- Not a substitute for professional veterinary help.
When trying to find a lost cat, don’t panic, take a deep breath, and keep a level head. Experts say that indoor cats may be closer than you think—hiding out near home in a bush, under a porch, or in the neighbor’s yard.
However, after an initial search around your home and outdoor space, you might be unsure of what to do next. To help, we’ve rounded up a list of tips from Dr. Mikel Maria Delgado, a cat behavior expert and consultant at Feline Minds, and a real-life cat parent, Bianca L., who successfully reunited with her missing cat, Extra, after 31 days. According to our experts, here’s how to focus your search when your cat goes missing.
Search Close to Home
The best place to look for a cat is near your home or where they were last seen.
In a study on lost cats and dogs published in the international, peer-reviewed journal Animals, half of the lost cats were found within 50 meters of their “point of escape.” That’s less than a block away! Additionally, 75% of lost cats were found within a 500-meter radius, which equates to about 6 city blocks.
To start your search:
- Look inside your entire house. If you didn’t visibly see your cat escape outside, double-check every nook and cranny in your home first (or wherever you saw your cat last). As you look around, call your cat’s name or make sounds that they usually respond to—shaking a treat bag, kissy noises, etc.
- Search outside, around your house. Once you’ve confirmed that your cat isn’t still indoors, move the search to the immediate outdoors. Look in nearby hiding spots, such as under porches, cars, and decks, and in bushes, open garages, and sheds.
- Try outside your neighbors’ homes. Ask your closest neighbors if they’ve seen your cat and whether you can search their property. “Knock on neighbors’ doors and ask if you can look in their yard for your cat,” Dr. Delgado says. “Ask neighbors to check under their homes or in garages—anywhere your cat could hide.”
- Search your neighborhood on foot. Continue searching the neighborhood, aiming for a few blocks in each direction from your house. It’s best to search on foot rather than in your car so that you can carefully scan the environment for any subtle movements or hiding spots.
Nils Jacobi via iStock
Look at Dawn or Dusk
Cats are crepuscular, meaning they’re more active at dusk and dawn, rather than nocturnal, explains Dr. Delgado. As such, your cat is more likely to come out of their hiding spot and be more visible during these twilight hours.
Since you may not always be available to search during these times, consider purchasing a security or wildlife camera to monitor your yard and alert you when your cat comes out of hiding.
When Bianca was searching for her lost cat, Extra, she knew she could only physically search for so many hours. To maximize visibility, she set up a trail camera to monitor activity in a wooded area frequented by feral cats.
Set a Humane Trap
Setting up a humane trap is another effective way to bring your cat home, but it’s essential to read up on how to properly set a trap and what to do after your cat goes in.
Here are some tips on humane trapping:
- Set up a live-capture cat trap as soon as possible after you realize your pet is missing. Dr. Delgado recommends placing the trap close to home and putting strong-smelling food inside, such as high-value cat treats, wet cat food, or cat-safe human foods, including tuna, salmon, and chicken.
- Place your cat’s favorite and familiar items inside. In an effort to guide her cat, Extra, back to the unfamiliar motel where she went missing, Bianca placed her other pet’s harness on their motel door and a comforter from home on the car to lure Extra back with familiar scents.
- Place the trap in a shaded, safe location. Consider places where your cat has previously hidden or has been seen. You’ll also want to cover part of the trap with a blanket or towel to make it feel safer for your cat.
- Check the trap every few hours. Or set up a security camera nearby to monitor the trap in real-time.
Report Your Lost Cat
Once you’ve done a thorough search and set up a humane trap, the next step is to report your cat missing to local authorities and animal groups.
- Start with your local animal control agency or a non-emergency police department. Inquire about filing a lost pet report to create a record of your missing pet.
- Contact any rescue groups or animal shelters that accept stray cats, like your local municipal shelter. Let them know your cat is lost and provide a description of their most distinctive physical features, or offer to send a photo.
- Reach out to any nearby veterinary hospitals and vet offices. If your cat becomes injured while they are missing, someone might find them and take them to a veterinarian for care.
By contacting different types of animal organizations in your community, you can help increase the chances of getting in touch with someone who’s encountered or seen your cat.
Contact Your Microchip Company
If your pet is microchipped, notify the microchip company as soon as your cat goes missing so they can flag your pet as lost in their database. Make sure the microchip company has your most up-to-date contact info, too. That way, any shelter or vet that scans your pet’s microchip will be able to contact you right away.
“Extra got home because of his microchip,” Bianca says. “I still get emotional remembering that moment my phone rang.” Extra had been found less than a mile from the motel where he had gone missing. He had wandered into a neighbor’s yard, and they scooped him up and took him to the local vet clinic, where they scanned his microchip.
Extra is home safe. Photo courtesy of Bianca L.
Get Help From Your Community
Enlisting the help of friends and neighbors is another great way to increase the chances of finding your cat.
- Get a group together to search during the dusk and dawn hours. Bring high-powered flashlights, so your cat’s eyes reflect the light, making them easier to find.
- Ask your neighbors to check their security camera footage to see if it captured your cat’s movements.
- Put up fliers around your house to alert your neighbors that your cat is lost. Hang them on poles or bulletin boards, put one in your car, or hand them out directly to people. Use a recent, clear photo of your cat and include your contact information and reward. Consider including details about sounds, treats, or behaviors your cat likes or dislikes, too.
Get Professional Help
If you have the resources, consider getting professional help.
- Hire a pet detective. Look for a pet detective who is Missing Animal Response (MAR) trained. The Missing Animal Response Network has an easy-to-use directory for MAR-trained specialists in your area.
- Use scent dogs. Professionally trained scent dogs can also help track down a missing cat. By giving them an object that contains your cat’s scent to sniff, such as a collar or a blanket, a scent dog can potentially find and follow a missing cat’s trail.
Use Online Resources
Be sure to post your missing cat’s photo and details online, and reach out to anyone who has recently reported finding a cat nearby.
- Utilize social media. Share your cat’s information on neighborhood platforms like Nextdoor and Citizen, where your community is active online. Post to local Facebook and Reddit groups with a recent picture of your cat. Instagram and TikTok are also great for getting the word out to friends.
- Register your cat on pet finding websites. Petco Love Lost is a free-to-use website for finding lost cats. It works by scanning your pet’s face and comparing them to other pets found in your community.
Finding a missing cat can take a good amount of patience and continued effort. But by combining strategic searching, humane trapping, community outreach, and professional help, you can greatly improve your chances of bringing your cat back home safely—just like Bianca did with Extra!
