My Beaux is missing - help!

[karenv]

Has anyone's cat escaped from their home? Did he/she come back on his/her own?

My 11 month old, Beaux popped a screen out and went out the window last night. I never have the bottom part of the windows opened but I was just opening it (5 inches) when the phone rang and I got distracted and the window stayed open. After dinner I saw his sister hanging out the window, pulled her back in and realized the screen was gone. I immediately did a head count and he was gone. I was out till 1:30 shaking food and calling and nothing.

I guess I need some consoling on him coming back or not. His sister is very upset as well.

Any input would be greatful.

Thanks.
Karen

[Laura B]

Oh, no! I have never had this happen, but I just wanted to say I am so sorry and I hope the kitty comes home soon. Definitely let your neighbors know what happened so they can call you if they spot him. I would also call the local shelter and describe him in case someone brings him in.

Good luck!

[masimmons]

The same thing happened to my daughter's cat. He (escapee) also had a sister who was really upset. He was gone for 4 or 5 days and he turned up on the neighbor's back porch. We suspect someone was feeding him because she tried the shaking the food trick too and that didn't work. She also took the girl cat out (in a carrier) so she would meow for him. Jenny (daughter) went door to door in her neighborhood with a flyer and offered a reward. She also put an ad in the paper and keep in touch with the local pound and SPCA. He is fine now, but tries to get outside whenever he can. I'll bet your kitty will be back soon too. I'll keep my fingers crossed and think positive thoughts. Good luck!

[wallycat]

Our Wally-cat was a partial outdoor cat, but he ALWAYS came in at night to eat before wandering...and ALWAYS came back in the mornings to eat again.

One day, he didn't show up.
DH was horrified. We waited 24 hours, then put up signs and pictures....
nothing.

TEN days later, the little monster strolls up the driveway and meows at me!!!
Looked fine.....vet said he was fine.
THere was an odd eclipse going on around that time and I wonder to this day if it had anything to do with it.

I hope your baby comes home unscathed!

[sharhamm]

Our cat used to escape as often as she could. Always came back. Superintelligent animals.

[aggie94]

Our neighbors' indoor kitty escaped recently when they were testing out a new dog door. Sebastian was gone for almost a week. They combed the neighborhood, posted signs, knocked on doors, etc. The neighborhood is new, so there is still a lot of construction going on, and lots of places for him to hide. One early morning, she was out walking one of the dogs, and Sebastian jumped out from behind a dumpster and scared the living daylights out of both of them. This took place the next street over, but apparently with all of the unfamiliar sounds, smells, etc., he wasn't able to quite make his way back home.

If you have a routine, keep it. And call his name, loudly and often. I would definitely not give up hope. :)

[buffygirl]

Don't give up, but do check the storm sewers! Kitties are very curious. Our Dreamer was once gone for 11 days and DH finally found him in the storm sewer after his THIRD check down there. Dreamer was fairly beat up and spent 4 or 5 days at the vet, but all in all was no more worse for the wear.

Good luck at finding Beaux!

[Missi]

My indoor cat escaped late one night when DH was taking out the trash, and we didn't notice until the next morning. We called for her, shook food, etc. but she didn't come. We live in a coyote populated area and I thought for sure she was gone. 24 hours after she escaped, I heard her meowing from a window I had cracked before we had gone to bed. She was completely unharmed and proceeded to meow her entire story to me for the next hour!!

So, don't give up!!! I really hope your kitty returns!!!

[rosie_one]

Yep, ours does this all the time.

Ollie is a master at escape, so much so that we have gotten used to it as with kids in and out all day, she has lots of opportunity. She sometimes will be gone overnight. I don't start worrying until it's been more than 36 hours.

She comes home when she gets bored and hungry, I think. Some cats just really feel compelled to wander. Don't feel too guilty. I'd also suggest you not overwhelm him with treats and love when he gets back in your relief to see him as he might get the idea that you LIKE it that he leaves on his little adventures. Be indifferent for an hour or so, until he disassociates from being gone, then love him up.

