Lost a cat?
Losing a cat can be a very distressing experience and so I have compiled an approach to missing cats that can help cat owners increase the chance of finding their missing moggy.
Preliminary Search
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Start your search early — don’t assume your cat will wander back of their own accord (eg if they are trapped or badly injured)
Search around the home & local area — in cupboards, under beds, behind furniture, in a washing machine or tumble drier, laundry basket, the cellar, loft space etc. Outside in your shed and garage, greenhouse, compost bin, even your car, including in the wheel arches and engine compartment. Cats like to seek out warm, dark places to hide sometimes, so look in even the most unlikely places. While you are searching, stop regularly and listen — give your cat a chance to answer your call. |
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Visit your immediate neighbours - ask them to look in their homes and garages, sheds and outbuildings. Has anyone had any delivery vans/tradesmen recently as cats will often get into open vehicles.
Tips when searching
- Search at different times of the day/night
- Take some dry food, and a cat carrier with you, or if your cat hates carriers take a pillow case!
- Paying particular attention to any garages, lock-ups, skips and empty properties
- Make a note of any empty houses for sale, and contact the estate agent in case they have shown someone round and shut the cat in
- Call for your cat by name and take time to listen for a reply
- Shake a box of their favourite biscuits, or squeeze a favourite squeaky toy may help
- Stop regularly, and listen - give your cat a chance to answer your call
- Stay in one area long enough for your pet to reach you if he is in the vicinity
Report Your Cat as "Missing"
Alert your cat's microchip company
Register your cat as missing and ask if they will also send flyers to all the vets in the area to keep their eyes peeled. Try making contact with Petlog first if you don't know which company your cat's chip is with.
Don’t forget to contact them and let them know when you have found your cat
Contact veterinary surgeries in your area
Check if any cats have been brought in injured/unwell.
Also make sure you ask to register your cat on their missing cat list.
To find local vets click here
Contact your pet insurer
Many owners don't realise that a good pet insurance policy often includes cover for lost/stolen pets. This may include hundreds of pounds worth of advertising your cat as missing, laminated posters and even a reward for the safe return of your cat.
Word of Mouth - tell as many people locally as you can!
People that are all likely to be out and about and noticing cats at different times.
Contact or visit local animal charities and rescue centres:
It is possible your cat has been mistaken for a stray and been handed in. Be sure to register on their missing cat list or lost section of their webpage.
Register your cat as missing and ask if they will also send flyers to all the vets in the area to keep their eyes peeled. Try making contact with Petlog first if you don't know which company your cat's chip is with.
Don’t forget to contact them and let them know when you have found your cat
Contact veterinary surgeries in your area
Check if any cats have been brought in injured/unwell.
Also make sure you ask to register your cat on their missing cat list.
To find local vets click here
Contact your pet insurer
Many owners don't realise that a good pet insurance policy often includes cover for lost/stolen pets. This may include hundreds of pounds worth of advertising your cat as missing, laminated posters and even a reward for the safe return of your cat.
Word of Mouth - tell as many people locally as you can!
People that are all likely to be out and about and noticing cats at different times.
- postman/woman
- milkman
- parents and neighbourhood children
- elderly neighbours
- dog walkers
Contact or visit local animal charities and rescue centres:
It is possible your cat has been mistaken for a stray and been handed in. Be sure to register on their missing cat list or lost section of their webpage.
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Cats Protection
Ph 03000 121212 Email helpline@cats.org.uk Each branch tends to have their own "lost and found" page. The most local branches are: Reading and Districts Reading East (Wokingham & Bracknell) Camberley Maidenhead Buckinghamshire Woking Basingstoke RSPCA Ph 0300 1234 999 (England & Wales) The most local rescue centre is: Millbrook, Chobham, Surrey SSPCA Ph 0300 0999 999 (Scotland) USPCA Ph 0283 0251 000 (Northern Ireland) |
Thames Valley Animal Welfare
Ph 0118 947 9963 Diana Brimblecombe Animal Rescue Centre, Wokingham Ph 0118 934 1122 CLAWS, Maidenhead (Cat Lovers Animal Welfare Society), 0118 934 1699 Email: info@c-l-a-w-s.org.uk The Blue Cross Ph 01993 822651 Email: info@bluecross.org.uk PDSA Ph 0800 917 2509 |
Make & Distribute A Missing Poster
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What to include in your poster:
NB: Moisture can rapidly deteriorate the quality of a poster making photos unrecognisable and text unreadable. If possible always laminate your posters. Consider photocopying the poster into A5 leaflets to drop through letterboxes in the neighbourhood. Many cats ‘go missing’ simply because they are befriended by a neighbour. |
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Places to display your posters:
- Local shop windows/noticeboards
- Post Offices
- Lampposts (check with your local council first)
- Schools
- Churches and community halls
- Sport and recreation centres.
