loz
Newbie
Posts: 12
Pets I own: 3 cats and 2 rabbits
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Post by loz on Sept 21, 2014 20:35:24 GMT
We have 3 cats - Smudge, a grey & white female, who is now 8 years old and Jenson & Button who are now 4 years old and were brother & sister from the same litter. Button was the runt of the litter and the only tortoiseshell, while Jenson was one of two ginger kittens out of a the litter of eleven. We adopted Smudge from the RSPCA when she was about 6 months old, but Jenson and Button were only 10 weeks old when we took them home from my hubby’s uncle’s farm.
Both Jenson and Button became hunters, bringing us lots of mice and birds and we still get the occasional gift now. All the cats love being outside, although Smudge has always been a cuddly cat and hardly ever wanders out of our garden. Button used to disappear, but would always come home in the evening and now she also prefers to stay around home, choosing now to curl up with Smudge - you can quite often now see them washing each other and they do have their moments when they chase each other around the garden.
Jenson though is now starting to worry me. He disappears for days at a time, not even coming home for food. This is really odd as he is now a real big softy. Even though he is now quite a big cat, he still gets chased by other cats in the area and quite often comes home with battle scars. When he does come home, it is usually at night, just to wolf down a bowl (or two) of food and the he’s off out again. He never stays around anymore and our 5 year old daughter is missing him.
Smudge and Button don’t seem bothered than Jenson isn’t about either - probably because he eats all the food!
But where does he go? My suspicion is that a little old lady nearby (and there are quite a few of them around here) is feeding him & letting him nap on their sofa, as I know he is such a softie and loves company. Trouble is, if someone has taken him in, how do we get him back? He won’t wear a collar (we’ve lost count of how many he’s lost!) but he is microchipped & neutered. We just want him to come home!
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Post by lotsofcats on Sept 21, 2014 21:18:05 GMT
Hi and welcome to the forum. I think you are probably right about someone feeding Jenson and a cat doesn't mind going elsewhere for food. You could try putting a collar on him and attaching a note to it (or write on the collar)stating "please do not feed me". Have you tried keeping him in after he's eaten? You could also try knocking on the doors of the little old ladies who you suspect are feeding him and asking if they have seen him as your daughter is missing him. Years ago I had a tortie cat that did the same thing - it wasn't until I received a Christmas card off a neighbour 2 doors away saying "thanks for a lend of your cat!" she had been in her house snuggled up in her airing cupboard night after night while I was up and down the street calling and looking for her!!!!
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Post by tonib on Sept 21, 2014 23:05:10 GMT
Welcome to the forum loz, it does sound as though he has found a 2nd home. I know yyu said Jenson doesn't get on with a collar but it might still be worth doing as lotsofcats suggested and putting a collar on him with a message to contact you or please do not feed me message. Asking around the neighbourhood if anyone sees him elsewhere might help. Is there any reason he might be concerned about his home surroundings that makes him go elsewhere, any other cat bullying/pestering him or the like?
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loz
Newbie
Posts: 12
Pets I own: 3 cats and 2 rabbits
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Post by loz on Sept 22, 2014 9:16:05 GMT
thanks for the advice.
Jenson doesn't keep a collar on, we've lost loads. Makes me wonder now if someone is taking them off? I don't know why he would be worried about home surroundings as he gets on well with our other 2 cats, neither of them bully him or anything. All 3 of them used to curl up in the same bed together!
Jenson went missing for a couple of weeks last year too & I knocked on doors & put flyers through letterboxes etc but nobody got back to me, even though I told them our daughter was missing him. Will have to try again or hope he just comes home again - not seen him for 11 days now :-(
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Post by tonib on Sept 23, 2014 1:16:25 GMT
I hope he comes home soon loz, you must really be worried. I hate to say this but don't forget to contact local vets & rescues & perhaps the council - just in case, also report him missing with the microchip database & make sure your contact details are up to date. There are also missing cat websites This is a useful article on what to do about missing cats www.catchat.org/lost.html & has links to the various organisations. Fingers crossed for you & Jenson.