Hope he returns safe and sound.

[karenv]

Thank you all for your responses, they are keeping my anxiety level down and comforting me. No luck as of this morning but I will not give up. I put notices in the mailboxes (120)and called my closest neighbors. I was told they(cats) often don't travel too far away from home.

I have attracted a few other strays but not my Beaux. Keep the experiences coming, it is helping!!!!!! (tremendously)

Karen

[sararosalie]

I'm so sorry to hear about your kitty excape. We had a similar situation that turned out well.


A few years ago Hugo (7 year old nutered male) walked out the front door late one night. We didn't notice until the next morning. We looked through the neigborhood, knocked on doors, put up signs, the whole 9 yards but we couldn't find him.

He came home 20 days later and meowed at the front door until we heard him. He was fine, maybe about a pound thinner but that was it.

We've been careful about the door ever since but he hasn't taken another "vacation" since then.

I'll keep you and your kitty in my thougts. I hope he comes home soon.

[rhondac]

Yup, my kitty took a two week vacation that we talk about to this day. She is and indoor kitty and I thought she was a gonner. Two weeks later 3 a.m. I am awakened by her LOUD meowing at the back door. No back claws, scrapes, thin. She's still with us, but only likes looking out the door now, not going out it! Hope your kitty comes home too, Good luck!

[HDgirl]

I have an escape artist! The last time Artemus got out was Friday. We were putting in a new kitchen window and one of the kitchen doors were left open while we were running an errand. Out he jumped. He always comes back within a few hours.

The funny thing was my other cat jumped out too. Gizzy is kind of a scaredy cat so I never expected him to do that. DH= was in the garage when he heard this thump in the driveway. DH= chased him up the street and he (Gizzy) layed down so DH= could pick him up.

DH= knows I would freak if I knew Gizz was gone. Artemus is street cat cool. I worry but not too much.

Hope your baby comes home soon!

[syzygy]

Back when my cats used to be "indoor/outdoor" cats (out during the day, but they came in for dinner and stayed in at night) one of my cats on one fine summer day didn't come home for dinner. I didn't think too much of it, but he didn't show up the next day, or the next. My son, who was about 7 or 8 at the time, was distraught, since this was his favorite. To try and make him feel better, I told him the cat probably decided he needed a vacation, and just wait - six weeks from now he'll come prancing up to the back door looking for his supper. That seemed to make my son feel better and I hoped that he wouldn't remember in 6 weeks, since I didn't think we'd ever see the cat again. Well, wouldn't you know, 6 weeks to the day, he showed up at the back door at the usual suppertime, meowing to be let in to eat!!! :eek: just as though he'd never been gone. He looked fine - I always wondered if he was "adopted" by another family and just got to missing us and decided to finally come home, or if he had lived ferally for a while (he was a good hunter, so I'm sure if that was the case, he kept himself well fed). Since he never shared his story with us, we never did know exactly what happened and why he'd been gone so long nor how he found his way home, but we were very glad to have him back, that's for sure. Though he occasionally strayed after that, he was never gone for anywhere near that amount of time, and I never worried about him leaving us, after that. :) And we had him a long time, too. (And this was not a case of being a wandering Romeo - he'd been neutered at an early age ;) )

So there is always hope that even after an extended absence, your Beaux will come trotting back home as if he's never left.

[CompassRose]

My cats get out now and then, but usually come back the next day. (Once William got out, and was gone all night -- he came back, simply soaked in tomcat p!ss. We joked that he'd been out slumming in the kitty S&M bars...)

But when my family was moving out to the Gaspé, when I was seven or so, we drove, from a suburb of Montreal. (Four children, a cat and the houseplants in a Volvo. Oy.) We were about a day away from our destination (I think it took us four days) when the cat decided she'd had enough, slipped her leash at a rest stop, and ran for the hills. It was January, and we couldn't wait around, as my dad had to start his new job, so we finally left, thinking she was doomed.

