Praise for our Website
Here's what pet owners who have used our website are saying:
Our cat, Snippet, adopted us about 2 and a half years ago. She was very skinny and very shy, but I managed to make friends with her. She's a loving, affectionate, beautiful cat and a great companion for me and my partner. Recently, we had a holiday booked and arranged to have friends feed her. When we came back, I spied Snippet in the garden and thought she must be okay. When she didn't come for her food later that evening I started to worry but figured she was probably in a cat huff for our going away. But the next day she did not show up. It was unusual for her to be away from home, usually opting to stick close by and never missing a feed and a cuddle. We found Missing Pet Partnership’s web site which was instrumental in keeping us hoping and carrying out all the necessary tasks needed to look for Snippet and to understand her behavior. We were missing her so badly and beside ourselves with worry. The advice on MPP’s site was awesome and I’m happy to report that just over a month after she went missing, Snippet was spied by a neighbor and taken into her house and we are reunited! We really did think on several occasions that we’d never see her again. That is where the advice on this website really spoke to us. To anyone else missing a cat and reading this, have hope! Do as much as you can that is advised and chances are you too will be reunited. It is true that Snippet hadn't gone far and was found in the street just behind ours.
-- Claire Herbert, Bath, United Kingdom
Our indoor-only cat Bonzi fell out of our third floor apartment in the middle of the night and seemingly disappeared. The guidance of Missing Pet Partnership's website was invaluable along with info on indoor-cat behavior. It was the main source of hope during the 8 days he was missing without a single sighting. While we put out over 100 fliers in a 2 block radius (based on your flier guidelines), posted on listservs, and walked the neighborhood shaking a cat food bag twice a day and digging around in the neighbors' bushes, it was ultimately the humane trap that caught Bonzi. We feel confident that without having put a humane trap out, Bonzi would have come home much later, if at all. We're so happy to have him back and really appreciate the guidance that you gave.
-- Megan, Washington, DC
On April 1, 2010, I was just about to feed my cats when I noticed that my indoor-only cat Zarra was not present. The next morning, everyone appeared again for their feeding except Zarra. This was not a usual and I started to worry. I went out with my car and searched... calling her name over and over again. Still no Zarra. I made posters, I asked all neighbors, and anyone passing by to please let us know if they see Zarra. The days passed and still no Zarra. Many unpleasant thoughts went thru my mind. I called all shelters and vet's offices in my area but still no Zarra. One day became 18 days and I could not sleep from constant worry about my beautiful cat. Then I thought about searching on the Internet for some help to find my cat and I found Missing Pet Partnership's web site. THANK GOD! Your instructions were precise, and I followed them immediately. I went out at 9:00am and started my one block radius search. I called out here name repeatedly at each one of the houses next to ours. After the 4 house, I came up close to my neighbor's garage, and called out to Zarra and this time I heard a faint meow coming from inside of this garage!! One week prior, I'd asked this same neighbor to please just open his garage and to leave it open just to make sure she wasn't inside and frightened to come out. He replied, "She is not in my garage because I was just working in their on Sunday." He was wrong. She got trapped because of fear (she's a skittish cat) and the sound of his large wood cutter that he used that day. She was skinny and dehydrated, but still alive. She went a total of 20 days with no water or food. Thank you SO MUCH for the priceless information that you've posted on your website. I WILL SPREAD THE WORD! Much gratitude,
-- Donna Grosso, White Plains, NY
What a Happy day this has been for me and my Mr. Noodles. Four days have passed without his sweet fluffy face to greet us. By last night I had about given up all hope until I found a link to your website. I sat up for about an hour just reading and taking it all in and I want to Thank you soo much for all the helpful information. Mr. Noodles is an inside-only neutered male cat that has never had even a blade of grass touch his little feet. He managed to slip out early one saturday morning and wasn't seen nor heard by any of our neighbors. We have went thru all of what we thought were the proper channels to bring him home. Posting posters, radio stations, calling local vets, shelters, newspaper ads, and craigslist. We have walked miles upon miles and drove and drove and no sign of his sweet face. After reading your web-site I found that inside-only cats normally never go far and when I heard they would not make noise??? I was floored! Who whoulda thought? I started getting on my hands and knees this morning looking under every bush and ever storage unit around close. To my suprise He was right there under our Neighbors storage building not 20 feet from our front door!!! I can't express enought how helpful this website has been. I would have never in a million years thought that he would just bunker down and stay there for 4 days!! There should be a link for this site on every lost and found everywhere!!
-- Beth Harmon, Jackson, Tennessee
I am contributing to your nonprofit today. Thank you for the generous information on your website which helped my parents bring home their lost cat. The story: Their indoor-only recently adopted cat "Molly" was frightened by a repairman and escaped outside through an open door. It was not even discovered until hours later that she had left the house. Complicating matters was that many of the houses on the street have the same floor plan and look exactly alike from the outside. Because of this and the fact that Molly had lived with them for only a month, it looked like there was no hope of making it home. But we set 4 humane traps - 2 near the house, and 2 in a field slightly farther away where some neighbors thought they saw her. For 5 days there was no sign whatsoever that Molly was anywhere close and she never made a sound. On the fifth day, Molly was caught in one of the closest traps, about 4 houses down in a clump of bushes. The experience turned her into a lap cat overnight, and she hasn't let my parents out of her sight since she got home! I first heard about Missing Pet Partnership when I read your book The Lost Pet Chronicles in 2005. Thank you so much! It really seemed hopeless, but with a little effort and your website, we turned this situation around. Wow!
