Cat gone walkabout in Edinburgh suburbs
Discussion
Had some friends and family round for Christmas dinner. Think all the commotion spooked one of our cats. He didn't come back that night, yesterday or last night.
It's cold out there. Wife is distraught having lost a cat and a dog to illnesses this time last year. Cats brother is wandering round like a lost soul. Being Boxing Day, everyone shut up shop, I spent my day posting flyers and walking the local streets.
Phonecalls today. His chip co have been notified. Any other advice? Feeling useless.
It's cold out there. Wife is distraught having lost a cat and a dog to illnesses this time last year. Cats brother is wandering round like a lost soul. Being Boxing Day, everyone shut up shop, I spent my day posting flyers and walking the local streets.
Phonecalls today. His chip co have been notified. Any other advice? Feeling useless.
Easy access to your house? That is cat flap and all that? We tend to hang around outside when one of ours has not been seen for a while, chatting, pottering around if that makes sense. No stress and not shouting, the cat can hear us and will not hear stress. Though not had one go for days for some time.
That approach also worked when one of ours escaped from a cattery. Around a week in the woods but we saw him in a hedge and he would not come for the food or us trying to coax him. So we sat down and nattered to each other for a while and he snuffled up where upon we picked him up and had him in the car very quickly.
Any sheds, garages etc. that may be a culprit? There is a mother site called "animal search UK" (google it) that the local cats protection recommended when we were adopted by a stray and tried to find the owners.
Edit. Animal search web site
http://www.animalsearchuk.co.uk
I do not know how good it is or how widespread its use is.
That approach also worked when one of ours escaped from a cattery. Around a week in the woods but we saw him in a hedge and he would not come for the food or us trying to coax him. So we sat down and nattered to each other for a while and he snuffled up where upon we picked him up and had him in the car very quickly.
Any sheds, garages etc. that may be a culprit? There is a mother site called "animal search UK" (google it) that the local cats protection recommended when we were adopted by a stray and tried to find the owners.
Edit. Animal search web site
http://www.animalsearchuk.co.uk
I do not know how good it is or how widespread its use is.
Edited by jmorgan on Saturday 27th December 08:10
Dad's cat hadn't been seen for a few days so we were literally choosing the picture for the "Missing..." posters & about to call the chip company when she appeared. She was extremely nervy & headed for her water bowl & drank enthusiastically & demolished a handful of treats so we think she was accidentally shut away. Best thing is to ask the neighbours to check rooms, garages etc. one of our old cats turned up after 2 days in a neighbours downstairs loo she hardly used lol
Good luck & I hope your cat turns up safe & well
Good luck & I hope your cat turns up safe & well
Call him early morning/late night - your voice & his travel further
Empty his litter trays into your front & back gardens - the smell will travel to him.
Ditto your vacuum contents
Flyers, with photo everywhere
Ask your neighbours if you can check sheds & garages - he may not answer to them due to being scared.
Good luck
Empty his litter trays into your front & back gardens - the smell will travel to him.
Ditto your vacuum contents
Flyers, with photo everywhere
Ask your neighbours if you can check sheds & garages - he may not answer to them due to being scared.
Good luck
ali_kat said:
Call him early morning/late night - your voice & his travel further
Empty his litter trays into your front & back gardens - the smell will travel to him.
Ditto your vacuum contents
Flyers, with photo everywhere
Ask your neighbours if you can check sheds & garages - he may not answer to them due to being scared.
Good luck
1 - Yep, doing that. Knees quite sore too from all the walking round the streets.Empty his litter trays into your front & back gardens - the smell will travel to him.
Ditto your vacuum contents
Flyers, with photo everywhere
Ask your neighbours if you can check sheds & garages - he may not answer to them due to being scared.
Good luck
2 - Will do that too. His brother might not be impressed, but there you go.
3 - Never thought of the vacuum stuff. Will try anything.
4 - Flyers, well I've just this morning received a package from AnimalSearchUK containing 3no waterproof A3 posters, maybe 50no waterproof A4 posters, maybe 1000 A5 flyers, cable ties and drawing pins. All covered by Erik's insurance. So they'll be going out later today.
5 - Done on the first set of rounds, but it is mentioned on these new flyers so will be reiterated when I go round again.
6 - Thank you.