- Train/Bus stations
- Petrol stations
- Pubs/restaurants
- Police - take a more personal approach and walk in to your local police station with a poster rather than phoning the switchboard. Ask if they will let you put a poster up... they can only say "no".
Request the contact number for your local beat bobby or Community Support Office (PCSO) and ask them to circulate that your cat is missing so they can keep their eyes peeled while they are patrolling.
Widen your search
Widen your search to hedgerows, open ground, woodland, farmland - ask for permission to check in agricultural buildings. Often cats get carried away on their adventures then become disorientated and unable to find their way home.
Check with your local council’s refuse department - in case your cat was knocked down on the road and has been collected. Contact your local Council to see if they have picked up a cat from the roadside as they are obliged to keep records of cats collected and to retain identity information. Unfortunately most councils have no facility for checking for microchips, so they will not contact you in this circumstance.
Contact the local fire brigade to ask if they have been called out recently to rescue any cats from trees etc.
Check with your local council’s refuse department - in case your cat was knocked down on the road and has been collected. Contact your local Council to see if they have picked up a cat from the roadside as they are obliged to keep records of cats collected and to retain identity information. Unfortunately most councils have no facility for checking for microchips, so they will not contact you in this circumstance.
Contact the local fire brigade to ask if they have been called out recently to rescue any cats from trees etc.
Additional ideas
Register your cat with local and national lost and found agencies
Many of these agencies operate on the internet and can provide excellent standout posters with all the necessary information, social media coverage etc. They can also provide a general contact number for information about your cat, rather than your personal details and can take anonymous calls from members of the public who may have useful information but not want to come forward (eg road traffic accidents involving cats). Many can work in conjunction with pet insurers.
Here a some examples:
Animal Search UK Ph 01244 355 247 24 hours a day 7 days a week (free)
National Pet Register (free)
Pet Search UK - a nationwide charity with 306 local registers of local lost and found cats. Ph 0121 743 4133
Missing Pets Bureau Ph 0870 1600 999
Missing Pet Search Ph 0844 248 7920
Cat Chat Forum
www.amissingpet.co.uk
www.petslocated.com/ (Annual fee of ~ £10 to advertise your cat as missing)
www.actiononmissingcats.org.uk (an unusual website but you need to click the links on the side or the area that says "Our Mission" to enter the site)
Take out an advert in a local paper and approach your local radio station - see if they will put out an appeal.
Surround your garden with famliar smells/items to help guide a lost/confused cat home
Leave your cat's favourite toy or piece of his (unwashed) bedding in your garden, ideally somewhere sheltered from rain. Also leave out an unwashed item of your clothing, which will have your smell on it, again in a sheltered place
Put outside the contents of your hoover bag and/or any used litter from your cat's tray
Download the PetLog App for your phone to send an alert to Petlog straight from your mobile phone as well as other useful features.
Many of these agencies operate on the internet and can provide excellent standout posters with all the necessary information, social media coverage etc. They can also provide a general contact number for information about your cat, rather than your personal details and can take anonymous calls from members of the public who may have useful information but not want to come forward (eg road traffic accidents involving cats). Many can work in conjunction with pet insurers.
Here a some examples:
Animal Search UK Ph 01244 355 247 24 hours a day 7 days a week (free)
National Pet Register (free)
Pet Search UK - a nationwide charity with 306 local registers of local lost and found cats. Ph 0121 743 4133
Missing Pets Bureau Ph 0870 1600 999
Missing Pet Search Ph 0844 248 7920
Cat Chat Forum
www.amissingpet.co.uk
www.petslocated.com/ (Annual fee of ~ £10 to advertise your cat as missing)
www.actiononmissingcats.org.uk (an unusual website but you need to click the links on the side or the area that says "Our Mission" to enter the site)
Take out an advert in a local paper and approach your local radio station - see if they will put out an appeal.
Surround your garden with famliar smells/items to help guide a lost/confused cat home
Leave your cat's favourite toy or piece of his (unwashed) bedding in your garden, ideally somewhere sheltered from rain. Also leave out an unwashed item of your clothing, which will have your smell on it, again in a sheltered place
Put outside the contents of your hoover bag and/or any used litter from your cat's tray
Download the PetLog App for your phone to send an alert to Petlog straight from your mobile phone as well as other useful features.
Don’t despair! Unfortunately cats are sometimes victims of fatal road traffic accidents. Either way, finding your cat can help you to have some closure and importantly know that you have done the best that you can to get a happier outcome.
Many cats turn up after many months, even years, after being missing! According to the Missing Pet Bureau, 3,200 cats go missing every week.
Many cats turn up after many months, even years, after being missing! According to the Missing Pet Bureau, 3,200 cats go missing every week.