-- Sandra Partridge, Goodlettsville, TN
I just wanted to say thank you from the bottom of my heart for your website. My precious cat Pierce got out and I read the information on your web site. Just as your invaluable facts suggested, he had not gotten far. He was under my balcony between a board and the side of the house, hiding & scared. He did not come when I called him and leaving the back door ajar hoping he would return wasn't helpful either. He was always curious about going outside but I'm certain once he was out he wanted back in immediately. It was nearly 12 hours from the time he went missing until the time I found him and I believe he never left his hiding spot. Without your web site, I do not want to begin to imagine how this story could have ended. Thank you so much... words can not even begin to express how grateful I truly am!!
-- Tracy Church, Austin, TX
I am so grateful for your website! All of the info helped us find our cat in one days time. My Dad left on a fishing trip with his buddies. We noticed that our cat Pablo was missing. We came to find out that she had crawled into the enclosed trailer used to house the fishing supplies. My Dad could hear her in the back and went to open it and she darted out. She ended up darting under an old apartment complex 20 minutes away from my home. We searched for multiple hours. We finally came home. I searched for information about finding lost cats on Google. I came across Missing Pet Partnership's website. I read everything I saw about finding a displaced cat. And it worked! I came back to where she darted under when she came out of the trailer. Pablo was silent the entire time. I tore up boards and everything. I baited her with scent and wet food. All of it worked perfect! Thank you so much. Now Pablo is sitting in the house eating roast and she thanks you too!
-- Jordon Ostermiller, Rexburg, ID
Our Savannah Cat, Max, escaped on Dec 30th into 20 degree weather which lasted all week and steady high winds. Being thin of coat I was sure he had perished. When I discovered your web site I realized that I had to presume him a survivor and make every attempt to find him. Your poster suggestions did the trick. Big and dayglow orange, I posted them and several key intersections surrounding our home. We started getting calls the next morning and I was encouraged that he was out there and surviving. Of course even when I was able to respond immediately to a sighting, by the time I arrived he had cruised off. My hope was that someone would actually apprehend him and his microchip might lead him home. Tonight I got a call from a gentleman parked in front of my driveway by one of the posters I put in front of my house. He thought he had found my cat hiding in his garage about a 1/2 mile away. When I went out to greet him, it turned out he's a man who had for many years been a tool sharpener for our family business. He was on our block while visiting his son and saw the poster. I think your signage tips saved Max and are very valuable in pet recovery. A poster for your website should be in every shelter!
-- Paul Whitman, Englewood Cliffs, NJ
After 7 weeks, our cat Meghan is finally home! She slipped out a door that had blown open on the night of November 10th. My parents saw her disappear. They tried to catch her immediately, but no luck. Meghan is a former feral that we caught in a live trap while trying to get a raccoon eight years ago. She has NEVER wanted to go outside, so we are sure she had no idea what she was doing and immediately got scared and disorientated. As a former feral, she was always easily spooked and unlikely to come to us, so we knew from the beginning that live trapping would be our best bet. We found good information here and in the links for some tips on live trapping. But it was this site's explanation of how many cats just go catatonic and do not break cover that helped us. We would have given up if I had not read about how long it can take. It helped to know that in all likelihood she was not far away and would hopefully find her way back to us. However it took 6 weeks before we saw any trace of her. As you say, she just vanished. But a little over a week ago we spotted her on our road, though we weren't sure it was her. But the next day there was snow and we could see cat tracks all over our property and the neighboring field. The tracks helped us place feed bowls to tempt her closer and in a day or two my mother saw her sunning herself on the porch and could positively ID her. We thought we'd catch her immediately in the trap, but she was too light and too wily. We actually watched from a window as she ate the food in the trap and walked right out of it. We finally got her this Saturday (Dec. 26) by setting some cardboard over the trip plate. We were very worried that we would have to re-tame her because she was so upset and snarly in the trap--to the point where we wondered if it was our Meghan. But once we got her in the house, with a pen set up to receive her, it's as if the scents and sights suddenly clicked and she realized who we were, and that we were good. I don't think she has stopped purring except to sleep. She is horribly thin but seems uninjured. We think she may have kept under cover for almost the whole 6 weeks, and once she broke cover we had a sighting almost everyday. Missing Pet Partnership's site kept us trying the food and the trap, even on those days when we all felt that we had lost her forever. For anyone else in a similar situation, do not give up! And even if you do give up on the inside, keep setting that trap and looking for signs! Thank you again for giving us some hope and direction.
-- Virginia, Michael, Devon and most-of-all Meghan, Chelsea, Michigan
I just want to thank you so much for your info. Our 15 year old indoor cat Felix went missing, having slipped out of the door un-noticed, for 5 nights. I had all but given hope - I had been calling him and all my family searching for him constantly when I accidentally found your website. Missing Pet Partnership convinced me that Felix was hiding, afraid, close to the house (he freezes with terror when he gets out as we know anyway) and I decided to try one last time. I found him and he was only across the street, hiding in a very dense bush (so thick you can't see inside; it probably kept him alive on the very cold nights), cut off from the house by the constant stream of dog walkers and a neighbours cat. He was very thin and weak but so happy to be home! Thank you so much, we couldn't be happier to have our little guy back safely with us. I have recommended your site to a rescue society here in Ireland, they are very impressed with it and will refer lost pet owners to it in future :-)
-- Sarah, Dublin, Ireland
We went out of town for the weekend leaving our neighbors to let our much loved cat in and out of the garage and tend to his food and water. When we returned home Monday morning, Benny was no where to be found. The neighbors reported they had not seen him at all over the weekend and had looked many times. My husband spent most of the afternoon looking and canvassing the neighborhood (door to door). As I had yesterday morning off, I determined to find the cat..planning to create posters, call the pound, the usual. Instead I decided to google "CAT BEHAVIOR MISSING". I got your website on the first hit, read everything twice and determined he was either trapped, injured or gone to kitty heaven. He is a healthy eight year old male cat (neutered) so I was betting on injured or trapped. Fifteen minutes later, armed with a much better perspective I found him trapped in a storage area under the next door neighbor's house. They had been moving items out of storage and he had gone in to investigate and inadvertently been locked in. We would not have found him had I not read the information on your website.
