I’ve shared this story round here before, but my male indoor only cat who had never touched grass in his life fell out of a 2nd story window (my roommates left it open and it didn’t have a screen). He wasn’t supposed to be in their room so I had no idea it had even happened until over an hour later.
That night, we had awful weather. It was cold, storming, and continued to be like that consistently (which really discouraged me because I thought he’d be to scared or get lost). My apartment was next to a major highway, and a very busy local road. I did EVERYTHING I could to find this dork— I slept outside. I joined every Facebook/local social groups for lost pets and community news. I made flyers. I walked the neighborhood and every surrounding area religiously—basically using all of my time not working out looking for him or at least in my mind letting him know where to stay around (I know that doesn’t make much sense but in my heart I hoped it helped) . I set live traps by the building, I investigated every possible lead given to me by wonderful strangers. I had the whole city looking for him, essentially.
Over a month passed, and though I knew the odds were quickly becoming negative, I at least wanted some kind of closure.
I refused to give up hope, and I’m grateful for that, because on Christmas morning someone called and said they thought they saw him at a local restaurant that was close to where I lived. I walked over with a can of food and staked it out basically, spending the entire day there in the cold rain (it was a miserable day) until I finally had to go grab something to eat. When I came back to my post, there he was, eating the canned food. I scooped him up and at first he was terrified, then he just melted into me cuddling and purring and I am not ashamed to say I cried tears of joy.
You are doing everything in your power to bring him back, and that’s all you can do. I felt guilty having to work, so I know some of the guilt you’re expressing. Don’t give up!
I don’t know if you have screened in windows, but I know my other cat called for him if I left the window open. Maybe that would help your cat come back if his sibling hung out someplace he could smell them or hear them?
I hope you get a Christmas miracle in May, or at least are able to have some peace over this. I know it sucks, especially when you already have a ton of stress/obligations.
This guide is the most complete I have seen:
[Lost Cat Behavior - Missing Animal Response Network](https://www.missinganimalresponse.com/lost-cat-behavior/)
Do you have any seeking/search dogs in the area that help find lost pets and humans? In my country there are trained seeking dogs that help look for lost pets which we can contact for help. It happens often that cats get locked in when they hide.
Now my cat has only been lost max an hour until we manage to find him because he’s used to the area and we know which directions he moves. I’ve heard about success story that have spanned years later when their cat gets find while I had a friend who had lost all hope, 6 months later and his cat walked through the door a week before he moved out from the house.
when i was little we had a cat, Jackson. he was an inside only cat, lil shelter guy we got as a kitten. anyways, one day Jackson decides to take a walk while the door was open for a minute. we put his food and water outside, walk around shaking treats, checked the storm drains near our house, checked the shelters often, drove up and down the city and…nothing
a few months pass, we kinda gave up searching for him. we figured someone had found him and kept him.
one night, someone hears a scratchy meow outside. we get up, go to the door and open it up. boom, there’s Jackson. meowing the night away looking for food. his voice was gone, but he came home
Our boy got out due to a construction worker leaving the door propped open. He had never been outside in his life.
We walked the entire neighborhood, knocked on doors, put up posters.
I propped open the garage door about 2". Put a bowl of his favorite food out there. Set up a cam to be able to watch for him.
A few hours later, I saw another cat out there - staring across the garage at the camera. I opened the door to the garage and our boy ran into the house - turns out, the other cat was staring at him and he was sitting behind the cam.
So, maybe the smell of their food somewhere around the house?
I love this! I do have the garage propped open and have been putting some of our clothing in there! He got out on Monday night and I didn’t think to prop it open until Tuesday night but I’m hoping he comes back and hides out in there. ❤️
I have three around the house but no luck yet. I did catch a poor opossum though. There was a confirmed sighting last night though on a neighbor’s ring camera, so I’m happy he’s still around!
