/advice. We lost our 3-4 months old kitten about a week ago. Nobody saw her escaping, so we did not start looking for her for couple hours. Couple days ago we saw a kitten in our neighborhood that looked exactly like our Bella (she is all black)  , but skinnier. The kitten is scared of people and does not allow anyone to get close. 

Little back story: Our Bella was a stray when we got her, she was about 2 months old then, she came to our house and started hanging out with our indoor/outdoor 3 yo cat. 

Because she was so sweet and our cat seemed to "adopt" her and because it is kitten season and shelters are full of kittens we kept her. She got her shots, got dewormed but did not get spayed yet or microchipped. 

so since she came from this neighborhood, we are not sure if it is her or just an identical kitten from the same litter (adult cat who looks like could be mother is nearby) . we have been feeding the kitten for couple days and last night when I finally got close enough I tried to catch it and it freaked out, scratched and bit my hand. 

Is it possible that kitten who lived in the house for about a month and was sweet and very very gentle ( kids cuddled with her and kissed her , she never showed any signs of aggression) would display feral behavior after a week returning outside to stray cats? 

If anyone has any similar experience, please share, i would appreciate it very much! 

P.S: I am planning on setting a trap and catching it to get it spayed/neutered whether it is Bella or not. If I catch and it's a male kitten then I know for sure it's not her and probably one of her siblings. But if it is female and looks identical to ours I'm not sure what to do  

thanks! 

They can get very scared and act wild. If it is her and you catch her, she should tame again very quickly once she settles down and remembers who you are. They don't become truly feral that quickly.

Hi Irina,

All of my cats are ex-ferals that I managed to lure in off the street. Most of them go back to their skittish ways when they are outside. They all have outdoor access as I have a big, fenced in garden. Even the friendliest ones hiss at me and run away if I try to bring them in when they are not ready. It's very possible that this little black cat is your Bella. I think cats just become extra wary when they are outside, even if they've only been out for an hour or two.

Cats aren't very good at recognising people by sight. We change our clothes every day so must look like different people to them. They recognise you by your voice and smell. Try sitting very still and talking to her softly so that she realises who you are. You could also try leaving something with your smell on it, a pillow case you have been using or a worn t-shirt for example, near your door so that she remembers where she lives.

Good luck, let us know if you need any advice about trapping.

Thank you ! 

I'm taking it one step at a time and we'll see what happens. 

I'm gonna check on the kitten and feed it until I'm ready to trap it - probably on Monday when shelters are open ( so i can get the kitten spayed/neutered and get help I need) 

When we first realized she escaped, we figured she would come back to our house eventually. We put some food out, the blanket she loved to sleep on but she never came. 

My fear is that if I catch and it's a female , i would not know how to tell for sure if it is really Bella or kitten from the same litter and she is still out there somewhere. 

Thanks!