LIBBY Indoor Only FOUND: Oct 9 2003 after 42 days

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lecny	LIBBY Indoor Only FOUND: Oct 9 2003 after 42 days	Lead	[-]
Posts: 2 (10/03/03 03:54:41) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Tags : None LIBBY MISSING SINCE 8-28-03 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cat name: LIBBY Male or Female f Neutered or Intact NEUTERED Age: 3 Breed: MAINE COON Personality: Scaredy cat, timid, cautious, only rarely coming to my husband - she likes the other cats, but nvr comes whn called Is your cat friendly to only a few special humans and special cats? or is your cat friendly / neutral to most visitors and new cats? How does your cat behave with strangers or new cats? Seems more bonded to humans or cats? Was your cat feral at one time or born to a feral mom? no, but she surely acts semi-feral most of the time - she is SO timid Date missing: 8-28-3 Circumstances of cat missing: door left open and she ventured out Has cat ever been outside or missing previously? One yr ago she escaped and was finally trapped aftr 8 dys. During this adventure she was only sighted once and she spirited away, not to be seen again until trapped some dys ltr Describe the area where your cat first became missing: semi-rural, wooded, lrg boulders Describe the area and direction that your cat was last seen heading: into woods of yard Any predators in area: coyotes, aggressive dogs, etc? all the above plus bears and foxes Any positive sightings? Does sighting seem solid? The first tenative sighting was Day 7. The second tenative sighting was Day 18. Neither was positive, but color and size were right. Any health problems? No What methods of locating cat have you tried so far: We have tried everything on yr site for indoor-only timid, incl Havahart trapping. We have traps in the vicinity of each sighting and believe someone who knows traps is eating the lead-in food, since the food on the lever, or beyond the lever is never touched. We have tried concealing the trap with cardboard. We have tried both one-door and two-door traps, Feliway, mackeral oil, catnip, favorite food.............but it seems that she will continue to avoid the lever. I'm going to forgo the mackeral soaked paper since I think it is attracting skunks. Simply sitting was also tried but there are no street lights on our road and it was too dark to see the area the traps are in. This weekend we will probably try affixing flashlights to a tree in the area so there is some light on the trap area, just so we can try to identity the animal eating some of the food. ANY suggestions would be so appreciated. Tonight I plan on laying a towel on the floor of the trap, right over the lever, as suggested by one of your collegues Pamela Collins. We thank you. lori Member Posts: 10 (9/27/03 6:14 pm) Reply Re: LIBBY MISSING SINCE 8-28-03
lostvinnie	Re: LIBBY-INDOOR ONLY MISSING SINCE 8-28	#1	[-]
Posts: 30 (10/03/03 10:13:36) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Hi Lori, You are doing so many things that are right. A couple suggestions. Perhaps you could try not putting food leading into the trap....this way, if Libby is hungry enough she will go into the trap. Obviously, whatever is eating the food, keeps coming back--how many times has the food outside the trap been eaten? Have you tried lining the inside of the trap with grass cuttings or newspaper? I'm wondering if she is wary because she was trapped before. Where are you trapping? Is it in your yard, near a wooded area? You could try putting a baby monitor near the trap so you can be alerted when an animal is near. We used this technique with Vinnie and it's amazing how sensitive the monitors are. Hope this helps! Jennifer
mizmeowski	Re: LIBBY-INDOOR ONLY MISSING SINCE 8-28	#2	[-]
Posts: 708 (10/10/03 18:46:46) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	(note from Pauline: I am posting these after the fact. Lyn was having computer troubles logging onto the web board, so we corresponded via email.) 