Comments on Have You Seen My Cat?

I hope you find your cat soon.

I'd like to read Charles' lost cat post.

don't give up hope; a neighbor's cat ran off and was missing for almost a week and we'd pretty much given up hope and assumed he was coyote chow, but he eventually turned up after a neighbor down the block spotted him.

put up TONS of signs in your neighborhood. It can really help.

If I lost my cat, I would burn this city to the ground.

I'll second the sign advice - my cat has wandered off a couple of times, and the signs yielded great results twice (the other times he came home on his own, little bastard..)

They also have a recorded line at Animal Control with a list of the pets they have found/brought in.

Oh no!! I hope you find your cat soon. :(

I can't begin to tell you how wrecked I'd be if I lost my cat. I hope you find him safe and well soon.

This post (and the responses so far) are completely at odds with Savage's posts about "coyote chow."

I lost a cat once but he came back after 11 days. Don't lose hope!

I'm keeping a good thought for you that Antoine makes it home very soon. Maybe he's just visiting someone.

After I adopted my cat I started to read every lost cat flier I saw. I really hope he finds his way back home.

How far north is your north? I'll be on the lookout!

I agree with @2.

go home, kitty, go home!!!

i had a scare a couple months ago when the doctors thought my cat had a terminal heart condition. i was a wreck. turns out it was just gas [yes, gas]. i know, pet trauma can be pretty traumatizing.

leave a window open. put out some food. posting signs has worked for my friends in the past. i hope it works for you, too.

a lot of times they'll get trapped in a garage someone closed while they were hiding in there. my cat was gone for a long weekend till they came home.

but he's a wily outdoor cat who's dodged coyotes & raccoons every night for 8 years - apartment kitties do unpredictable things when they get loose. signs. lots of signs.

Annie,

I hope that your cat shows up very very soon.

That is absolutely terrible Annie! =( I agree with everyone above and hope your kitty is returned safely.

@12,

That happened to my childhood cat. The neighbor was pretty much never home. After a week my cat apparently became desperate enough to climb onto a windowsill and meow until another neighbor saw him.

I hope you find your cat soon. I am grateful that my cat's too elderly to dash out the door.

If I were you, I'd search the homes of -- well, you know, pretty much every performer you've ever reviewed.

@16, I am not even THAT much of an asshole!

Cat, the other white meat.

Oh, Annie, that sucks. I'd be a wreck of either of my kitties got out - I hope he comes home soon!

I have seen cats just like that on every block in the city. People who find animals put them on Craigslist but whoever picks up a random cat and doesn't assume that the cat knows where it is going.

Oh no! I hope he comes home.

When I worked at a record store in Denver there was a cat that lived at the store. One day he got out, which was a bad thing because not only was he an indoor cat, the store was behind a large parking lot and on a major street. Everyone was worried, making signs, talking to animal control...and the next night he showed up at the door at closing. So they do come home sometimes.

I suspect it was lured from home by the mystic Floating Pennsylvania Dutch Tile of the Seeing Eye there in the left of the photo.

is your cat microchipped? that's always a big help, although the suggestion obviously won't do you much good now if you haven't had it done already. more wishes of good luck.....

very pretty kitty! I hope he comes home soon. Get those signs up ASAP!! also be sure to check in with the shelters.

Put up TONS of signs... But also, visit Seattle Animal Control every other day or so. DON'T rely on the daily automated message telling you the animals they've brought in that day. Going down there SUCKS, but animals are often only kept there for 72 hours before they are euthanized so its imperative you go often and search for your baby :(

Sorry to hear your cat's missing, Annie. The cat/neighbor that Strangeways was referring to is mine/me, and we found him only a block away from home after a week of below freezing nights.

Some other tips: We went out a few times a day (at night, using a flashlight to catch the reflection from their eyes) walking around, calling his name, and talking to everyone we ran into along the way. People were very sympathetic, and I think more proactive than people who just see a sign on a pole. That said, plastering the hell out of the neighborhood can't hurt anything except your wallet.