-- Benny, John and Laura, Hillsboro, OR
Your website gave us invaluable resources during a time when we couldn't have felt more helpless! Because of your site we found Annalisa Berns, our local pet detective who was a wealth of information and support...and YES, four days later, we found our SAM. Our neighbors & local animal shelter had us convinced he was taken by coyotes. Between your site, Annalisa's expertise, guidence and support, our boy is home! THANK YOU SO MUCH!
-- Lisa and Dennis Pettigrew, Laguna Beach, CA
Thank you from the bottom of my heart! I credit your website for giving me the hope to continue to look for my 19+ year-old Calico, Sylvia, who was lost for one week after darting out the front door. Several people told me she might have "gone off to die" or been "eaten by coyotes," but I followed your advice regarding fliers et al -- and it worked! Sylvia was one block away the whole time on a neighbor's porch! We were reunited this morning. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
-- Marica, Oak Forest, IL
I have an outdoor-access cat named Ananda. She comes home many times during the day to nibble, and always around 4:00 p.m for her Wellness gravy pouch. So when she went missing from early a.m. to night, I knew she was in trouble. I went outside six different times trying to find her, and in between did lots of surfing on the internet about how to find her. Missing Pet Partnership's website is amazing, and one I kept returning to over the hours. I learned that with an outdoor-access cat, you do an "aggressive, physical search of a cat's territory." I also read the temperament sheet and realized that Ananda is a "Cautious Cat" so if I called out, she would probably not answer if she was trapped. I live in a townhouse and all the neighbors have garages. I had already called at each garage door twice, with no success. I read on the website that "simply asking a neighbor to look for the lost cat is not sufficient" and to go out late at night, when it's quiet to search for your cat. At 1:00 a.m., I called at the garage door of a neighbor twenty feet away (for the third time that day). I almost didn't do this, because I hadn't seen the garage door open on any of my previous trips. To my surprise Ananda answered right away, faint but clear in the night air. Fortunately, my neighbor was still awake, and she was nice but skeptical that my cat could be there. However, we went to the garage, and I called my cat. It took her a minute to meow but Ananda didn't come out. I followed the sound of her voice, pulled up a blanket, and there she was! On this website, it says to ask your neighbors to let you do the searching, and I can see why. If I hadn't heard my cat meow or if I had just asked my neighbor to check her own garage, we both might have missed her again! Thank you so much for this website!
-- Terri Singleton, Lompoc, CA
Three weeks ago I moved across town. After only having a few days to familiarize himself with the neighborhood, my orange tabby Skitten escaped from the door at 3 a.m. when we let the dog out. I chased after him, normally I have no problem catching Skitten as he's not prone to disobey me when he clearly understands I want him to let me pick him up and take him in, but the yard was so dark and I ran back in to get a flashlight. I couldn't find a flashlight bright enougn and after 3 minutes of searching I ran back outside in a panic and couldn't find him. I stayed up for an hour calling him and searching for him and it was like he has just vaporized. In the morning he still wasn't back and I was beginning to really worry. I called and walked up and down my street and still nothing. By that night I was in full panic mode. I knocked on doors up and down my street and the two streets next to me and let people know exactly what he looked like, that he was wearing an ID tag collar, and that he may be hiding somewhere in their yard. No one called, no sightings, and none of those whose doors I knocked on had seen him either. I was beginning to lose hope. I feared he had been hit on the highway and that for whatever reason the person who removed his body did not call the number on the collar. That night, the third since he went missing, I once again went out at midnight searching and calling and once again came home empty handed, heart broken. I had been holding back the tears while knocking on doors that day, but once I got home that night I just let it all out. I sobbed and pleaded with God to protect my big man and bring him home. I wanted to find him, dead or alive, just to bring him home with his family. I went to bed that night empty. I woke up that morning ready for another day of searching. It was the fourth day. At around 9:30 a.m. I heard my Dad saying "Skitten's here! Skitten's back!" and I just couldn't believe it. The little guy came wandering up to the door as my Dad let the dog out.
If it weren't for your website and the information provided about the way cats behave when lost or displaced I would have been much worse off emotionally, feeling around in the dark. Your articles gave me a sense of empowerment. I felt like I had 0 control over the situation and your website helped me to focus and keep up the search no matter how much it hurt to turn up nothing. Instead of succumbing to pain avoidance and giving up, I took your advice and turned that pain into action. The pain was unbearable, but the next morning I was rewarded for my hard work and I got to see my little man's face again. It was a miracle, but it can happen, so no one should ever lose hope! Thanks again for what you're doing, it's a very important cause.
--Angel, North Central Florida
We wanted to write you a note to tell you how useful we found your website. Our cat Rami got out and disappeared. We took the advice from your web site in terms of posting signs, but also in terms of where we looked. Rami finally responded to our calls about 24 hours after she had gotten out. She was hidden in some brush not far from our home. Your site was very useful and we very much appreciated the advice. I'm including a photo of Rami sitting next to one of the signs we created.