She showed up. Two weeks later, at our new house, to which she had never been. Her ears were so frostbitten that they ended up looking like lace, as well as the end of her tail, but she found us, somehow.

[MNGirlTX]

My cats are indoor cats...but on occasion (okay - every night when I come home from work) one or both of them like to wander out into the big bad world. Which, in our world, consists of the breezeway of my apartment building. I let them sniff for a minute and then bring them back in the house. (Hercules actually obeys the "Hercules, in" command. Kiki I have to usually pick up and bring in.)

One night, I put a bag of trash outside my front door and closed and locked it. About 1/2 hour later I hear this horrible meowing. I went to the door and opened it - Kiki had snuck out and I hadn't noticed. She bolted upstairs to the bedroom like she'd been terrorized!

A neighbor of mine in New Orleans lost his cat "Bob". It took about 4 days but Bob came back home safe and sound.

Good luck!

[MrsReber]

Originally posted by CompassRose
But when my family was moving out to the Gaspé, when I was seven or so, we drove, from a suburb of Montreal. (Four children, a cat and the houseplants in a Volvo. Oy.) We were about a day away from our destination (I think it took us four days) when the cat decided she'd had enough, slipped her leash at a rest stop, and ran for the hills. It was January, and we couldn't wait around, as my dad had to start his new job, so we finally left, thinking she was doomed.

She showed up. Two weeks later, at our new house, to which she had never been. Her ears were so frostbitten that they ended up looking like lace, as well as the end of her tail, but she found us, somehow.

That is an absolutely amazing story! We lost our cat when we moved. I was 16. My sister and I waited for him to come home at our old house. He was scared off by the moving truck and people. We were trying to keep him indoors at the new house. One day, he just left. We don't even know how he got out, he was just gone, never to be seen again. I hope somebody took him in and took good care of him. He was a stray to begin with when I convinced my mom to take him in. He was just a baby then. We suspect he tried to go back to the old house.

[dublchk]

I have both indoor and indoor/outdoor cats but have been pretty lucky to grab the escape artists fairly quickly. I would suggest putting out some stinky canned food near the door in case he is close by but scared.

I had an outdoor female who had kittens in my house. They were getting close to the age when they could be adopted out (climbing the couch, swinging from the drapes, etc.) and I ran to the store for about 10 minutes. Upon my return, I opened the screen door and heard a meow. I looked down and one of the kittens was standing in the tiny space between the regular door and the screen door. I was so glad I had only been gone a few minutes. The poor things was terrified.

Don't give up! I'll keep good thoughts for your Beaux.

Mary

[karenv]

Thank you all SOOOOO MUCH!! You helped me get through a tough time.
I went out this a.m. to feed mama cat (Feral cat that had the kittens in back yard but disgarded the sack with the kittens still attached - I had her fixed and she is my only resident stray)

Well, Mama cat comes out for her food and who comes with her? Her son comes strolling up like nothing ever happend. I am soooo glad he is home. I scooped him up, kissed him to death, gave him a bath and went to work.

Thank you all again, all your good wishes helped.

Fondly,
Karen

[MrsReber]

:) :) :)

Welcome home, Beaux! I'm so glad to see your post!

[Beth]

Glad he's home and all is well.

[syzygy]

Originally posted by syzygy
Well, wouldn't you know, 6 weeks to the day, he showed up at the back door at the usual suppertime, meowing to be let in to eat!!! :eek: just as though he'd never been gone.
So there is always hope that even after an extended absence, your Beaux will come trotting back home as if he's never left.
Originally posted by karenv
comes strolling up like nothing ever happend.

So happy to hear the good news. :D

Sometimes it's good to be able to say, "I told you so!" ;)

[masimmons]

Bad Boy to give you such a scare! Glad he's back.