Just lost my cat while walking him for the first time outside on a leash :(

Sadly the cat I thought was him wasn't him, well not 100% sure,, so will try to return to that spot looking again anyways

I was really sure in the moment, so sure that I also poored his used litter at the trap in that location to help him find way, so now I have probably just confused him even more on where he belongs sigh, realized this just after I had done it. II guess my brain doesn't work proberply after not eating/sleeping very much for 8 days now :/

I got a call today from a guy who was ABSOLUTELY SURE that he had seen my cat for several days in his garden. We went over there right away and saw the cat instantly, but yeah it wasn't him .. I'm glad the guy called, it could had been him. just so sad to get your hopes up from a guy who said he was absolutely sure

And to make matters even worse I got a call from "animal protection"? (have no idea of the english word for it, but it's the same place where you get a a call from if your cat is found i think)  

Wasn't there to pick up, was taking a shower. When I googled the number though I realized it was just their call center where they call with some of their campaigns to get members. 

I've never had a call from them before, and they decide to call JUST as my cat goes missing sigh  I guess they have a log of people registered owning cats that they call.. When I saw that the number was from there I got my hopes of once again just to be dissapointed again again

But lets be real here. No "trying to make me feel better" please

My cat is born november 21 2014.  So very young. He have  always been indoor cat. He is very careful, and I think i'm the only human he have ever trusted. I've only had him for not even 2 months. 

Everytime I have had guests he have went hiding. 

What are his chances of surviving? 

I'm really hoping that he will approach somebody so that they can see an earmarked cat that looks like he is lost, but I don't think it is likely to ever happen.

Is it possible for a indoor cat/"human shy" cat to eventually break his cover to beg for food at a stranger? 

Somewhere deep inside he must have assosiated humans=food right ?

I've tried googling, but haven't netted much answers on this topic.

Good thing is that I live in probably the most green area in my city, bad thing .. lots of roads still ..

But I think there is lots of food to catch in the forest.

I'm really hoping him beeing a cat is enough for him to be able to survive out there.

He LOVED catching bugs in my apartment (i have a forest area right outside my window), so I hope that have helped his hunting skills.

This is such a heartbreaking post.   My thoughts go to you and your kitty.

Instincts can help him survive for sometime, but I fear that hunger will force him to be reckless like crossing a busy road. Predators are another really big risk. I wouldn't give up yet, though. I have heard stories of people finding their cat after quite a few weeks. It is so discouraging and stressful, but do your best to stay positive and keep trying.

If he is a shy as you say it's unlikely that he will go to someone and beg for food, but

A. He knows how to hunt. If he has been hunting bugs he'll start hunting birds, mice lizards and anything else that's around if he's hungry.  When Mia was lost I went looking for her twice a day, sunrise and sunset when cats are most active. I followed the deer trails through the woods as that's where cats hunt. (Their instinct leads them to game trails) She was gone for nearly a month but when I found her she was less than 10 minutes walk from my house.

B. If there are a lot of feral cats in your area there might be someone feeding them. Cats can smell if another cat is well fed and they will follow that cat to a food source. Have a look around for a feral colony in your area and wait there at feeding time to see if he shows up. He may take his time about it, but he'll probably head there eventually.

C. Cats also look for food at places that smell strongly. Do you have any communal places where people leave the trash on garbage collection day? Put up posters of him there and check them out early in the morning. He may go there to try and find something to eat.

Don't give up. People get there cats back after they've been lost for much longer than a week. You just have to keep looking.

Whether he comes to a house or not depends largely on how much food he can find for himself. If there is a lot in the forest he may may be able to feed himself. But a cat who has lived with humans knows there is food there, so if he is hungry he may eventually show up at someone's house. With a young cat predators may be a danger - what kind of wild animals if any live in your area? Foxes will rarely tackle an adult cat but may try to kill a kitten. It is a good idea to see if there are any managed feral colonies near you. Ask the local animal shelter - they may know. He will certainly want a regular food source. Keep putting food out in the same places so he learns that it is there.