9/24/2003 Hi Lyn I'm sorry to hear about Libby. Good for you for the HUGE effort you have put into finding her. Because of her personality and past history, trapping will be your highest chance for recovery. I don't think Simply Sitting will be the most likely technique to bring her home, but it's so great that you are trying so many things. Continue to concentrate efforts on trapping. When you have leftover energy, try other techniques. First off, tell me: 1) what is your trapping routine? Time of day that you set up, time of day that you bring trap in, do you leave traps alone or do you watch from afar, food that you use, how much food you dribble, covered trap or uncovered trap, etc. 2) how are you deciding on trapping location? what distance from the house are you trapping? What direction are you trapping in relation to the location that she was successfully trapped a year ago? As far as equipment goes, some people use "box traps" that are basically wooden boxes that require a person staking out the location with a string in hand, ready to close the box on an animal that sneaks in to eat. Here is a link on making a silent wooden drop trap. It require one person to use. www.geocities.com/strayca...links.html There is another kind of trap called a drop trap. Alley Cat Allies has instructions. It requires two people to trap but it works really well with extremely timid ferals. www.alleycat.org/resources.html The SAME place that she was trapped last year (assuming that she escaped from the same house) will be a more likely area than any other location. Unless the area has changed drastically in the past year (dogs, cars, etc) she will move towards the same areas she considers SAFE or likely to have FOOD. She will move away from the same things that she considers scary. So you see, if things are not too different in her surroundings, the same thinking that went into her choosing last years spot will likely come into play this year. So keep coming back to work the same area she was trapped last year. IDing critters: In addition to hanging a flashlight, or camp lantern to watch for customers, you can also sprinkle the ground with a dusting of flour and see what kind of foot prints are left behind. You may need to set up cardbrd outside so that the flour on it is nice and even. Use only food that you KNOW Libby loves. A lot of people hear that others have had success with Jack Mackerel, but if your cat hates fishy things like Sage, it's not going to be as effective as using a food that she loves. You can also try taping a strip of packing tape on the two sides of the trap so that an animal that enters would brush up against the tape and leave some fur behind on the tape. Best wishes to you, Pauline
lecny2	Re: LIBBY-INDOOR ONLY MISSING SINCE 8-28	#3	[-]
Posts: 10 (10/10/03 18:52:24) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	1) what is your trapping routine? Time of day that you set up, time of day that you bring trap in, do you leave traps alone or do you watch from afar, food that you use, how much food you dribble, covered trap or uncovered trap, etc. We set up each evening and check the trap the next morning and afternoon. They are left alone. We tried watching them once, but that was the time it was too dark to see. Even tho we periodically shined a flshlght, it seemed to defeat the purpose. We use canned cat food and provide 2-3 appetizers (little tastes of canned) leading in. We have tried both covered and uncovered traps, 2-door and 1-door models. We have had as many as 4 set up at a time, but weren't sure she was hitting all of them so scaled bck to the 2-door in case the open end made any difference. I covered the bottoms last night with a towel but she did not take any of the food on or beyond the lever. I realized today that she is determined not to go all the way into the traps, no matter what is in there, or where, if it would take her much past the entrance. I am convinced tho that it is either Libby we are dealing with, or another animal who KNOWS traps. The wild critters just bumble right it and trip it. 2) how are you deciding on trapping location? what distance from the house are you trapping? What direction are you trapping in relation to the location that she was successfully trapped a year ago? We are trapping right where we believe we saw her, abt 2/10's of a mile frm home, or 2 houses away. Last year when she escaped it was frm the breeders home in PA, but the terrain we finally nabbed her in was also wooded and had a stream, with some houses. The places where we saw her this time, if indeed it was her, are also wooded and there is a stream in the neighborhood. We have set up cardboard for footprints, as well as made a mud puddle in frnt of the trap, with white paper inside to collect muddy footprints, but the mud puddle didn't stay wet enough. We tried the wht flour on black nylon inside with a couple of the others and we didn't come away with any footprints, but we can try it again outside. Maybe it is different on the ground.