-- Jennifer & Karen, Central Pennsylvania
Thank you so much for your web site tips on recovering a lost pet! The cat psychology information helped me in finding my girl Isis. I had put Isis in the garage one day because she was bugging Maslow, my pet rat. We realized the next day that we hadn't seen Isis and I remembered that I hadn't let her in! I felt so bad for forgetting. The problem was that we opened our garage door since I had put her out there so she could have gotten outside. We searched the garage but she was nowhere to be found. I was so worried and felt like she could be miles away. We frantically searched the neighborhood. Then I came across your website and read that a displaced cat tends to stay close by and will hide. I decided to look in the garage one more time. She was hiding behind some Styrofoam boards against a wall. She was very, very scared. When she saw me looking at her she meowed and meowed. She did try to run away from me, though, but I got her. As soon as I got her in the house she ran away and hid! But a few minutes later she came straight to me and all she wanted to do was be petted! She is now back to her old self. Thank you for your help!
-- Tallon, Isis, and Maslow, Zeeland, MI
"We got on this website today after looking for our cat since Saturday night. The psychology tips that we read were right on. After reading about indoor cats we started an even more detailed look for Casper. We found her locked in the shed in the garage. We would have never looked that hard in the house, if we had not read on your website about indoor cats not wandering too far from home. My 9 year old son said that it felt like a piece of his heart had broken off and now that we found Casper his heart is whole again. Thank you so much."
-- The Rinehart Family, Grove City, Ohio
After 3 days of searching, posting signs (following your sites 5+5+55 rule), reading through your cat behavior information, and talking to neighbors, tonight I went on a walk up and down our street, just talking to myself, shaking the cat food container, shining the flashlight around - and I saw my missing cat Ebon. He saw me and darted away in fear! But I stayed patient and sat in the grass between two houses, talking in the baby talk I use with him. Finally, he answered me back, he had been in silent mode until he was sure it was just us (at midnight, none-the-less!). I continued to talk to him softly, and he talked back then I would talk back to him, then after a couple more minutes, he finally came out and came up to me. I let him get close before I got a firm hold on him, I had put my hand out so he could sniff, he head butted me, so I knew it was him. Your site is a great service. The information on cat behavior helped me find my cat. Understanding how he would behave led me to not sit idly by hoping someone would turn him in or that he would just come home. Every cat owner should read this site whether their cat is lost or not because you never know when they are going to slip out, or something happens to displace them. Please please please tell your readers not to give up. Patience is key! Ebon was reunited with his family because of the information that Missing Pet Partnership's website provided and we are very grateful!
-- Patti, Hilliard, Ohio
"I recently used Missing Pet Partnership's signage & search tips for finding our missing indoor-only cat, Ivan. We put up lots of signs, walked the neighborhood couple hours a day at different times, spoke to anyone & everyone we could. He was missing for 6 days before we received the call. A 6th grader helped us find our lost cat, so do not underestimate kid's abilities to "see" things - they do much so than adults! Ivan is home safe now because of your website tips. Thank you for giving me clear & concise direction to focus our search activities!"
-- Kristin Mills, Waltham, MA
"On Saturday, I was driving home and got a call that my Beagle Grace had slipped out of the yard and was missing. I called Home Again (the microchip company), all the vets that were open, the Humane Society, Animal Control, the Michigan Anti Cruelty Society and then we posted flyers in the neighborhood. The next day, Sunday, I put a flyer at every house in the neighborhood and stapled one on every telephone pole. On Monday, I went back to work but used the fax machine to send lost dog flyers to all the local vets. I began scouring the internet for ideas. My boyfriend was becoming completely hopeless about the situation and believed we'd never see Grace again. I put up lost & found classified ads on Craigslist.com and Petfinder.com. Then I found Missing Pet Partnership's website. I saw the pictures of people holding their recovered animals next to the giant, fluorescent posters. This gave me hope! Here was proof that this can work. The MPP website explained how to make the posters and how and where to hang them. I picked up supplies on the way home from work and we made the posters that night. The next day, Tuesday, my boyfriend put the posters up while I was at work. Within two hours, he got a call. A woman saw the poster while she was on the bus and then there was another poster at her bus stop. Her neighbor had Grace. She called Jason and by 5:00pm that day we had Grace at home and safe! Thank you Missing Pet Partnership for the information on how to make the posters and for the hope and encouragement to keep trying and not give up! Attached is a photo of Jason and Gracie next to one of the posters."
