Lost Cat Search

Start your search inside of your home.  Look anywhere you think your cat could be hiding, under beds, dressers, blankets, floor boards, desks, tables, behind and under coaches and chairs, in laundry baskets, cabinets, closets, boxes, washer, dryer, dishwasher and any opening in the floors or drywall where your cat could have gotten in (where plumbing goes into the wall). Be sure to check all storage areas in your home as well as your garage. Open a tin of canned fish and leave it out in a dish.  

Look in your yard.  You will need a flashlight and wear clothes that you don’t mind getting dirty. Using your flashlight look under decks, BBQ’s, lawn furniture, inside any pipes, in and around bushes and sheds, or any other place your cat could be hiding.  Look up trees, on decks and on any roof surface.  Be sure to check your vehicle to see if you cat got trapped and check the wheel wells and engine of the car too. (Sometimes making a loud noise on the hood of the car will startle the cat out)  

Do similar checks in your neighbor’s yards (Ask permission before doing so) Leave contact information and a complete description of your cat with your neighbors.  Ask if you can look in their shed and garage too.   

Make large LOST CAT posters and place them around your neighborhood (See an example of an effective lost pet posters to your left) Keep records of where you placed these posters and REMOVE them when you get your cat back. Place these over an area covering 5 to 6 blocks

Shelters and vets need a picture and a description of your lost pet! Bring a copy of your lost cat flyer to them.  Don't just call them BRING a flyer to their offices.

When most indoor only cats get out of the home they hide in silence for a long period of time (usually very close to the point of escape) so you have to really LOOK for them.  You can’t count on them to respond to their name or to come to you when you call them.  Shy and skittish cats will hide longer than cats that are not afraid new things and love to approach people.

If you have a male cat that is not neutered he could travel very far. The urge to mate may cause him to get into fights and he could suffer serious injuries as a result.  

Outdoor access cats tend to hide either just outside of their regular territory or within their regular territory.  They also get trapped in garages, sheds etc.

Here is a picture of a cat hiding under a shed. Because this cat is outside of his regular territory (in this case an indoor only cat) he will NOT respond when called. 

His instincts will guide him to HIDE.  This is absolutely NO reflection of how much the cat loves you.  He is simply frightened. 

Within a fraction of a second the cat will silently slip away.   They usually don’t go very far when they do this.  In this case the cat simply hunkered down on top of the wood while remaining under the shed.

 In order to see this you have to be on the ground with a flashlight. But do not use an LED flashlight, as the defused light will not work well for this kind of search.

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LOST DOG SEARCH

A direction traveled is critical in recovering a lost dog.  An 8.05 km radius has a search area of 125.53 sq km.  If you know the direction traveled you can narrow that search area to 9.6 sq km.  

Develop a direction traveled by gathering information from witnesses.  Talk to anyone in the area and pay particular attention to people walking dogs.  Because dogs are pack animals it is very common for a loose dog to approach people walking dogs. Remember that dogs attract dogs.  Once you have your direction traveled use the diagram below to develop your search area.

Listen for other dogs barking. Dogs get excited with they see other dogs and they tend to bark so use this to your advantage.

Put up LARGE LOST DOG posters (see example of lost pet poster above)  Someone may have taken your dog in to keep him safe.  You may also get information about the direction your dog is traveling. Look under “What we do” on this website for examples of posters.

Once you have established the direction traveled, place your posters along that direction.  I have recovered a lot of dogs this way!

Dogs that appear to be friendly or valuable are picked up by people more often than aggressive or scruffy looking dogs.   

Make sure you check along the side of the roads to eliminate the possibility that the dog is injured. Tire skid marks on the road are a good indication that an area should be checked.

This picture was taken shortly after a dog was hit by a car. Note that they are in a strait line.  Most dogs dart out into roads giving drivers very little response time.  Not all skid marks mean that a pet was hit but you need to rule out a possible hit.  Talking to people in the area is helpful in gathering information.

(The dog was recovered within minutes of the hit and he received emergency vet care.  I am happy to report that he is doing very well). 

If your dog is skittish have all people helping you remove their sunglasses before approaching the dog.  Sunglasses can appear to be stalking eyes to a freighted animal. Don’t look directly at the dog!  If possible have them sit down with really strong smelling (Yummy to your dog) food and get the dog to approach them.  Once they make a move to grab the dog there is not turning back so be sure they are ready to grab the collar before they make a move.  Some dogs are so skittish that a humane trap will be needed in order to capture them.

If you have a chow hound (A DOG THAT LOVES FOOD) that has  strolled off into the woods exploring scent, try striking up your BBQ and placing meat that your dog will love on it.  Greasy meat makes the most delicious scent! 

DO NOT YELL.  Yelling can echo and cause the dog to go in the wrong direction. It can also cause the dog to avoid you because he thinks you are upset or stressed.  Call your dogs name gently and in a playful tone. 

Pet Detective Inc Canada's leader in lost pet recovery, provides this information to you free of charge.  We are not responsible for any damages or harm that may occur when following our advice. Do so at your own risk. You are responsible to know and follow all of your local laws.