I'd understand that you wouldn't want to post your home address on SLOG, but can you give us a better idea of where to be looking?

Check the humane society/animal control first. They euthanize 'donated' animals after 3 days. Found animals usually get 5 days, but there is no guarantee your pet will be that lucky.

I hope you find your Antoine, Annie. Here is what you must do: If Antoine was in a fight or scared he will hide. You must leave a way for him to get into your apartment at any time. He will not come home until he feels it is safe, and that may be in the middle of the night. You must continue to canvass the neighborhood and call for him. He may not come to you, but the sound of your voice will remind him where to go. If he is lost, he will try to find you by going to places that are familiar to him - apartments that look like yours (Ground floor, similar bushes, etc). These are the places you should search throughly and ask the owners to watch for him. Don't overlook places in your apartment that he might hide in if he is injured. Look for him everyday and don't give up hope.

Does your cat have tags? If so Capitol Hill residents are good neighbors and will hopefully return him if they find him. I will keep my eye out here in the Group Health area neighborhood. Best wishes for his safe return.

Well, if you're an optimist and one evening you see a full coyote licking his chops out in the street in front of your place you go ANTOINE YOU FOUND YOUR WAY HOME.

@17

There are a few things I excel at.

A good friend of mine had two cats. One of them got out of the apartment and was gone for two weeks. We searched everywhere, and then two week later he saunters back to the front door. Apparently he just went on walkabout.

The best part about it was that the other cat was totally pissed. Like, you fucker, you went out and sowed your oats for two weeks and I was stuck in this godforsaken place. It was pretty amusing...

Thanks to a microchip, I helped a Capital Hill kitty find its people, who informed me that the cat had been missing for SIX MONTHS. They're pretty freakin' resourceful creatures, if that's any comfort.

One of our strictly indoor cats disappeared for over a week but turned up within a day after we started setting out bowls of her favorite food by the front door. Good luck from Petunia's mom!

@30: You're a fucking dick. I hope something you love (probably your Fleshlight) gets eaten by coyotes in front of you.

Annie, my cats were notorious for falling (yes, falling, they were/are very dumb) off our balcony. It generally involved an hour or so of panicky searching, followed by both of them showing up on our second floor welcome mat shortly thereafter, even though the only way they'd gotten into the apartment was in a carrier.

Cats are wily beasties, yours is absolutely beautiful, and best of luck. Put up tons of signs, in and out of your building, on doors, etc. Better to be the crazy cat lady once and have a good outcome than to be too hesitant and risk not having a good outcome.

Annie, Sorry you're going through this! Plastering with posters is a good idea, but please remember to take them down when he comes home (and we HAVE to believe he will come home). Cheers.

I agree with Poe @3. I will begin burning the whole thing down at your command. Say the word.

'Twany... get back to Annie.. if you don't Alyssa and 'Pickles will miss you forever. I love you buddy.

#35 why am I not surprised you'd own retardOcats falling stupidly off balconies prompting you to repetitively go rescue them?

Hmmm.

Kids, remember, even though it SOUNDS like fun, breeding outside your species really isn't.

@35, When I lived in Denver I had an 11th floor apartment. For several years I left the door to the balcony open during the summers because my 2 cats liked to sit at the edge and watch the birds. One day I came home from work and only 1 cat was around. After a few hours of searching I found the poor guy hiding in the parking garage -- he had shattered his right hind leg, but a few months in a really awkward brace and he was back to normal. Anyhow, your cats either have a softer landing spot, less fall distance, or are simply better at landing than mine was, but bad things can happen to cats on balconies :(

Green cats are pretty rare. Yours may be too valuable to be returned.

If your cat never goes outdoors (good for you, by the way), it may not know how to get back. I've read that you should put a few things right outside your apartment that smell like you (unwashed T-shirts, etc.) Maybe even hanging out your window. Also, be sure that the posters you put out have a picture of your cat and the large word "REWARD" on them along with the date the cat went missing and from where. (And, yes, do please take them down once your critter comes home.)

And is there anywhere outside that you could leave a cat carrier with one of your unwashed T-shirts inside? That might also work.