-- Deborah, Michigan
We lost our 10 year old indoor cat, Zena (aka "Zoo-Zoo-Petals"). She was indoors, but on occasion would go hang out on the front porch with us. Zena always went inside when we did though so we couldn't imagine how she got out without our noticing and why she didn't come in when we did. We walked the neighborhood calling her, we spoke to our neighbors, called animal control and submitted a lost cat sheet with a photo. Nothing we did brought her home. We were devastated. Then, upon Googling "Lost Cat" I found your website. I read about lost cat behaviors. I learned that cats do not run away from home like I had always believed. I learned that her coming home had to have been interrupted by something or someone. I also learned that she was most likely in an area very close to home. I was not about to give up on finding her, by any means. But just those few tips helped me to concentrate on a specific area. I now understood that Zena was likely hiding and quiet, so I needed to focus more on looking under every branch and fence and hiding place, instead of relying on her coming to my call. I then focused my attention on just my immediate area. I searched high and low, into every area that it looked like she even might fit into. It was then that we found her. Alive, well, and trapped. Zena had jumped into a storm drain and was sitting in a cement box, under ground about 4-5 feet deep. With the help of the fire department, we were able to get the manhole cover off, and climb into the space to rescue a very grateful and terrified cat. She was really happy to come home to a plate of food, a big bowl of clean water and a safe, quiet place to rest. I thank Missing Pet Partnership for the tips that helped me learn so much about the behaviors of my cat, who I thought I knew so well. With gratitude and respect, The Buisman Family
-- Loren Buisman, McKinney, Texas
"The information on your website was a great help in finding my displaced cat, especially the insight into cat psychology. Previously a feral cat, Beau was rejected by the colony as a kitten because he is deaf, and has been an indoor-only cat for the past 2 years. He escaped after dark one night and, even though he is pure white, I couldn't see him anywhere. I live in a rural valley with steep slopes and dense brush on all sides so searching was almost impossible. Because he's deaf, calling Beau was useless. I found your web site and was encouraged by the information and testimonials. I placed a humane trap next to the door where he had escaped, put his "baby" blanket on the floor and a few chopped raw shrimp (replaced daily) in his dish inside the trap. I also covered it with a towel so it looked like a box, which he loves to crawl inside. Three nights later, after a terrifying thunder and lightning storm, I was awoken at 3:00 a.m. by loud meowing. The trap had worked! I was overjoyed at the return of my "purrfectly dry" kitty. I can't thank you enough!"
-- Carol Hewitt, Marbella, SPAIN
"Recently I lost my cat, Gary. He suddenly went missing on a Wednesday morning. We began looking for him day and night and finally on Friday we were becoming desperate. My daughter had heard about Missing Pet Partnership she contacted them on Friday. Missing Pet Partnership did not have any search dogs in my state, but they wrote us back and gave us many helpful hints on where to look and what a typical cat would do when lost. This not only gave us hope, but it helped us focus our search. We also learned how to display lost signs for him. We had everyone in our neighborhood looking for our cat. Missing Pet Partnership also emailed me daily to give me additional ideas and to help push me to not give up the search. Six days after Gary went missing he suddenly showed up. We were so excited. We found out later he was locked in a neighbors basement by mistake. Missing Pet Partnership had told us the cat would not wonder past 5 houses away and they were right. I would highly recommend them to anyone and have told all my neighbors about your organization. Thank you so much for your support and concern about my missing cat."
-- Leslie Thomson, Roswell, GA
"Thank you for your very useful info. My cat went missing when I moved. I let it outside straight away. I read your info and it gave me some hope that my cat may still be in the area, otherwise I may have given up. Six days after losing her I went for a walk when night fell and I was calling her name. She responded to my voice with meows. Thank you again for the insight into displaced cat behavior. I am a lot more experienced now if I were to move a cat again... and very happy I found her!"
-- Melanie Thomas, Melbourne, Victoria - Australia
"Our 2 year old orange tabby named Hudson accidentally got out of the house. He was a stray as a kitten but has been indoor only for the last year and 1/2. We were heartbroken and didn't know what to do. For a week we did all the things they tell you to do, post signs, notify local vets and shelters, search by day and night, leave out food, etc. Nothing was working and we were losing hope. One week after he was lost, we saw him on our deck at night, but he ran when we tried to open the door. We were crushed! We searched the internet again. Your website reassured us and we decided to follow your advice that humanely trapping him would be the fastest and best way to get him in the house. We borrowed a hav-a-heart trap from friends who were having a groundhog problem. We set the trap on our deck with tuna inside and a blanket over the top to conceal the trap. First and second nights the food was gone but the trap door was open. Was it Hudson eating the food? We realized that we needed to set the "trigger" to a lighter setting. The third night we caught a big raccoon (who was so releived when we set him free!). The fourth night - we got our Hudson! He had some fleas and ticks and lost weight but he is now home and safe. Thanks for your useful and practical information and suggestions! They helped us get our beloved Hudson home. I should add that after two weeks in the cold with no food, and with all the ticks he picked up, I am not sure Hudson could have survived outside much longer if we hadn't trapped him and brought him inside quickly."
-- Lesley, Congers, NY
"I want to commend Missing Pet Partnership for their web site. It was SUCH a brilliant resource, not only did it give me really helpful advice, it also gave me hope, by describing the behavior of lost cats and telling me that they do not travel far and are probably still close by. It fired up my determination to find my Cat Stevens, and to be practical and methodical, rather than just freak out in panic. I read Missing Pet Partnership's website from start to finish. I never even had a clue that such a thing as "pet detectives" even existed. But I hired Annalisa Berns and Landa Coldiron and when I landed at LAX, they were out with their search dogs and had been searching for 3 hours already. Then I got a phone call from Annalisa who said they had found Cat Stevens, trapped in a garage at the back of someone's yard, about 5 houses up the street. I screamed with joy, I could not believe the news!!! I can't tell you the sense of relief that came flooding through me - and the most enormous gratitude for Annalisa and Landa, and their wonderful dogs who had been involved. I will sing their praises far and wide. THANK YOU!"
With love and eternal gratitude,
Claudia and Cat Stevens
"Your website gave me the needed information to locate my 14 year old outdoor-access cat. He was trapped in a neighbor's garage 3 houses away, unknown to them. After he went missing for 3 days I found your website and followed your recommendations. I aggressively searched within a 3 house radius, and while looking under a bush between garages and calling his name, I heard a faint answer from him, peered into a garage vent, and there he was! Although I had walked around the block calling his name, until I read your recovery protocol, I would not have been 'nosy' enough to go into yards, peek under bushes, etc. THANK YOU!!!"