lecny2	Re: LIBBY-INDOOR ONLY MISSING SINCE 8-28	#4	[-]
Posts: 10 (10/10/03 18:57:11) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	9/25/03 Pauline: Much to my dismay this morning, none of the food had been eaten from either trap. I had left it off the lever and doled out a full meal in each trap, hoping that she would be sure to come back Friday evening whn we plan on staking out at lst one trap, but as of 5:30 a.m. no one had been there. However, several nights ago we heard a cat crying outside but whn we turned on the lights, no one was visible. We put food out on the deck the next night and propped open the door that she left from. Nothing was eaten the first night, but last night it was partially eaten and moved under a planter. It seems as if any animal could have retrieved it, so I can only speculate that it wasn't Libby or some similar sized animal, but something too small, like a chipmunk, that couldn't move it. Then again, it could be that she has moved back closer to home.................I put more food out this morning in case it is her and she returns during daylight hours. Lyn
mizmeowski	Re: LIBBY-INDOOR ONLY MISSING SINCE 8-28	#5	[-]
Posts: 708 (10/10/03 19:00:37) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	9/25/03 Lyn, "scaled bck to the 2-door in case the open end made any difference" I think a 2-door is a great improvement over the 1-door. But I would also agree that the critter nibbling on everything EXCEPT what's on the trip plate or beyond seems to know about traps. "However, several nights ago we heard a cat crying outside but whn we turned on the lights, no one was visible. We put food out on the deck the next night and propped open the door that she left from. Nothing was eaten the first night, but last night it was partially eaten and moved under a planter." The cat crying nearby is good news! Move the food closer and closer to the door that she escaped out of. Why would you think that it is a smaller critter? I'm not understanding what you meant there. Continue to trap and leave food out on the deck. Spray the deck and door with Feliway. Once you positively ID the cat eating on the deck as Libby, then concentrate all your efforts on on the deck area and do not put food anywhere else. Slowly move food closer and closer to the door until it is inside your house. Once inside, you will need to move the bowl further in, or attempt to close the door FROM THE OUTSIDE. Do not try to close the door from inside because it will simply scare her back outwards. If you approach her from the outside to close the door it will scare her INwards. I will be out of town for a week and may not have internet access. Keep working at it, Lynden. You are doing such fabulous work. Pauline
lecny2	Re: LIBBY-INDOOR ONLY MISSING SINCE 8-28	#6	[-]
Posts: 10 (10/10/03 19:04:02) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	9/25/03 Pauline, After a weekend of fruitless efforts, I am so utterly discouraged. The animal eating at the traps is not eating there any longer. We sat up Friday night to watch for the animal eating on the deck. A small amount of the food had been eaten before 11pm, whn we started the watch and before we turned on a little light to see by. We only saw a oppossum at 2am clean up all the cat food. We restocked and watched until 5 am, when we turned out the light and went to bed. Someone came after that and again ate a small amount of food. Saturday night we watched the deck and one of the traps, but no takers came while we watched. Someone ate a lot of dry food later, during the night after we turned off the light, but our guess is that it was the oppossum again since it was a lot of food chowed down, and the bowl had been moved about a foot, something I don't think a cat would do. None of the trap food was eaten that night. Yesterday, we moved the traps back home and set up at each end of the deck with food on the lever. We wanted to trap the oppossum so he wouldn't try the deck food again. We set up a kitty buffet on a picnic table and tried for footprints again with flour. This morning no food had been eaten and the traps were empty. It did rain a lot starting Sat night and going until 7-8 pm on Sunday so maybe she just wasn't moving around last night. Where we do go now? So many signs seemed to be pointing to Libby being back closer to home. But with two nights with no promising signs, I fear it never has been her and that she is dead. We aren't giving up tho; we just don't have any new ideas. Can you think of anything that we haven't done? I guess we could leave the lights off (altho we only used a small flashlight set about 6-7 ft away, and the next night we covered a 40w light with a towel for a little light for abt a hour after which I turned it off and sat inside abt 6" frm the bowl, for an hour without any light) and watch the deck again. I think the moon is starting to phase into full soon and maybe there will be enough natural light. Thanks for your help. Lyn
mizmeowski	Re: LIBBY-INDOOR ONLY MISSING SINCE 8-28	#7	[-]
