I can't find my cat!

[mzteris]

The last time I saw Smokey was Wednesday night when he got miffed that I rolled over in the bed into "his space" and his mrrowwred, jumped off the bed and stalked off.

The boys "don't remember" seeing him the past two days either. He didn't get in bed with me Thursday night - I thought - well, MAYBE he's comfy with the boys, but I looked for him yesterday, and he still didn't show up last night.

I've now searched the house a number of times, increasingly more frantically and indepth. Closets, drawers, under beds/couches, behind furniture, boxes, shelves - everywhere.

He HATES the cold and snow so I can't imagine him going outside. If he were stuck somewhere - he can MEOW about as loud as the dogs can bark. I looked around outside, though, and no cat tracks. Not in the garage either that I can find.

I have a really bad feeling about this. He was getting on up there in age. I'm afraid he has already died somewhere in the house. I feel so awful and the boys are just in denial. . .

[david13]

1. Unfortunately, these cats do have the power to make themselves

invisible. My cat does that from time to time. Very disconcerting. But after a while he reappears.
Searching all around is a good idea.
But you must stop and think all along the search, very carefully, as to where he could get in, thru', past, etc.
dc

[mzteris]

4. usually it's just a day-ish

that he "disappears"... this isgoing on to long. and he's not coming for his food.

[kimi]

2. Oh my gosh, best of luck

cats have a way of doing this, and it's scary every time. Are you sure he didn't get outside - although it does sound as though you've searched well out there. How about feeding times, will he come for food or treats? If you can get everything as quiet as possible, and listen as intently as possible, that has helped me in the past when my kitties have gone hiding in the house. I hope the mystery is solved soon, it is a frightening thing for all.

[mzteris]

5. no - he's not coming to the food bowl.

or anytinng. He's never "hiddenout" for this long. usuallly just a day - if that.

[Orrex]

3. Look in your boots.

[mzteris]

6. he could fit in my slippers

when he was a baby kitty.

Or my bathrobe pocket or the palm of my hand. He was such a big ol bad kitten - he'd jump off the back of the couch onto the dog's back/head and just pppfffttt mrrrw mrrwrwr away... it was so cute!

:cry:

Where is he????

[TheCentepedeShoes]

8. That's a good one

I get it

[radical noodle]

7. Well, that IS a long time

but not unheard of with a cat. I've known people who have found their cats in such weird places as inside the undersides of sofas and chairs, behind dressers or other large objects, cuddled in the linens in a closet, or hiding under the blankets and sheets of an unused bed. Open everything and remember they can blend in with anything, just like ET with the stuffed animals. Check every drawer, cabinet, closet, and bin too. Good luck!

[EvolveOrConvolve]

9. Are your dogs inside?

If so, and he's dead, they'd have found him by now.

Start looking in places that you don't think he could have gotten to. Places like the crawl space, attic, etc. If you have stairs, look under them. A strong light is helpful if you're looking in places like that because cat's eyes shine while their bodies fade into the background.

Good luck! :hug:

[mzteris]

14. I keep asking them

"where's Smokey?" "Go find Smokey!!"

and they just sit there with those dumb looks on their faces.

I was thinking maybe they would've found him - and another reason I want to find him 'first' if that's the case. And I certainly don't want my kids to find him.


But damn it, I can't find him anywhere. I swear. everytime I look, though, I think I've looked "everywhere", but find some new cranny I'd overlooked before. Already things are in such disarry where've I've just pulled stuff out of the closets and away from walls... it's a real mess now.

[EvolveOrConvolve]

18. Keep them looking

They have better noses than us. In the past if you'd asked them to find Smokey, would they have gone looking? Take them into every room, closet, cranny, crawl space, etc and see if they react differently to a specific area.

Keep us updated. :hug:

[KT2000]

10. be sure to look inside

cupboards and chests. Know of a woman whose cat was trapped inside a cedar chest in the living room. She never made a sound.