-- Bea, Costa Mesa, CA
"One Thursday our cat Luna ran off and disappeared after a car driver thought he had hit her. We searched the area for hours over a three day period, calling out and tapping her food bowl. Our fear was that she was terribly injured and suffering alone somewhere, but of course we also thought we might find her dead. It would have been too easy to resign ourselves to losing her, but reading the advice on this website encouraged me to continue actively looking. Several friends seemed to want us to accept that she was gone, but I refused to give up on her. On the fourth day I had to go away to work, leaving my partner to hold the fort, but by now even he seemed to feel it was hopeless. The weather was extremely cold, and we had looked everywhere. Then on the fifth day I had a call from neighbours whose little boy had spotted her, alive but in a bad way, in the field next to his school. This was an area we had not searched thoroughly, as she had run off in the other direction and I thought she she would not have crossed back over the road. But with hindsight it was obvious - it was high ground with long grass and was somewhere she usually liked to go. Luna had to have her leg amputated, but has otherwise made an excellent recovery. Our story shows how important it is not to give up too soon, involve the neighbours (especially kids!), and to keep a really open mind about where the cat might hide. Thank you."
-- Laura Marshall, Crediton, Devon, United Kingdom
"The Missing Pet Partnership website gave us so many valuable suggestions to help recover our Oreo when she was missing. It even gave us the contact information for searchers who use their dogs to search for missing dogs. We felt confident that, using these resources, we would be able to find our little girl. Your volunteer's words of encouragement strengthened our hope that our Oreo girl would come home."
-- Greenwald Family, Massapequa, NY
"Our cat Shirley disappeared on November 24, 2008. We walked the neighborhood, posted flyers, contacted our neighborhood on-line community, contacted the microchips folks, contacted the city shelter...thought we did all the right things, but no Shirley. She is a former feral, so we could only hope her survival skills were still sharp and that she was not so scared that she had holed up somewhere for good. We are so happy to report that Shirley turned up, yowling on the front porch last night after one whole month of absenteeism! We thought she was gone for good but here she is....very vocal and in good shape minus a couple of pounds. Just so glad and relieved she is back. She somehow found her way home. I hope this story helps someone and their cat in a similar situation."
-- Lisa & Dan, Austin, TX
"Your website helped me so much in both finding my cat Pearl and in keeping myself together when she was lost. Your suggestions in how to go about getting her home were invaluable. Also, Tara Waldorff come with her Search and Rescue dogs Peter and Cisco to help. Her support and encouragement were so needed and helpful. Pearl, an in-door and out-door (mostly the former) cat had been missing for 9 days when we found her. She was a timid cat that had stayed VERY close to home for the 7 years that I've had her. The day she went missing my husband had been driving his truck to my father's house, about 7 blocks away when he thought he heard a meow when he stopped for a STOP sign. He jumped out of the truck and checked underneath to see if Pearl had crawled up underneath. However, he didn't see her under the truck and continued on his way. We didn't know until later that evening that she was missing. We scoured the neighborhood around our house and this other area. I felt ready to give up but knew from what your website said that I must forge on, especially during the threshold period, when cats who've been silent before may suddenly give voice to where they are. I think this is what happened to Pearl because we'd been at this particular house more than once. This time as I called her name while we walked (my husband using the listening device that pet detective Tara Waldorff loaned us) Pearl poked her head out from under the porch of a vacant house. When she knew it was me she ventured further out. She was scared so I did what the site told me to do and that was to get down on my knees and speak softly to her. Eventually she came to me. I scooped her up and we brought her home. Pearl, David my husband, and I all say thanks for having this website. To any of you who are missing your beloved pets don't give up hope! Follow the advice of this website and there's a good chance you too can have your pet home again."
-- Lisa Morgan, Hastings, MI
"We lost a very shy, indoor-outdoor cat when we moved about 10 days ago... We've tried to do a house-to-house search of the area but many neighbors have politely refused having us search. When I finally got around to following your first advice (setting a humane trap), I got my kitty back within two hours of setting it up! I followed your website's advice about putting it next to the fence (not the house). Please keep doing the wonderful work you do."
-- Johanna, City Withheld
"I wanted to let you know how helpful your website was for us in recovering our lost cat. Our purebred Himalayan, Gizmita, slipped out the door on Aug 18 and even though she's done that occasionally before, she is usually at the door in the morning. This time she was not and was definitely lost. I found your website and contacted the pet search person in Connecticut as she was located near where Gizmita was born and we were just at the perimeter of her 100 mile search area. She contacted me back within a day and gave me lots of good tips, and urged me to continue looking and making the bright posters listed on your website.
"On Tuesday Sept 11, 4 1/2 wks after she'd left, someone called us. They had seen the bright posters and saw a cat close to her description digging through the garbage cans at her mother's house, licking empty cat food cans. So they fed her to keep her in the area and called us. My husband went over there (6 blocks away on the other side of the woods) and managed to catch her. She is thrilled to be home and luckily has not lost much weight and is in very healthy condition.
"The people who located her said they'd seen the posters so they had been keeping an eye out. The posters really made all the difference, especially as all the animal shelter volunteers kept telling us to look under bushes within 5 houses of ours (which we were doing also). Thanks to many concerned neighbors, many of whom had put out extra cat food when they found out Gizmita was missing, she stayed healthy and did not starve and is now safe at home."
-- Sarah Tsang Chase, Rutherford, NJ
"...We went online to your website (and other websites) to understand according to his personality/characteristics where he is most likely to be... the meow came from a garage across the street from our house - about 4 houses down. The house was empty and was for sale, that's why we did not check the garage earlier that week. Thanks again - your website made a difference."