Posts: 708 (10/10/03 19:07:27) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	9/29/03 Lyn, When you feel the sense of confusion at where to begin or where to continue your efforts, remember that the ONLY thing that is important that you just keep on trapping. . . particularly in Libby's case of a timid cat. I know you want to get some leads on her likely location, but in some cases the cats are so successful at hiding, they do not give any indication of their presence until trapped. Just keep plugging away. A few suggestions: when you stake out an area, perhaps there is too much motion going on. If you do a stake out, put the food out, and then let it be, without adjusting the lights or refilling. This is where a video camera would be a valuable tool, so that you can get some sleep while the camera and lure do all the work. If you are running out of energy, only do the trapping. I am concerned that with the kitty buffet, Libby might not be hungry enough to enter the trap. I also remember that you were suspecting she was eating on your deck and hopeful she would enter house via deck. If you put Kitty Buffet in deck area, put it inside a cracked open door to try to eliminate wild animals (since they would be less likely to enter a house). You have been so diligent in your efforts. You remind me of Kim, Buzz's mommy. I do hope so much for your success and await any more notes from you. Pauline
lecny2	Re: LIBBY-INDOOR ONLY MISSING SINCE 8-28	#8	[-]
Posts: 10 (10/10/03 19:12:22) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	10/3/03 Pauline, I just tried again to add to my post on the E-Z board without success, so will again email you. I did get it moved to the other MISSING INDOOR ONLY place. I typed a lot and when I hit "add reply" I got a msg that I had to be a registered user and my msg disappeared. Go figure. We did exactly what you suggested and set out traps again, one at home and two in the vicinity of the tentative sightings, abt 1/4 of a mile away. We got two opossum and one racoon. But, we put the food on the deck up on a table so hopefully we would avoid the wild critters. A modest amt was eaten Wednesday night and someone ate more during the daytime yesterday! But last night was the best. Someone left a floury paw print on the flat top edge of the bowl, just like Libby always placed her paw while eating. It was definitely not the print of a possum, racoon or skunk. It looked like a cat print of a petite paw like Libby's. It was the only print we could discern. The canned food bowl was neatly eaten, almost cleanly, and more dry food was eaten, also in a neat manner. So tonight we go back on watch. We now have a half moon and I hope that will be enough light to see by. We are simply praying for the strength and direction to find Libby. If we get a positive i.d. then I suppose the next step will be to lure her back into the house. I could set up a trap on the table, but I'm not inclined to do so right now because I simply do not think we will get her into it far enough to push the lever. Right now I just want to know who it is. Lyn
mizmeowski	Re: LIBBY-INDOOR ONLY MISSING SINCE 8-28	#9	[-]
Posts: 708 (10/10/03 19:38:30) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	10/3/03 Hi Lynden, Francine (Alex's mommy) also has had trouble logging on and posting on the ezboard format. She thinks it is because of her computer / browser configuration, that it needs updating or something. I know also that at the most basic level your cookies in your browser need to be enabled. That is very good news about the paw on the food dish! Until you ID the cat eating on the table, I strongly urge you to not fiddle to much with the environment.. .what I mean by that is continue to send this kitty all the signals that this is a place where food shows up, and a place where scary things don't happen. Try to keep as regular a schedule as possible. If you are in a quandry as to whether you should trap on the table or not, you can always set up a disabled trap on the table a few feet from the food bowl. Then move the bowl closer and closer, then eventually into the trap, then set the trap when you know the animal is eating far enough inside to set off the trigger plate. You can be doing this at the same time time that you try to do night time stakeouts. Thank you for passing on the good evidence that you got! Pauline
lecny2	We saw Libby last night!	#10	[-]
Posts: 10 (10/10/03 19:41:05) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	10/4/03 Hi Pauline - This might be a duplicate message - wasn't sure the other one actually got sent! Pauline - we reach out to you this morning with the very good news that Libby is operating right on her own deck. We set up watch last night and at about 10:40 p.m., just after my husband started his "shift", she shot onto the deck, from the end that she left from 36 dys earlier, in full alert mode. She was an inch from the ground, moving rapidly but frequently stopping at every sound or perceived threat. She moved onto the deck hugging the railing, abt 15', then she shot over to the table where the food has been. Now, the back door (also the one she left from) is abt 10' from the table. The door was closed while we were watching. She heard something, maybe the peanut gallery lined up inside