General Discussion

My cat, Ticci went missing today and he always comes to eat at 4 am (when my dad goes to work) and 6 pm but he hasn't come. It's snowing outside and I'm really scared he might die from the cold or something else. (it's currently 4 degrees in celsius and it will go to 1-) His mother has been searching for him the whole day and is now just waiting infront of the door for him [img]https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/502896720191946762/528806964663418880/WhatsApp_Image_2018-05-18_at_19.48.35.jpeg[/img]

Oh gosh, look at that baby! I really hope you find him, I’m sure he’ll be fine

It's possible he's holed himself up somewhere to keep warm. I hope he comes back. :c

The snow might have thrown him off. It's likely he just hid somewhere to keep warm.

My friend's cat was missing for three weeks and just showed up on the porch. They're very durable animals.

cats are smart and they know their way home, he's probably just hiding out and keeping warm! hopefully he'll make his way back in the next couple of days

if you're really worried, you can put a cardboard box with a hole cut out the front and a towel/some blankets inside it on your porch, in case he comes back in the night and nobody's around to let him in. a used blanket might be best, because it'll smell like his people and lead him home.

@bottlestreet
We have like a cat door thing so he can enter whenever he wants

@knoxxi

ahh, that's good then, when he deems it safe enough to come back he will. he'll probs waltz right in like "did you miss me" bc cats are rude like that

@Knoxxi it's still a good idea to do the box with a used blanket set up in case the snow's turned him around

Cats have an amazing sense of smell and having something with either your scent or theirs on it outside for them to navigate their way home is the best bet right now. You'd also be giving him a soft place to warm up in, in case the cat door gets stuck or something and he can't get inside. It's a good idea either way because at least then he'll be safe and secure, and close to home

What they said ^
But on a side note it's not very cold out in contrast with the rest of... everywhere. Cats are pretty well adapted to cold weather.

@Knoxxi

-explodes through the door-

hi, I'm with a rescue group that does cat-finding on the side

mind you, I'm australian and I have NO experience with this level of cold, so idk how much of this is going to be super helpful, but-

- putting the litterbox outside can help, they might be able to smell it and go in the direction of 'home'

-most of the cats we've helped find turned out to be within a 2 block radius of where they went missing, and most often either under houses or (more often) in the drainage on the street, so that might be a good place to look

-if you put up signs, make sure to note exactly where he was last seen, what the date of that was, an idea of his temperament with strangers (ie. I'd be using a different strategy to round up a skittish cat than I would for an outgoing one), and also if he's used to being outdoors or not- cats who are indoor-only are much safer, but it also means that if they DO get out they don't have terrain experience and that means their unfamiliarity with the area also plays in- yours is used to being outdoors, so if I was looking for him, that'd be in the back of my mind (ie. he might not be 'lost' somewhere close)

-for some reason I do not understand, we by far have the best success rate at luring out a cat with barbequed chicken- just the kind we can get at the grocery store. if you're using food as a motivator, that one might be worth a try- I'm not sure why it's so much more successful but I think it might be the stronger smell

-if you have any wilderness areas near you (or wooded areas) they're a pretty likely candidate for where they are, but even if they're close it doesn't mean they'll be easy to FIND in it... but it's something to keep in mind

-make a list of local vets and pounds that service your area and ring around, especially if he's chipped (and if he's not chipped, chip him the absolute living second you find him again). I also recommend a collar, tagged with your address and phone number, with a bell and safety release catch instead of a buckle- if they DO get out and get their collar stuck on something, it'll detach instead of choking them. It's a thing, my best friend lost her cat this way in their front yard. The phone number and the address are the most important details for a collar- the name will come up with the chip serial if it's properly registered when he's scanned, but if someone finds your cat the most pertinent data is contact info

-smell is key with cats- stuff that already smells like you and him might be helpful to attract him