Have You Lost Your Cat?

Things to Know & Things to DO NOW!!

Losing a pet is a harrowing experience. Losing your pet cat comes with a host of extra challenges, and must be met with a host of extra strategies and resources. Of the complete exhaustive account of the Lost Cat Response (which i plan to write later😉), today we are just going over:

• The Flyer (on the streets and on social media).

• What to do at home right away.

• And a great list of resources to help ground you and get you started on your mission to find your baby

BEST WISHES FOR YOUR FELINE FAMILY ❤❤❤

LOST CAT—SHOUT IT OUT!!

Today we are looking at Pet Flyers, Social Media Posts, and Actions to Take When Your Cat Has First Gone Missing

The Flyer

The Terrestrial Flyer

The IRL Flyer. The flyer you make is hugely important. It does not have to be fancy with color photo (though that would be best) a marker on a piece of printer paper will do. It is a federal crime to open another person’s mailbox. Fold the flyer and wedge it into their mailbox flag, or place it on their front door.

Other Places to Put a Flyer:

• stop signs. telephone poles. (GET GOOD STRONG TAPE)

  • try to strategically place them at traffic points in your neighborhood/area—entrances, exits, 4-way stops.

  • areas that are difficult to avoid & areas that are popular (telephone pole or road sign right by the entrance to the strip mall)

• neighborhood & community boards

• any nearby gas-station, grocery store, general store, pet store, and vet clinic that will allow a sign.

  • dont back down on the first no. most places WILL say no first. (times have changed)

• take a flyer to your local shelter(s)

  • this is key. they will see the initiative, the effort, the care for your cat. you have made their job much easier.

  • and now they know to keep their eyes out for a cat like yours!

The Flyer Online. We will be getting further into that. But when it comes to local posts and community outreach, the most suggested sites are Nextdoor.com & Facebook.com.

• Look for, and Join, all different Facebook Groups for Lost and Found Pets in Your Area!!

• If you post on Facebook, Instagram, or elsewhere; dont forget to fill that post with relevant hashtags!! (i.e. #lostcat)

Things to Consider Putting On Your Paper Flyer and/or Your Social Media Posts

1) Key Basics

• Photo if Possible

• Name (plus nicknames the cat responds to)

• Male/Female

  • are they spayed or neutered?

• Average Weight/Size (pounds. or S/M/L)

• Age

• Fur Color, Coat Pattern & Length, Claw/Declaw

• Are they Microchipped? (add chip number if possible)

• Were they wearing a collar?

• Date/Time/Location they were last seen

2) Medication—Do they need any medication? or are they soon due for their vaccine shots?

3) Unique Traits—Are there any attributes that are unique to your cat? Anything noticeable so that a stranger could identify them?

• raspy meow. a black cat with white toes. etc.

4) Personality—Describe your cat’s personality. What can people expect if they approached your cat? Also, think about what you would want someone to do if they did find your cat.

• will she run away?

  • that will make reuniting her much harder. if so, insist that people not approach her, and contact you upon sight.

• would someone be able to coax her with a can of wet cat food, or treats, & calling her name?

  • if so, is that something you’d like to ask people to do?

• do you want to ask people to try to catch her if they see her? or to leave her be & call/text/message you immediately?

  • this relies a lot on the individual knowing how to read the situation and read cats.

5) A personal message of her family back home!

• how much she is loved and missed

  • by the kids, by the dog, extra cute stuff!

• how grateful you will be to have her back

• THIS IS A MUST-DO. TRUST ME. FLYERS THAT SAY “LOST CAT PLEASE CALL” GET PROBABLY 10% THE ACTION OF WHAT PERSONABLE FLYERS DO

6) Personal Info—this is just that, personal. Give out the amount of personal info you’re comfortable with, but…

• never give out your address

• maybe start with less on the personal info. add more details if they seem needed (i.e. last initial on your flyer instead of last name. but this is totally up to you)

  • i eventually kept increasing what info i put out as time went on. i didn’t care, i needed random people to be able to find me. that said, i do not have kids.

  • remember, the street flyers have some info, Facebook has a different chunk of info (like your full name) and the lost pet sites (you’ll see these below) have another chunk. so keep tabs on what you’ve shared

7) Reward Offer—I have read legitimate source articles that say to never offer a reward. I have read legitimate source articles that say offering a reward will increase your chances of a re-union (while the anti-reward folks say it will encourage theft and ransom. maybe with a purebred registered canine, less probable with a housecat) AND HEY—ITS NOT LIKE YOU SPECIFY WHAT THE REWARD EVEN IS! (is it $20.00? is a giant bag of candy? a half used iTunes gift card? 🤣 you know it!)

• my poster, which ill show them all later, says “REWARD + MY INFINITE GRATITUDE”

• DO WHATEVER YOU WANT TO DO WITH THE REWARD. WHEN IT COMES TO CATS, ITS A DIFFERENT STORY.

if you can think of any other helpful things to add to a flyer; please share in the comments at the bottom of the page! ❤

Sites to Make Flyers for Home & Spread the Word Online

—they also actively reunite pets and have tons of reading material, resources, advice—

PetLink

Canva

Pawboost

PetFBI

HomeAgain

Lost My Kitty

Some of Danny’s Flyers

Things To Do On The Ground At Home

!! Buildings, Structures, and Vehicles around the neighborhood/area !!

NEIGHBORLY LOVE—ask people to keep an eye out for your cat & to look in their sheds, their garages, underneath their boats, their cars, even underneath their homes. Cats can hide for days and days.

In The Earliest Days After Your Cat Has Gone Missing, You The Pet Owner, Are Strongly Advised To:

1. Put your cat’s litterbox outside, on the front porch, or the front of the house.

2. Leave a window cracked or open as much as you can, for her to find you.

3. Put dirty clothes and/or or her bed outside.

4. Leave a bowl of the cat’s food & water outside.

5. Call for her in the dead night hours (sorry neighbors)

   • truly, 12-4am is best cat-callin’ time.

6. Walk the neighborhood at night. Bring a can of wet cat food and/or a bag of their favorite treat, a flashlight, and a box or a pet carrier.

   • walk around with a flashlight to catch a cat’s retina (eyes) glowing at you!

     • you might spot her in a tree or in a bush, not coming when called because she is injured or scared

   • if your cat is great friends with your dog, try bringing the dog along for some of those walk-abouts, he very well may be the one that finds her!

DONT GIVE UP HOPE!!

WE JUST RE-UNITED A WOMAN AND HER CAT AFTER FIVE YEARS APART! SHE HAD MOVED TO NYC BUT HAD NEVER GIVEN UP HOPE (PROOF IN HER FACEBOOK)! 5 YEARS LATER HER ORANGE TABBY IN SOUTH CAROLINA WAS BEING SENT TO HER! IT WAS A NEWS STORY YOU CAN LOOK IT UP! THE CAT’S NAME WAS CHARLIE.

Extremely Helpful Resources

HomeAgain | Lost Cat Article

No Kill Network | Lost and Found Pets

PawBoost | Lost and Found Pets Network

Community Cat Coalition | Lost Cats

Pet FBI | Lost Cat Action Plan

Best Friends Save Them All | Resources | Lost Cat

one last amazing example that happens to encompass flyers, and the specialty of loving cats titled The Power of Flyers

i hope this little bit here begins to help. my heart breaks for everyone missing their furry family member. i am in this with you, stay strong! you must!

LOVE ASHLEY