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Cat Forum / General Topics / June 2004how long will a scared cat stay hidden?
I have a very sweet Persian who's been my best little friend for about six years. But she's afraid of strangers and, even with claws intact she wasn't bred to ever be an outdoor (or, "indoor-outdoor") cat. She simply would not survive.... She is a long-time favorite family member, and last night my sons thought it'd be a real treat to put on some roller blades (on them, not her) and sneak her down to the basement, carrying her along for the ride. (The basement is an underground garage with about 30 parking spaces, about 80% full at the time.) Well the two sons got into fight, and the cat then made her escape. We looked & looked under all the cars but couldn't find her. I'm afraid she might have hidden inside someone's wheel well or engine compartment... <shudder> I'm afraid there just isn't much else down there where she could possibly hide. I suppose it's possible she somehow escaped the building. But we looked & looked out there too. I hung up posters at most of the building's entrances of course. I've called the local shelter. They said very often, people keep cats like this for themselves, because they are exotic. If that's what happened, or even if she got killed or otherwise eaten by Marz, I can get past that a lot easier than never knowing what happened at all. But assuming she's still around here and not been abducted or worse, about how long would you think til she starts getting too thirsty & hungry to be quiet? She's very sheepish, but I imagine she'd eventually start calling out for room service. What is the longest you've ever seen (or heard of) a cat staying hidden? And the one question I'm loath to ask: How common is it that cats get hurt from hiding up underneath cars? Or get carried off to say, someone's workplace because of it? Thanks for your thoughts, suggestions, etc. >And the one question I'm loath to ask: How common is it that cats >get hurt from hiding up underneath cars? Or get carried off to say, >someone's workplace because of it? >Thanks for your thoughts, suggestions, etc. All the time. Either they are killed or seriously injured by the fan blade, or somehow manage to ride in the engine compartment until the car stops. Cats are carried off like this very often. I unknowingly transported a cat ten miles under the hood of my car once. Sherry Well at least I didn't see any evidence of catastrophe in the basement, like hair or blood <wince>. > >And the one question I'm loath to ask: How common is it that cats > >get hurt from hiding up underneath cars? Or get carried off to say, [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > > Sherry I was involved once in rescuing a cat that was loose in a parking garage. I found the cat up inside the engine of a car, but fortunately it was before somebody drove it. I would get as many people as you can together and start at one end of the garage, fanning out, moving in the same direction and slowly, methodically exploring (use flashlights) *every inch* of space including crawling under each car and thoroughly inspecting the engine and undercarriage. Check wheel wells on any trucks/SUVs as well. Don't expect the cat to answer you if you call her as more often than not frightened cats in hiding will stay silent. I would also get several raccoon size live traps, bait them with something smelly such as tuna or mackeral and set them in several places in the exact area where the cat escaped from your sons. In all likelihood she probably did not go very far and sought out the first hiding place she could find. Chances are she is frozen in fear and has not moved. Be really aggressive in your searches and repeat them until you find her. I would also make sure that your sons pay dearly for what they've done (I'd ground them for *months* at a minimum and take away *every* pleasure they have) and make them understand how their carelessness and stupidity has caused serious trauma and possibly injury or, at worst (but hopefully not) death. Please try to be positive, and keep in mind that it is important to look *many* times in the same area. I really hope you find her. Megan  Signature"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." -Edmund Burke Learn The TRUTH About Declawing http://www.stopdeclaw.com Zuzu's Cats Photo Album: http://www.PictureTrail.com/zuzu22 "Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way." - W.H. Murray >I was involved once in rescuing a cat that was loose in a parking >garage. I found the cat up inside the engine of a car, but fortunately >it was before somebody drove it. I would get as many people as you Just another thought...I would make up a small flyer and place under the windshield wiper of every car. It's time-consuming, but you can enlist the help of kids. It would be especially effective if it's a garage where the same people park every day. It could very well be someone has hauled her off and has no idea where she came from. Or it could be that someone saw her run out when they started their car. I am a real soft touch for this story, because the experience we had with a cat riding in the undercarriage is no less than miraculous. Please keep us posted, let us know if you find her. Sherry One more thing, you should go door to door in your building , and any homes close by, and speak personally with everyone, letting them know the situation and ask those that park in the garage to check their engine before they start their cars. I did this, going house to house in a 3 square block area and also handing out individual