Lost cat, what to do ? How to find it quickly ? How to avoid the runaway cat ?
The cat is a fearless, curious and independent animal. It is in his nature, your little feline likes to explore the world around him. Except that, mainly using smells and sounds to find their way around, your cat may get lost not far from where you live.
Usually, in this kind of case, the lost cat is hiding somewhere, scared, and wisely waiting for you to find it.
This is the reason why when you consider that your cat has run away, you should look for him everywhere in your house and around it. The research must last at least 10 days before thinking of despair!
Find out below what you need to do to quickly find your lost cat, what can cause him to move away from you, and above all, what to do to prevent the cat from running away again, if you are in the case ofa found cat you must do otherwise.
Can the cat find his home alone?
The cat will always be a very resourceful domestic animal. You have certainly already heard his stories of a cat who finds their owner several thousand kilometers away or a cat who finds his home 10 years later, it seems that there is a sixth sense in the cat to locate itself.
So do not panic too quickly, your cat can easily find his home if nothing has happened to him, it is common for some cats to be away.
The first day, still rake your house and call him outside, but after 1 or 2 days you will indeed have to worry.
5 Steps To Quickly Find Your Missing Cat
From the moment you notice your little feline missing, don't panic and just follow the steps below to try and locate your cat and know when to be concerned about the disappearance of a cat.
Check every nook and cranny of your home
As you know, cats are lazy animals that sleep more than 16 hours a day, and usually during the day. He likes hidden and comfortable corners to rest in peace.
All this to say that you can spend a whole day thinking that your cat has run away when he has simply fallen asleep behind a piece of furniture or in the back of a closet in the house.
This is the reason why when you notice the absence of your cat, the first thing to do is to search your home from top to bottom, in every nook and cranny, calling the cat by name. With a little luck you will find your little furball and there will have been more fear than harm in the end.
Go looking for your cat around your home
If unfortunately your cat is not at home, you will have to look for him outside. Usually, when a cat runs away, it is rarely found within a radius of more than a kilometer from its home.
It is possible that he finds himself stuck in a bush, branches, or the most common scenario, that he has lost his way. And when a cat is lost, it gets scared and hides somewhere, hoping its owner will find it or waiting for what frightens it to no longer be there.
In any case, you will have to go looking for your cat around your home, making a first complete tour of your neighborhood, calling your little feline by name. For your search to be as effective as possible, you will have to repeat the operation at quiet times (early morning or evening) so that your cat can easily recognize your voice.
To do this, during these hours, you will have to go out every 30 minutes by calling your cat nonstop for 5 minutes in a row. Rest assured, this is a proven technique (frequent calling techniques)!
Report the disappearance of your cat
If after one or them day you still have no sign of your cat's life, you will have to report its disappearance.
To do this, do not hesitate to go physically to pounds, pet shops, veterinary clinics, gendarmeries, police stations, etc.
If your little animal is tattooed or equipped with a subcutaneous chip, you must also report your loss to the national felin file of lost cats, I-CAD (Identification of domestic carnivores)
- You can call 0810 778 778
- You can go to i-cad.fr
- You can use the Filalapat application
Go to the platforms in Missing Cats Online and Social Media The
Internet is a fast and efficient way to locate your missing cat. You can post a lost cat announcement by going to one of the many lost cats online platforms like chat-perdu.org, which in addition to giving you a list of lost cats and allowing you to register your own , offers you the possibility of making research posters in the blink of an eye.
You can also use social media to get your ad out quickly, there are many local lost chat groups on Facebook that allow you to post your ad and reach out to people around you.
Place posters in strategic places
Finally, you will also need to create posters to search for your cat, which you will have to place in strategic places, in order to inform as many people as possible. Among other things, it will be a question of placing them in very public places such as passageways, places of commerce, bus shelters, schools, etc. Do not hesitate to hand them over to your postman.
However, make sure beforehand that the information contained on the posters is clear and precise (your contact details, the name of the cat, the date of disappearance, etc.), and that the cat's photo is recent and allows it to be identified properly. .
Why is your cat running away? And what does a lost cat do?
In most cases, what you think of as your cat running away happens when your cat wanders a little too far from the house and can't find its way, or gets stuck in an obstacle, some way. go.
In any case, 3 fundamental reasons can push a cat to move away from its home: the needs of mating, the hunger or quite simply the boredom.
Mating needs
Your male cat may run away to join a female in heat. Likewise, if you have a female instead, she may move away from the house in hopes of finding a male.
In the case of pregnant females, she can also simply go in search of a place or give birth to her kittens, often very close to you.
He is hungry and in search of food (goes hunting!)
Depending on his breed (especially a cat that likes the outdoors), a hungry cat can run away to go hunting, in search of something to eat.
He's bored
It's a fact, the cat is a territorial and curious animal. When bored, lonely or lacking in activity, he may be tempted to explore the outdoors in search of new adventures and distractions. Note, however, that exploration and exercise needs vary greatly from one breed of cat to another.
How to prevent your cat from running away again?
Once your cat has been found, in order to avoid any recurrence, you must take a number of measures to correct the source of the problem, as well as to quickly find the animal in the event of a future loss.
Use a GPS tracker or GPS collar if your cat goes out
By attaching a GPS tracker or collar to your cat when he goes out, you will know his position in real time, the history of his movements, and therefore find him with a click of finger if ever he gets lost.
Spay your cat
Spaying your cat will prevent your pet from ever moving away in search of a sexual partner.
Do not let your cat out if you are new to the neighborhoodmoved
If you have justin, do not let your cat come out of the house and have fun alone in the garden for the first 3 months, as there is a good chance that he gets lost, for lack of landmarks.
Have your cat tattooed or chipped
Have your pet tattooed or have him implanted an RFID subcutaneous chip so that it can be easily returned to you in the event of a runaway. To be more precise, tattooing or chipping your cat increases the chances of finding it by 40%.
Make sure your cat has everything at home
Cat tree complete with scratching posts, hiding places, rests, observation posts and many more, as well as many accessories such as toys, bowls (or dispensers). water and kibble), the toilet house, ..., are all elements that your pet must have at home to be happy and fulfilled.