[elshiva]

11. Our male kitty does that to us too often.

Hope Smokey comes back soon. :hug:

[TheCentepedeShoes]

12. Garage?

We "lost" our dog once
Went "where's Raven" and got all frantic
Turns out Mr 'pede had gone into the garage for some reason and the dog followed him
Detached garage so we would not have heard him barking and anyway he was patiently waiting for daddy to come back and make the car go
I hope you find your kitty safe

:hug:

[pink-o]

13. Any luck? Please update us!

[TreasonousBastard]

15. One of my cats disappeared for 4 days and I was just this side of frantic...

when I sat in the big lounge chair and tilted it back. He came flying out from under, scared and hungry.

Stupid cat never thought of making some noise so I'd look for him under there.

Another time he disappeared, he was gravely ill from finding, and eating, Christmas tinsel. Feeling really rotten, he instinctively looked for the darkest, "safest" place to hide. A big clue to get him to the vet immediately.

Hope you find yours OK.

[woo me with science]

16. Open all the doors, drawers, crawl spaces.

I hope you find your kitty. :(

[Enrique]

17. he'll show up with his whiskers full of dust

and you'll never find out where he was. ;-)

[cbdo2007]

19. Hmmmmm....are you in the Kansas City Metro?

Just wondering....

[kimi]

20. Oh wow, I know how worried you must be

Let us know. Best wishes!

[GreenPartyVoter]

21. Oh noes! *hugs* Keep looking and let us know how the search is going.

[Skittles]

22. last time I "lost" a cat inside

he was INSIDE the bed - check under the bed for holes going up

[blogslut]

23. +1

Also check up under your couch. I had a cat get stuck up inside after she climbed through a hole in the underside lining.

[Skittles]

24. sneaky little devils

I had just moved and called an ex boyfriend wailing my cat was gone - he suggested looking IN the bed and after some strategic poking I found him :mad:

[Maru Kitteh]

25. Does Smokey love those bagged treats? I enticed my baby back by shaking her treat bag.

Maybe going from room to room with the treats and shaking them would produce a result?


I hope you find your baby soon!

[dembotoz]

26. any luck?

clean his litter box.

if it shows use, you at least know he is somewhere and functional

[jmowreader]

27. Check under the bathtub

I'm not being funny. A lot of bathtubs have a door covering the back of the pipes, so if you need to work on them you don't have to tear the wall out. If that door can be opened without removing screws, a cat WILL figure out how to open it and will get in there. They go under the bathtub and sleep just as happy as clams.

[tango-tee]

28. That happened to me before,

and after a frantic initial search found out that I had locked him in a closet. I couldn't hear him meowing, was going completely crazy with worry.

My cats love those hiding places, nice and dark and comfy. But I'm sure you've already checked closets?

[nuxvomica]

29. I would suggest sprinkling around some catnip

That usually works with my cats. If your garage is attached, it might have a way to get into the crawlspace over the part of the house where it attaches. My mom had a cat that was always running up their and hiding for days.

[BEZERKO]

30. You may be right,

I'd look for any small, cramped or tight spaces, under furniture especially where you don't think he could get to. Beds, couches, not on the main traffic area like the bedroom or utility room if you have one. My cat dissappeared, under our bed and didn't eat for a couple of days. He would have died, and I was making the assumption that he was going to die. Dogs can endure hunger for short periods of time, but cats, not so much. Our vet is a wonderful woman who decided Ted had a thyroid condition and gave us the medication, a pill that we grind up with his food. It wasn't over with the medication. We had to force feed him, and it wasn't fun. So don't give up, but also you do have a family to take care of, I'm assuming. Just be prepared. Good luck!

[seabeyond]

31. he is at our house. all the cats gather at our house

2 in the morning taunting my dog in the back yard to barking frenzy.

hope you find your cat

[whistler162]

32. Obviously you need to check your hats....

Put out his favorite food..
If he went outside maybe he is staying with neighbors?

[stray cat]

33. SMOKEYS home! Updated post

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x9275041

[stuntcat]

35. YAY

ty for the link, I was reading this, getting worried for him

[mzteris]

36. thanks for posting that.

I'm still not operating on all cylinders!

[stray cat]

37. We were all hoping for a happy ending!

:hi:

[nytemare]

34. My cat hid behind my fridge once.

I would have never known where she was, I just happened to hear her snoring or something back there.

[tango-tee]

38. I'm so happy he's back!

I just *know* you're having a good snuggle and smooch with him right now. Give him a special little kiss on his nose for me (Mosche loves that and sends a big :headbang:)