flyers, when one of my cats escaped through a torn screen. Not only did I meet a lot of nice people, but it became more personal to them and *everyone* watched for my cat. I told them to call me *any* time even if it was 2 in the morning and they did! People did see him several times which is how I knew what area to concentrate my traps in and I got him back 9 days later. It was even more of a relief because he was injured and I had to bring him straight to the vet to get stitched up. Megan Signature"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." -Edmund Burke Learn The TRUTH About Declawing http://www.stopdeclaw.com Zuzu's Cats Photo Album: http://www.PictureTrail.com/zuzu22 "Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way." - W.H. Murray >One more thing, you should go door to door in your building , and any >homes close by, and speak personally with everyone, letting them know >the situation and ask those that park in the garage to check their >engine before they start their cars.| A question for the experts here: Is it even possbile to find a cat in all the many places in a car that a cat could hide? I would have to think you could spend an hour lookiing for a cat and still miss a hiding place. This I discovered after spending many an hour looking for one of my cats. It's lik they carry around their own wormhole for occasions like thtis. Thanks Sherry and Megan. Good to see there are still some real posters around here. I haven't been around here for quite a while, but I'm pretty sure there wasn't this much trolling going on. Well, I'm now fairly sure I've done all that I possibly can AFA recovering her. It seems enough time has passed now that she is probably either in someone's cozy home, or completely free of pain. Although I would still worry about whose care she's in, there's not a whole lot I can do about the latter. I made a visit to the Humane Society, just to be absolutely sure she wasn't there. Then I decided it was a good time to go ahead & volunteer my services. Before, I was always afraid I'd bring home some disease or virus. (One time she contracted something we apparently carried in on our shoes and we thought she was going to die.) I think people look at these kinds of cats and always think Oooh! what a beautiful cat, but they don't realize how much regular care they need. It's a labor of love. I don't guess many people are looking for extra work to do. And since she takes an extraordinarily long time to warm up to people, who knows - she may yet end up at the shelter. Here's to hoping. But I'm reluctant to admit that there's a little better chance that someone's car killed her than someone in my building abducting her. They might know and be afraid to tell me, or just plain not give a damn. But is it possible they could not know? Could it be possible that if she met her demise under someone's hood, that she could still be stuck in there? Maybe I should ask the garage tenants to check their cars... I mean, I'd like to at least bury her remains and have closure. Thanks for listening. >But I'm reluctant to admit that there's a little better chance that >someone's car killed her than someone in my building abducting her. They [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >least bury her remains and have closure. >Thanks for listening. Don't give up this soon. I think there is a very good chance your cat is alive and well somewhere. Keep the word out, advertise in the newspaper, keep posting flyers. Let me tell you what happened with us. I had a rescue cat, Jacky, who was living in the garage. I had gone to a pharmacy, ten miles away, that morning, and when I went to check on him later, he was missing. I looked everywhere. I had no clue he had gotten out of the garage, and climbed under the hood of my car parked outside. I had no reason to think he hadn't just disappeared from home. Fast forward one week later. I worked at a newspaper...the animal control guy would bring adoptable animals in to be photographed for the newspaper, "Pet of the Week." He walked in with Jacky. I could not believe it. He had been found at that pharmacy. The only explanation is that Jacky rode under the hood of my car, jumped out when I stopped and I didn't see him. Your story, and mine, are both excellent testimonials for microchipping. Sherry Lynne, whatever there's going on you must know it. Hang up some posters in and around the garage and ask for help or light on the matter. To be honest I could not bear this situation. All the best, please tell us the outcome because we do feel with you. Carola | x-no-archive:yes | Thanks Sherry and Megan. Good to see there are still some real posters [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] | least bury her remains and have closure. | Thanks for listening. Lynne, I would not give up so soon and would keep looking, even if it's for weeks/months. Again, I can't stress enough the importance of talking to ALL your neighbors, and especially kids in the neighborhood (they see everything), and show them photos of your cat. You can let them know that if indeed any of them were to find that your cat had been killed in their car that there would be no animosity on your part and that you would be forever grateful just knowing what happened to her. If it were my cat I would check the garage every single night, late after things have settled down for the day, and I still think setting live traps every night is a good idea. Cats are really good at hiding and just because you haven't found her yet doesn't mean she isn't there. You can also print up extra flyers and ask each person that has a car