the door, and was poof, gone. We put the other kids in the basement, opened the door and set up a buffet inside the door, with a little appetizer right outside the door. She apparently came back during the night since the rest of the food on the table was gone this morning, but the appetizer and the buffet inside the house were untouched. We are desperately seeking ideas for one final lure back into the house. We think Havahart traps are unlikely to work, since we believe that it was her avoiding the traps all these weeks. We thought about making the deck into a trap by covering it with chicken wire, but it would probably spook her and we'd have to devise some kind of door that we could operate from inside. We thought about substituting a long narrow table for the picnic table, one that would reach over to the door, with another table inside, on the theory that this table, above ground, is attractive to her from a safety perspective. And we have thought of a trail of food from the railing toward the door, but this would have to be down on the deck. And we have thought O.K. she comes in - then what? Will she stay only until she hears us getting up in the morning? Will she not risk it at all? As you've probably gathered from reading this, we're having a tough time deciding what to try - all the ideas we've come up with so far seem to have drawbacks. What would be the least disturbing and/or most attractive? Any opinions or ideas would be most welcome. Thanks for your continued interest and help.... Lyn
mizmeowski	Re: We saw Libby last night!	#11	[-]
Posts: 708 (10/10/03 19:46:36) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	10/4/03 Hi Lyn Yay!!! Congratulations on the sighting!! Her behavior is perfectly consistent with what we know about Complete Cover cats. She was doing the slink, low to the ground, and she also was staying close to the edges (deck rail) before crossing over to the table. OK. This is going to be really simple from here on out, BUT you must cut down on all the audience involved. Put ALL the kids to bed. You are REALLY risking creating a situation in which she becomes attracted to the deck, but one really negative and scary experience might scare her away. Anything that she might perceive as fearful may set you back from the progress that you've made already. So NO kids around PERIOD. Here's what I want you to do: MOVE TABLE SLOWLY TOWARD DOOR If you are convinced that she won't enter a trap, each day simply move the table (or a similar but narrow table that will fit through doorway) 12-18 inches closer to the door for the next week and move the bowl closer and closer to the edge nearest the door. If the door is 10 ft away, it will take about a week to move the table from the present location to the door. Leave the door open for the next week at night, spray the table and door with feliway every night before putting out the food. ONCE TABLE IS AT DOOR The day after the table is right at the door, place table with food bowl inside doorway. Then the next night move the food in another foot inside house. This whole time, do not do ANY stake outs. Simply move table and food closer to door. ONCE FOOD IS INSIDE HOUSE DO ANOTHER STAKE OUT. Now this is very important. When you do a stake out, you have to be CERTAIN that she has to eat with her entire body INSIDE your house. If a part of her body or a part of the table blocks the doorway, IT WILL NOT WORK. The food bowl has to be far enough inside so she and table completely clear the doorway. At your stakeout, because you are not using a humane trap YOU will have to be there to close the door. As I said previously you cannot approach in person from the inside of the house -- it will scare her to the outside. You will have to devise a way with a string or something AHEAD of time, that will enable you to close the door remotely.. . either a string on the doorknob pulled from the inside, or a string on doorknob pulled from the outside and several feet away depending on which way your door swings. Whatever you devise, it HAS to be secure and foolproof. I am concerned that if she is scared away by something right at the doorway, she may be totally spooked and not approach again for awhile. If your deck and doorway do not allow for these suggestions, email me a pic of the location so I can get an idea of what you are working with. Again I am on vacation and not at my regular computer so it will be until Tues before I can view the pic. But you will still be moving the table and not doing a stakeout before then anyway. So sit tight. Let your lure and the table do all the work for you. Get lots of sleep for the next night. Libby will associate ALL good things with the deck, with the table during this time. Just allow her to have these positive associations and when the time comes, you will close the trap (door) on her and she can switch back to pet cat mode. Please, please if something does not make sense let me know. You are so close I want to be sure you successfully recover your Libby It WILL happen. You will just have to be a teeny bit more patient. Pauline
lecny2	Libby returned Saturday night	#12	[-]