My 'glass-half-empty' wife would disagree.
My engineers 'glass twice as big as necessary' head would agree at present. Cats are a law unto themselves and he's possibly just locked in someone's garage by mistake. However, he could have been snaffled by someone as a fuzzy Christmas present. If that's the case, who knows whether they'll be taking him to the vets (scanning) any time soon.
My engineers 'glass twice as big as necessary' head would agree at present. Cats are a law unto themselves and he's possibly just locked in someone's garage by mistake. However, he could have been snaffled by someone as a fuzzy Christmas present. If that's the case, who knows whether they'll be taking him to the vets (scanning) any time soon.
So having placed a large number of AnimalSearchUK posters around and about yesterday, today we've been passed two leads. One good, one not so good.
The Good:
A household to our south-west are convinced (they're saying 95% certainty) that Erik visited their garden between 5 and 6 times up to the 30th. Their garden backs onto an abandoned railway line which was converted to a cycle path. Lot's of garden backs, lots of green space to hide in. It also backs on to a local private school with loads of (currently) quiet buildings and places to hide. The live-in janitor for the school is going to be on the look out and we're going to leave Erik's cat box in the garden of the house to see if the smell tempts him back. Distance from them to us: 4min walk.
The Bad:
AnimalSearchUK passed us the details of a man who attended an RTA (animal one) directly to our east on the 25th. SSPCA were called and took the injured cat away. He couldn't recall exact details as it was 1930, dark and Christmas evening. SSPCA can confirm that the cat died of its injuries, but at present can't locate it and the person on the phone can't raise the inspector who attended. I have not received a call from anyone following a scan of a chip, or from the SSPCA about picking up a cat matching ours. However, the person on the phone suggested the cat they collected was ours.
So, that's going to be fun to unravel. If an injured / dead cat was brought in over Christmas you would have thought that the main animal charity would have scanned it for a chip as a matter of course / utmost urgency. But I haven't heard anything from them or the chip company. So I remain positive.
The Good:
A household to our south-west are convinced (they're saying 95% certainty) that Erik visited their garden between 5 and 6 times up to the 30th. Their garden backs onto an abandoned railway line which was converted to a cycle path. Lot's of garden backs, lots of green space to hide in. It also backs on to a local private school with loads of (currently) quiet buildings and places to hide. The live-in janitor for the school is going to be on the look out and we're going to leave Erik's cat box in the garden of the house to see if the smell tempts him back. Distance from them to us: 4min walk.
The Bad:
AnimalSearchUK passed us the details of a man who attended an RTA (animal one) directly to our east on the 25th. SSPCA were called and took the injured cat away. He couldn't recall exact details as it was 1930, dark and Christmas evening. SSPCA can confirm that the cat died of its injuries, but at present can't locate it and the person on the phone can't raise the inspector who attended. I have not received a call from anyone following a scan of a chip, or from the SSPCA about picking up a cat matching ours. However, the person on the phone suggested the cat they collected was ours.
So, that's going to be fun to unravel. If an injured / dead cat was brought in over Christmas you would have thought that the main animal charity would have scanned it for a chip as a matter of course / utmost urgency. But I haven't heard anything from them or the chip company. So I remain positive.
I'm taking the good news. A quick chat with Anibase confirmed that they'd not had anyone contact them following a 'successful' scan. Which to my mind means either SSPCA have Erik in their morgue and haven't done anything since the 25th, or that cat isn't Erik and the other (later) sightings are more hopeful.
I'm pragmatic, so I put a degree of belief in the system of the chips and those that operate them. So, I don't think SSPCA will have omitted to scan the cat, which means it isn't him. Further, the other sightings are upwind of the prevailing weather, which in relatively unknown surroundings would hamper Erik from finding his own way home.
So tonight's exercise is to put some more weatherproof posters up in the area surrounding the sightings.
Tu Fidem (Keep the faith)
I'm pragmatic, so I put a degree of belief in the system of the chips and those that operate them. So, I don't think SSPCA will have omitted to scan the cat, which means it isn't him. Further, the other sightings are upwind of the prevailing weather, which in relatively unknown surroundings would hamper Erik from finding his own way home.
So tonight's exercise is to put some more weatherproof posters up in the area surrounding the sightings.
Tu Fidem (Keep the faith)
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