Don't give up - my daughter's cat came back after two weeks, my brother's after three. In both cases they had been hiding close by and eating from neighbours' cats food.

I really hope you can find your kitty and bring him home!

Thanks everybody for your kind responses

I'm from Denmark, so we don't have many predators. Pretty much all dogs is on leash. We have some foxes, but not many, but I don't think there is that many dangers for a cat in the nature besides that. Not completely sure, but I hope

I had a call today from a woman who saw a little cat while she was running in a forest not far from me. She said she saw a cat that could match the description of my cat, and that he was meowing, so she was sure it wasn't a feral cat.

I went down there and I saw a cat from a distance behind some bushes who looked like him, can't be sure though :S

I tried to get him over to me with treats and a can of tuna, but he wasn't coming out of hiding.

I had an appointment I couldn't get out of, so after some time I had to leave. 

I left tuna and wetfood down there, so if it's him I hope his belly is full now

I'm going to set my alarm to early in the morning and try to go down there again. 

Hopefully I will be able to get him home soon if it's him, but if he is going to still be to scared to come to me, I can at least start to feed him down there, and hopefully he will approach me sooner or later.

I don't have my humane cat trap anymore, I had to return it to the shelter. But if I can confrim it's him I will rent it again.

I have a good feeling that it could be him, but I don't want to get my hopes up.

Oh .. Btw I got a haircut the other day I had long hair before. Do you think he will not be able to recognize me? Maybe I should put on a hoodie or something.

Oh, that's great I hope it really is him.

Cats don't see detail as well as we do, so he won't notice your hair cut until you're quite close to him. They recognise people by their voices and smell first. When you go to check if he is still in the same place start talking to him before you get there. Just keep repeating something like "It's me kitty, I'm coming now kitty." as you walk up to him. If you surprise him he may run off before he realises it's you, but if he can hear your voice from afar, gradually getting closer, he'll feel safer and hopefully stay put.

Cats have really sharp hearing, so start talking to him when you're still about 5 minutes walk away.

Good luck.

catapocalypse said:

 
Thanks everybody for your kind responses

I'm from Denmark, so we don't have many predators. Pretty much all dogs is on leash. We have some foxes, but not many, but I don't think there is that many dangers for a cat in the nature besides that. Not completely sure, but I hope

I had a call today from a woman who saw a little cat while she was running in a forest not far from me. She said she saw a cat that could match the description of my cat, and that he was meowing, so she was sure it wasn't a feral cat.

I went down there and I saw a cat from a distance behind some bushes who looked like him, can't be sure though :S

I tried to get him over to me with treats and a can of tuna, but he wasn't coming out of hiding.

I had an appointment I couldn't get out of, so after some time I had to leave. 

I left tuna and wetfood down there, so if it's him I hope his belly is full now

I'm going to set my alarm to early in the morning and try to go down there again. 

Hopefully I will be able to get him home soon if it's him, but if he is going to still be to scared to come to me, I can at least start to feed him down there, and hopefully he will approach me sooner or later.

I don't have my humane cat trap anymore, I had to return it to the shelter. But if I can confrim it's him I will rent it again.

I have a good feeling that it could be him, but I don't want to get my hopes up.

Oh .. Btw I got a haircut the other day I had long hair before. Do you think he will not be able to recognize me? Maybe I should put on a hoodie or something.

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I do hope it is him. I had a semi-feral cat be gone eight months and one morning he showed right back waiting for his food under his usual tree. I'd thought something had happened to him but he did come home. I think cats have a good sense of where home is. I also think the others gave very good advice, especially about the feral kitty colony if there is one. Most of my shy kitties would rather be with a fellow cat than a person. If you can get any sardines or salmon, something especially smelly, it may draw him into the trap better. I suggest you don't wear any hoodie or anything like that, that may very well scare him. He most likely won't notice your haircut right away.

Good tips thank you.

I was down there from 4 am to 7 am calling for him, but no luck.

But all the food was gone. But it is in a forest afterall, so no guarentee it's him. 

I put out more food and water. 

So I hope he will keep going back for food at that spot.