-- Tami M., City Withheld
"Slick had never been outside before and he's declawed. I felt completely helpless in the situation and could do nothing to console my wife. That is when I found your website using Google... So I set up a humane trap. I set the trap out and baited it with Slicks favorite food - Meow Mix. I also put out a can of tuna in the yard and put out his scratching post and litter box." (After several days, Slick's owner finally found Slick.) "Yelling his name out the window, I held onto your posted information that the cats if scared will not meow, will be hidden, and are more than likely within a three house radius of where they normally live. Just about as I was to come to the end of the alley I looked over at the side of our neighbor's house and to my sheer amazement I could see wedged between the air conditioning unit and the brick wall was a ball of black fur with bright yellow eyes. It was Slick!!!!!! I parked the truck, engine running, and ran up to the chain link fence separating us. I called his name at least 20 times before he meowed. It then took all the subtle coaxing I could muster for five minutes to get Slick to take that first step towards me. He was positively petrified, but when I saw him take that first step I knew we were going to make it. Sure enough I scooped him up and brought him home safe. My wife was completely choked up when I called and gave her good news. Our little boy was home." (Then a few weeks later, Slick's owner saw a LOST CAT poster in his neighborhood and helped to locate that missing cat!) "After saying our goodbyes, I leaned over and told my wife that I felt we in some small part were able to repay the kindness that you showed us by creating your website and giving us the tools and the belief that we could find our dear Slick. From the deepest part of my heart and on behalf of my family and of course Slick...THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! God Bless You!
-- Eddie Plano, Texas
"I just had to write an email to let you know that your information about finding and trapping a lost indoor cat (both on the web site and the NPR interview recently) helped us get Mouse back after almost 2 months!...I wanted to thank you for providing such good information about finding lost cats -- I'm sure you're right that many feral cats are simply displaced because it's definitely a game of patience to continue looking for an animal that doesn't seem to want to be found. But believe me, they sure are glad when they are!"
-- Sarah Thompson, City Withheld
"I have to write and tell you that because of your website, our 8 month old Boston Terrier puppy and we are reunited!!!!!...we came across your website. The information I found was invaluable!!!! What really did it for us was HOW TO POST a sign for a lost pet. WOW!! If I didn't see that information, I would have done white, letter sized fliers. However, because of your website, we made large, florescent posters, just like you illustrated. And guess what...That is exactly how the family that found our puppy found us!!! They saw the poster!"
-- Kimberle McGill, Rufus and HOLLY
"At just about the one week mark, a stranger saw my notice and called offering some tips and a humane trap like the one described on your site. It was at this same time that I decided to pay your site a visit to see if perhaps I might gain some insight into Max's behavior pattern, and at least see what your organization was all about. Anything was worth a shot. Your section on cat behavior was not just illuminating, it was dead-on. It was one of those "ah-hah" moments. With evening drawing on I decided to give it a try and while Max had not been seen anywhere I "just knew" that he had to be nearby (reinforced by your information). It was kind of a blind choice as to where I placed the trap, but with a half can of tuna, I set things up in a sheltered area where I thought Max might have gotten out of the fenced yard. Within seven hours of placing the trap I happened to be up and decided to check, just in case. The door was down! It COULD HAVE been a neighbor's cat. Max, though scared immediately recognized both where and who he was with. He was hungry, uncomfortable from his infection, and tired, but willing to sit next to my Mom and be petted.
After a week out-of-doors, his whereabouts unknown, the worst being feared for a cat out of his element; within 12 hours of visiting your site and learning about what a xenophobic cat might do, we had Max back. From the bottom of my heart, thank you. It would not have been possible without you, and the help of a stranger who I hope will become a friend. The signs have now come down. In their place are signs thanking all those who kept an eye out, or looked, or asked after Max. Included is mention of your site and its address along with the recommendation to take a look BEFORE their pet gets away."
-- Stephen Lauterbach, Minneapolis, MN
"We took to heart your "1-3 house radius" and went out looking again closer to home for our outdoor access cat, Rocky. We finally found our precious Rocky and it was none too soon. We found him 2 houses away in a backyard, behind a shed, 20 feet into blackberry brambles wrapped up in barbed wire. We had both been in the area before close enough to hear him & him to hear us but we believe he was in silent mode. This time he talked back so we could crawl in & locate him. I feel he called out this time because he knew he was out of time. We suffered several wounds getting to him but nothing like he sustained. He tried so hard to get free of the barbed wire he pulled a chunk of skin off. This injury is pretty severe but he is going to make it.
Rocky also lost a lot of weight, was severely dehydrated, caught a respiratory infection, and developed a heart murmur. We know he got caught up the first day he disappeared or he would have come home so he was in there for seven plus days. His vet said he has used about 7.5 of his nine lives. He is still in the hospital but will make it. We want to thank you for your email and words of encouragement. We feel we never would have found him without your advice and helpful suggestions. And from now on both Rocky and his sister Teka are indoor-only cats."
-- Gary and Jennifer, Snohomish, WA
"Last week Saturday, my family and I had all left our home to attend my daughter's dance recital. The weather was absolutely beautiful, so we left our kitchen windows open, which are floor to ceiling long. We have done this numerous times and have never had any concerns, as our cat, Byron loved to sit and watch the birds at the feeder, but NEVER was outside, or had any desire to do so. After arriving home, we found the kitchen window screen dislocated from the frame and lying on the floor. The next day, we realized that Byron was missing. I have to admit I was panicked. Of all the pet owners out there, I considered myself one of the best. Our pets are loved immensely, spoiled, not allowed to roam freely, (much less allowed outside), vaccinated, microchipped, wear their collars, and are not declawed. I thought to myself, how could this happen to us, as there are thousands of people who let their cats roam the neighborhoods, and they have no fears?