parked in the garage to put one up at their place of work or any other destinations they traveled to on the day or two after she was originally lost. When I lost Sam I was heartbroken and very distraught, but I never thought for a moment about giving up, was VERY aggressive in getting the word out about him, and I *did* get him back. Megan Signature"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." -Edmund Burke Learn The TRUTH About Declawing http://www.stopdeclaw.com Zuzu's Cats Photo Album: http://www.PictureTrail.com/zuzu22 "Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way." - W.H. Murray > x-no-archive:yes > Thanks Sherry and Megan. Good to see there are still some real posters [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > still worry about whose care she's in, there's not a whole lot I can do > about the latter. Lynne, We had monster storms here last week, so I was without power for 3 days. I just got back online after power was restored and saw your messages. Please do not assume that you have done everything possible. A frightened cat may go into "deep" hiding for a long time, and yours was clearly a *very* frightened cat. In addition to the good advice given by people like Sherry and Megan, I would like to emphasize the recommendation to set up several Havahart traps. You may be able to borrow or rent them from your local Humane Society or animal shelter. Bait them with something "savory" and odorous (such as tuna or sardines), and lay a newspaper over the spot that triggers the trap so the cat won't spot it. *CHECK THE TRAP FREQUENTLY* -- and by that I mean every hour. You described a basement garage, so fumes can build very quickly. You cannot assume that she is no longer in the garage (or that she may not return to the same place). Incidentally, I hope you dealt rather severely with your sons -- severely enough to guarantee that they will never do something like this again. MaryL > x-no-archive:yes > Thanks Sherry and Megan. Good to see there are still some real posters [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] > least bury her remains and have closure. > Thanks for listening. Lynne, fate can be kind--or swift and cruel. Take heart, however, there are people out there who will take in a stray kitty who seems abandoned. If the kitty is beautiful, her chances for survival are greatly magnified. Also, a lost cat can call on all her acting ability to proclaim, "Here I am, I'm so sweet and pretty, won't you please take me in?" By now, your kitty might have a new and loving home. (Speaking from personal experience here...) On the other hand, she might be fending for herself, or being in strange territory, she might have made the wrong decision about trusting a person or a situation. Please keep trying to find her--sometimes, miracles do happen. Also, tell your sons to read some of the Marz posts--if they haven't already figured it out, perhaps Marz will clue them in to the fact that very bad things can happen to 10-pound creatures who are very much at the mercy of humans and their inhumanity. It is our shared responsibility to care for small creatures who are at our mercy. >Well the >two sons got into fight, and the cat then made her escape. We looked & >looked under all the cars but couldn't find her. I would point out cats if the need arises can squeeae into sime pretty tiny spaces. The cat may have hidden inside a car, under the hood (to get warm). or who knows where else. There is a reason I never let my cats go in the asement, thousands of places for them hide or get into trouble with (heater, lots of places for them to crawl into.) I wish you luck. > And the one question I'm loath to ask: How common is it that cats >get hurt from hiding up underneath cars? Or get carried off to say, >someone's workplace because of it? There have been stories in recent years about cats getting stuck inside a trucks/planes/packages and they were found months later. You'll never go broke betting on the ability of a cat to hide in strange/remote/bizarre places. I swear that when one of my cats needs a place to hide that they have their own portable Tardis. > And the one question I'm loath to ask: How common is it that cats > get hurt from hiding up underneath cars? Or get carried off to say, > someone's workplace because of it? > Thanks for your thoughts, suggestions, etc. Well it can happen. I've mentioned this before but we had one of our cats go for a ride in the motor of a car and it was only a miracle that we got her back. She got frightened into my brother's car when a stray dog came onto the section. Went down to his work with him, got into the motor of another car when she arrived and went home with this car at the end of the day. This particular guy had to fill his car up with CNG, and lifted the motor of his car to find our scared little 14 week kitten. Took her back to his workplace and gave it to a couple of young girls to ask around. Meanwhile I was at home looking for our kitty. Rang up a family at the same location to say I wouldn't be coming down to the meeting because I was looking for our cat and of course we prayed about it. Only 10 minutes later they rang back telling me that two girls were at the door with a kitten and it fitted the exact description of Mindy. This was the first home the girls had gone to when asking the neighbours. She was unhurt and still hadn't learnt her lesson so for the next few weeks we had to check everyone's cars that came into our property until she was trained out of it. Hopefully you'll get your kitty back soon. Robyn |
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