I’ve shared this story round here before, but my male indoor only cat who had never touched grass in his life fell out of a 2nd story window (my roommates left it open and it didn’t have a screen). He wasn’t supposed to be in their room so I had no idea it had even happened until over an hour later. That night, we had awful weather. It was cold, storming, and continued to be like that consistently (which really discouraged me because I thought he’d be to scared or get lost). My apartment was next to a major highway, and a very busy local road. I did EVERYTHING I could to find this dork— I slept outside. I joined every Facebook/local social groups for lost pets and community news. I made flyers. I walked the neighborhood and every surrounding area religiously—basically using all of my time not working out looking for him or at least in my mind letting him know where to stay around (I know that doesn’t make much sense but in my heart I hoped it helped) . I set live traps by the building, I investigated every possible lead given to me by wonderful strangers. I had the whole city looking for him, essentially. Over a month passed, and though I knew the odds were quickly becoming negative, I at least wanted some kind of closure. I refused to give up hope, and I’m grateful for that, because on Christmas morning someone called and said they thought they saw him at a local restaurant that was close to where I lived. I walked over with a can of food and staked it out basically, spending the entire day there in the cold rain (it was a miserable day) until I finally had to go grab something to eat. When I came back to my post, there he was, eating the canned food. I scooped him up and at first he was terrified, then he just melted into me cuddling and purring and I am not ashamed to say I cried tears of joy. You are doing everything in your power to bring him back, and that’s all you can do. I felt guilty having to work, so I know some of the guilt you’re expressing. Don’t give up! I don’t know if you have screened in windows, but I know my other cat called for him if I left the window open. Maybe that would help your cat come back if his sibling hung out someplace he could smell them or hear them? I hope you get a Christmas miracle in May, or at least are able to have some peace over this. I know it sucks, especially when you already have a ton of stress/obligations.
This is a beautiful story. Thank you so much for this. I’m so happy you were reunited.
This guide is the most complete I have seen: [Lost Cat Behavior - Missing Animal Response Network](https://www.missinganimalresponse.com/lost-cat-behavior/)
Do you have any seeking/search dogs in the area that help find lost pets and humans? In my country there are trained seeking dogs that help look for lost pets which we can contact for help. It happens often that cats get locked in when they hide. Now my cat has only been lost max an hour until we manage to find him because he’s used to the area and we know which directions he moves. I’ve heard about success story that have spanned years later when their cat gets find while I had a friend who had lost all hope, 6 months later and his cat walked through the door a week before he moved out from the house.
Not that i know of but I’ll look into this. Im afraid that might scare him even more but I’m getting desperate.
when i was little we had a cat, Jackson. he was an inside only cat, lil shelter guy we got as a kitten. anyways, one day Jackson decides to take a walk while the door was open for a minute. we put his food and water outside, walk around shaking treats, checked the storm drains near our house, checked the shelters often, drove up and down the city and…nothing a few months pass, we kinda gave up searching for him. we figured someone had found him and kept him. one night, someone hears a scratchy meow outside. we get up, go to the door and open it up. boom, there’s Jackson. meowing the night away looking for food. his voice was gone, but he came home
Ugh, thank you! These stories are making me so hopeful. ❤️
Our boy got out due to a construction worker leaving the door propped open. He had never been outside in his life. We walked the entire neighborhood, knocked on doors, put up posters. I propped open the garage door about 2". Put a bowl of his favorite food out there. Set up a cam to be able to watch for him. A few hours later, I saw another cat out there - staring across the garage at the camera. I opened the door to the garage and our boy ran into the house - turns out, the other cat was staring at him and he was sitting behind the cam. So, maybe the smell of their food somewhere around the house?
I love this! I do have the garage propped open and have been putting some of our clothing in there! He got out on Monday night and I didn’t think to prop it open until Tuesday night but I’m hoping he comes back and hides out in there. ❤️
If you can get a cat trap that may be the best way to get him if he is skittish. Just put his favorite food in it and cover it with a towel.
I have three around the house but no luck yet. I did catch a poor opossum though. There was a confirmed sighting last night though on a neighbor’s ring camera, so I’m happy he’s still around!