I just ordered a new trap for smaller cats, since the one I had was for adult cats, he won't trigger it.

I'm so sorry you are going through this. It must be simply nerve wracking. Your worry and stress are palpable in your posts and I wish I could give you a hug. Please do not give up hope. Our indoor cat once got out and did not return for over month, nearly 5 weeks. He was skinny and scabby and covered in fleas, but he came back eventually. The wait and worry is absolutely horrible.
I think it is very, very possible that your guy is out there and scared to come out, especially since you mentioned he is shy. The outdoors must be very overwhelming to an indoor cat, and it may take a while for him to adjust to his new surroundings enough to feel safe coming out into the open. The only thing you can do is what you are doing- getting out there, looking, calling him, letting him hear your voice.
I'm thinking of you and your kitty and sending positive vibes for a safe return.

Good luck that it it is him

Sending positive thoughts to you and kitty! (hugs)

Okay update.

I've kept putting food down at the place where I might has seen my cat. 

The food at daytime haven't been touched at all, but every night the food is gone.

There is outdoor cats not that far away (actually the spot where I thought I saw him under a car), maybe 100-200 meters from the place. But they have to cross a busy road.

But the first night ALL the food was gone. And I had put down a can of tuna + wet food. 

It's possible some of those cats have been down eating, but an outdoor cat most likely wouldn't be that hungry right? 

I thought to myself today I was totally grasping at straws. I've seen so many cats that looked like mine. 

This evening I thought I would go down early in the evening and check if the food was touched. And just as I entered I saw a little cat that looked just like mine from behind again, he was walking slowly across the walk path  =)  And ran off into the bushes as soon as I called after him =( Again nothing is for sure, but I do have a really good feeling.

Isn't it uncommon for a cat to keep wandering in a forest area with busy roads around it? At least that's what i'm thinking to myself right now. Sure it could be a feral cat though. And there is a farm not far from it, so I guess they could have a cat. But .. I have to hope

One thing I found a bit odd though. I saw him wandering around in the open (allthough he can pop into the bushes instantly if he hear something, like he did when I called) .. But the food wasn't touched yet. Maybe he just wasn't that hungry yet after all the time I have feed (hopefully  him) down there xD

My trap won't be here in 3-5 days So I guess I will just keep up the feeding schedule and hope for the best.  

And thanks for all your kind messages

Miracles do happen xD

He's back!

I got a call at nighttime today from a woman who said my cat was in her garden. It was like 2 km away, so I was like .. "uggghh" another one who "thought" they saw my cat ..

But I went down there anyway, and it was actually him!

They had seen him in their garden the last 3 days, my guess is that he have been there for a long time. Lots of places to hide.

But suddenly they heard a cat meow begging for food. 

She got him picked up today, and checked the earmark. And saw he was wanted

So yeah, everycat I thought might could have been mine in the near area haven't been him xD Just wishthinking. 

I would have never gotten my cat back if he haven't been earmarked

At first he was very timid and wouldn't come over to me. But then they left and went to bed, and I put some tuna on my hand.

He came over and started to smell me, and suddenly recognized me again and was all cuddly xD

After he got calm I was able to lift him into the carrier. And then he freaked out.

I was very worried carrying him all the way home. Kept imagining I would trip and he would be lost again, but phew .. 

I've never seen him as happy as when he got home again He is sleeping right beside me right now.

This is absolutely wonderful news!

I'm sure your cat has been very frightened during the time he was gone, and will need a few days to rest and recuperate. I'm sure you feel much more at ease knowing he's safe at home with you now. I suggest he remain an indoor kitty who does not go on walks anymore.

I love happy endings!

Yay! That is such great news. I am so happy he's back!

Aw!! That's great!!! Can we see a picture of your wayward buddy? [emoji]9786[/emoji]️

That is so fantastic!!!! I am so happy for both of you. Give him lots of cuddles - he must have been so scared and is obviously very pleased to be back. Do post a picture.

I'm so HAPPY for you! I've been waiting for this post from you! YAY! I'm glad you are reunited! I love happy endings! ((hugs))