Runaway Cat

[BevinM]

Hi, I have a one year old female spayed calico cat. We brought her home in March and she has been very happy with us. However, she has gotten out form our yard 3 times in the last 10 days. We live in a suburb with high walls, so it is difficult for her to get out and more difficult for her to get back in.
We found her in the street behind our house the last 2 times. We are very worried about her being hit by a car or getting into some sort of trouble, but fortunately she does have a microchip.
We have trimmed the trees close to the wall and put up mesh wire, but she still gets out.
Does anyone have any advice as to what may have suddenly triggered her urge to run away? Or any tips as to keeping her in our garden? We can't lock her inside the house. She gets on very well with our other cat and he never gets out.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Where is the mesh? To keep a cat in, a fence should have an 18" overhang at a 45 degree angle, facing inward, so the cat sees it over their head if they begin to climb. Make sure there are no spots without this overhang where the fence meets the house.

As to what triggers it...she evidently smells or hears something that is very, very interesting to her, so much so that she MUST go and investigate this! Has anything in the neighborhood changed in that time period? And remember how acute cats' hearing is, and how sensitive their sense of smell! This could be happening several blocks away. I'm thankful that you did microchip her! Bless you.

 

[BevinM]

Where is the mesh? To keep a cat in, a fence should have an 18" overhang at a 45 degree angle, facing inward, so the cat sees it over their head if they begin to climb. Make sure there are no spots without this overhang where the fence meets the house.

As to what triggers it...she evidently smells or hears something that is very, very interesting to her, so much so that she MUST go and investigate this! Has anything in the neighborhood changed in that time period? And remember how acute cats' hearing is, and how sensitive their sense of smell! This could be happening several blocks away. I'm thankful that you did microchip her! Bless you.

Thanks! The mesh is in the tree, to try and stop her jumping onto the roof, because the tree comes quite close to the roof, even though we have chopped down some of the branches. Another recent change in her behaviour is that she has started digging holes in the middle of the lawn and lying in them. If she wasn't spayed, I'd be tempted to think that she is nesting or trying to seek out a male...

 

[Mamanyt1953]

When you get your paws on her again, have her hormone levels checked. They may have left enough tissue behind to send her out looking for a mate...

And if you can add that overhang on the interior of your fence, she won't try to go over it.