I immediately called all the neighborhood humane societies and vet clinics with no success. I then stood in the yard and called his name, convinced if he was nearby, he would come running, as he was the most outgoing, friendliest cat in the world, in fact, so people and attention loving, he could almost be pesky at times. Needless to say, no luck. As I read your email about looking for your cat and explaining how even the friendliest cats most of the time won't come to their owner's voice, because they are so scared, I thought to myself, they're right. So the search continued. Every day and every night, we searched in our yard, the neighbors, with no success. We even put "lost cat" posters in everyone's mailbox.
The following day after placing the ads in the mailbox, I received a call from a neighbor behind us stating she had seen Byron in her yard twice. We were so excited, and immediately went to look for him. Once again, no luck. That night we continued our search with flashlights and found him sitting in this lady's same back yard. Unfortunately, the minute, he seen us, he fled and we lost him. Frustrated and devastated, I realized you were right. He was frightened and scared, so scared, he ran AWAY from us. We continued our search and to our surprise, found him in a hole in the ground next to a rain gutter besides her house. This hole was approximately 2 1/2 feet deep. He was back!!!!!
I just wanted to let you know, had it not been for your advice, we would've stopped looking for him after he didn't come to our voice. He's a beautiful flame point Siamese kitten, and despite the fact that he had a collar, we assumed someone picked him up to keep him for themselves. Like I said before, we assumed if he was in the same vicinity, he would've come running when he heard us. We never realized he would be so scared not to come.
Byron was missing nearly a week and I called the animal shelters daily to check for him. I told them what strategies I was using in hopes of bringing Byron home and they did not tell me to look, on my hands and knees, with a flashlight, as you guys did. We also set up traps with tuna, as mentioned by you guys.
Once again, thank you for your helpful advice and confidence in bringing our beloved Byron home. Your advice is the reason he is here, and you guys were completely right as the humane societies did not tell us this information. Please pass on to the next pet owner your helpful hints and advice. Once again, your email is the reason Byron is Home. Also to let other pet owners know to never lose hope. As frustrating and hopeless as it seems at times, our pets need us to have confidence in them.
-- Stacy, City Withheld
Our littlest dog, "Goldie," jumped the fence a week ago to chase a mailman. She was then frightened by a neighbor trying to catch her as we were gone. I came home from work about 2 hours later and started searching. I made posters and checked shelters daily. Finally after finding your website I made new posters according to your specs and within 2 days I had multiple responses which led to bringing her home. I fully endorse the 22"x27" signs and I can't thank you enough. I can't say she is good as new, she went through some trials, but she is home and we are so very happy. You know your business, you profiled her exactly and that too helped in her capture. Everyone, this website contains the best advice you will ever find!
-- Karen Johnston, San Diego, CA
I wanted to thank you for providing good information about missing pets and their behavior patterns. My indoor/outdoor cat recently disappeared and I started to get worried after he did not return within the usual 24 or so hours. I had made up some signs and posted them around the area. Within a few hours I got one response of a sighting; however, no cat as the sighting was almost 12 hours old. The next morning I found your site. Based on the information you provided about sign making and behavior patterns I was able to revise my sign/flyer and distribute it to all neighbors in the area of the sighting. Within about 4 hours people started to arrive home from work and I got reports of 3 sightings one of which was within the prior 10 minutes. I was able to go to the location of the sighting and within only a minute or so a tired, hungry and now happy displaced cat responded to my calls. Your site help me focus my search correctly and got me to be even more proactive than I had been. I knew that if I had at least done the physical search like your site suggests then I would have felt much better in the end even if I was not able to recover my cat. With the information you provided I was pretty sure my cat would still be relatively close to the area of the first sighting. In the end, all three sightings as well as the recovery point were within about a 1/8 of a mile from each other. Thanks again, Eric.
-- Eric, Norwell, MA
I wanted to let you know just how many lives you helped save by your website. I have used this information to help find MANY lost pets. I work with animals and also have a local classified website to post missing and found animals www.peanutsfriends.org. Your advice has located dogs in seconds! Cats in hours! And it has returned lost pets to its rightful homes just by your THINK LOST, NOT STRAY logo. These dogs and cats would have otherwise been considered "abandoned" or "stray" or "abused" just by their appearance. Thank you for your hard work!
-- Maria Burley, Leesburg, GA
Praise the Lord I found this website. My two-year-old cat, Jake, had been missing 10 days. He was live-trapped as a feral kitten, neutered and adopted into our family. I entered an exhaustive effort to find him when he became missing on March 2, 2008. I searched the web for help, rescue groups, checked shelters and went around our neighborhood and just could not figure out what could have happened to him. Then I found this site. After carefully reading your tips about cat behaviors and hiding in silence, I set out on a new search. I found him right next door in my neighbor's garage March 12, ten long days later. It is important to mention--this garage is not used for parking vehicles. It is FULL of stored "stuff": family heirlooms, work materials, furniture, junk, I do mean FULL. The key to finding Jake was when my neighbor went inside his house and left me to look around, all I wanted, on my own. Jake was scared, hiding in silence. I had been less than two feet from him, searching exactly where he was but he kept quiet. He did NOT begin to speak to me until he was sure I was alone and he was safe. I just kept calling his name and finally he answered. I am so relieved to have him home, safe. Thank you so much for posting this information . Your tips helped point me in the RIGHT direction.
-- Annette Fowler, McLeansville, NC
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