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Post by pixiepops on Sept 23, 2014 1:59:59 GMT
Hello loz First of all I would like to say that I come across this problem daily. There are 2 reasons this may be happening: 1. Your cat does have a second home: Cats enjoy getting attention, especially if they are outgoing and like a cuddle or two. If someone else is giving them that attention and feeding him while he is there, this person is stopping him from coming home. The chances are they dont realise this is what is happening. It is possible they believe he is a stray (I have cats that look very very well kempt reported to me as "found" daily). The best way to help here is to try printing out posters and putting them through doors locally to alert the surrounding neighbourhood to your cat and the fact he has a home where he is well cared for, fed and loved. Remember to put your telephone number on the poster and asking anyone who has been feeding him or keeping him in their home to give you a call. If he still disappears and the same thing is happening without anyone contacting you, enlarge the area in which you delivered posters. The chances are he wont be going any further than about 8 miles (this is based on my own findings through missing cats reported to me and where they are found). 2. He is being fed something better than you are feeding him at home. Yes, believe it or not it does happen. I had a lady who lived in a well off area who had "found" a cat. She contacted me and told me she had been feeding this spoilt little puss cat steamed fish, steak, etc. This cat turned out to live in the next village over (wasnt too far, only about 6 miles away) and because this cat was being treated to a life of luxury, he was returning to his own home less and less and less until he stopped completely. He had been there the whole time, not a stray cat at all but because this lady didnt understand a cats behaviour and how they are around new surroundings etc, she assumed he was lost/stray. As I said, your best option would be to print out posters of your cat and alert locals to him having a home. The second option is to keep him indoors for 4 weeks. This will help to re-establish your home as being his home. This is what you normally have to do with cats when they have been missing for a while to stop them from roaming again. If you want to take a look at the following document I also have on my organisations page it may give you ideas on what to do in order to get him to come home and to continue to return The first is a step by step guide of what to do and who to contact if your cat is missing. Although your cat is still returning it may be best to read this one just to see if any of the steps can help. The second is a tip guide on things to try when your cat is missing to lure them back to your home. I have seen this working for people whos cats have been missing for as long as a month. www.facebook.com/notes/missing-cats-in-scotland/my-cat-is-missing-what-do-i-do/224810194386827www.facebook.com/notes/missing-cats-in-scotland/handy-hints-and-tips-for-missing-cats/224839997717180Hope this helps
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Post by smilesbetter on Sept 23, 2014 17:51:11 GMT
I'd like to add what's already being posted: have you considered putting leaflets in the doors of all your neighbours in your wider neighbourhood asking people not to feed your cat (with a picture)? And to add a third thing to what pixiepops has put: if he hunts for himself. Perhaps he is just happier as an outdoor cat? My old cat Jake would disappear for days, and for most of the years we had him he wasn't being fed elsewhere (and towards the end of his life when out neighbours moved to the other side of the farm they started putting food out for him but were allergic to cats so weren't letting him in). He just found nice places to sleep outside, like in the hay bales, and since he had made the entire farm his territory it seem to take up quite a bit of his time prowling around it and keeping this in order haha. He was ex-feral (tbh I don't think he was ever not feral really haha) and just seemed to prefer being outside and sleeping outside. He also wouldn't wear a collar, but more in a savage-anyone-who-tries kind of way haha. He was also a fantastic hunter (we once found him eating from his bowl joined by a live blackbird which he had brought home for us) and so he didn't really need to come home for his cat food anyway. To be honest I think the out house was his version of having a little holiday from his outdoor territorial duties haha. Once you have ruled out someone else feeding him, there's not much you can do really other than keeping him in, and then you might end up with having a very unhappy cat if he enjoys being outdoors so much. Also remember that some people put out cat food in their garden for any old passing cat and may not stop this even if you explain the situation and ask. I think it's some peoples' version of a bird feeder haha. Also I saw a programme a while ago that filmed cats, and showed that cats tend to quite happily march in through other peoples' cat flaps and eat the food out the bowl, so it could also be a case that your neighbours don't realise they are feeding half the cats in the neighbourhood haha.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Sept 26, 2014 15:17:06 GMT
I was just about to say has he been neutered but noticed that he has Has he been vaccinated too? Just with you saying he occasionally comes home with battle scars.....I'd be scared in case he caught anything like FeLV or FIV from a bite I'm a bit paranoid about things like that after fostering two FeLV+ cats last year. It's a horrible disease yet fully preventable by a simple vaccination. As smilesbetter says tho'....perhaps he just loves to be outside I wouldn't try to keep him locked up indoors as it sounds like it would make him a very unhappy cat...just enjoy knowing that he has a full happy life as an indoor/outdoor cat
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Post by tonib on Sept 26, 2014 19:42:38 GMT
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loz
Newbie
Posts: 12
Pets I own: 3 cats and 2 rabbits
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Post by loz on Sept 27, 2014 10:18:51 GMT
Thank you all for your messages - Jenson came home last night :-)
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Post by lotsofcats on Sept 27, 2014 21:36:09 GMT
Brilliant news - I hope he is well.
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Post by tonib on Sept 28, 2014 0:06:38 GMT
Glad to hear he's home safe loz. Looking well fed?
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loz
Newbie
Posts: 12
Pets I own: 3 cats and 2 rabbits
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Post by loz on Sept 29, 2014 9:12:55 GMT
Thank you lotsofcats & tonib
Yes he looks well but still polished off 2 bowls of food & some biscuits, but then again he has always been greedy.
Made sure I got some worming tablets & flea treatment down whilst we had him home :-)
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Post by tonib on Sept 29, 2014 22:33:58 GMT
Sounds like he wasn't really starving then so is either a good hunter or has been fed. Hope he appreciated his welcome home bonus (medications) Let us know how he gets on (& of course your other cats)
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Post by scallywag on Jun 24, 2015 6:44:43 GMT
Still an illusive cat then I see , oh dear
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