Posts: 10 (10/10/03 19:52:06) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	10/5/03 Hi Pauline - Thanks for the advice - we were having trouble sorting out all the options. We followed your instructions - kids were sent to bed, we put a nice buffet out on the table, and moved it a foot or so in the direction of the door. We'd also been experimenting with a mirror arrangement that will allow us to see into the kitchen, through the doorway onto the deck, from a vantage point on the second floor of the house. We're guessing that we'll need this arrangement when the time comes to try closing the door behind Libby, as there's no good place to watch without being so close that we'd scare Libby away. Anyway, we decided to leave the mirror arrangement in place and watch from the second floor. Libby appeared on the deck about 9:15, and surveyed the scene for several minutes, then went through pretty much the same behavior as the night before - ran along the railing to the back of the deck, jumped onto the table, and had dinner, all in her Complete Cover mode. We had binoculars with us, so we were able to get a pretty good look. It is definitely Libby, and she appears to be pretty much in one piece; no obvious injuries at least. In preparation for tonight, we have moved the table closer again, and we've closed the umbrella over the table (it's a round picnic table with a central hole to accept the pole of an outdoor umbrella). Since we know we won't be able to bring this table inside with the umbrella, we wanted to get Libby accustomed to the table minus the umbrella. So our plan is to leave the closed umbrella on the table tonight, then remove it the following night. We've also experimented with using a rope to close the door. This is a sliding type door (i.e. not a hinged one), but we were able to get it closed quickly with a rope tied to the outside door handle. We plan to introduce the rope in a day or two, so it will become a part of the familiar scenery. We'll arrange it so that it's taught and lashed to the deck railing at the point from which it can be operated. When the time comes to use rope, we think our best chance will be for one of us to be stationed upstairs, monitoring Libby's progress (hence the mirror arrangement, so she can be observed once she is in the house), while the other will be out on the deck, waiting for the signal to close the door. We're concerned that Libby might be scared away if she saw one of us waiting on the deck, so we plan to avoid this by taking advantage of the deck's "L" shape, which affords concealment. The drawback here is that the person waiting on the deck can't observe Libby's movements directly, but can be easily signalled by the observer upstairs once Libby is fully in the house. From there, it should be a matter of moving quickly and quietly to the spot where the rope is tethered, and then giving a tug. If all goes as hoped, we should be in a position to give this a try by Friday night. We will conduct a full "dress rehersal", well in advance of the target moment. Keep your fingers crossed, and let us know if you see problems or ways to improve on the plan. Thanks again for all your help.....especially taking time out frm yr vacation. You have been an answer to our prayers. James & Lyn
mizmeowski	Re: Libby returned Saturday night	#13	[-]
Posts: 708 (10/10/03 19:53:35) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	10/5/03 Hi James and Lyn Yay! You have a regular kitty customer!!!! I am so happy for you both! I am VERY impressed at your mirror surveillance arrangement -- I will have to add that to my list of pet detecting tips! The only hitch I can see is that the person in charge of the deck/door closing duty will have to MOVE from the hidden location to the rope in order to pull the door shut. Decks often creak and Libby will be on the alert for just this type of sound. Try to devise a series of large eyehooks attached to the railing or house or deck that the rope can lace through and be pullable directly from the hideout. Other than that and testing out your technique, it all looks great to me! Pauline
lecny2	Re: LIBBY STILL EATING ON TABLE	#14	[-]
Posts: 10 (10/10/03 19:57:01) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Pauline - The plan is proceeding and tonight the table will be right outside the door. We are attempting to reroute the cord on the door, so that James can stay hidden and we can avoid stringing it across the doorway, whn the table is inside. It is a sliding door so we have no choice on which way to pull it. The string is already up, altho not pulled taunt yet. It will be tonight tho, so she will be eating at a table right up agst the cord, unless we can route it up and over the door. We'll see I guess. We plan on observing, from upstairs, the first night the table is inside the door, whch shld be Thursday. And it will give us a chance to make sure the mirror is positioned for optimal viewing of our little girl. We want to make sure she goes inside, whch whn you think abt it, should cause her to realize "Hey this is home" and stay. She hasn't taken advantage of the open door, with a buffet right inside on the floor, so far tho, so we are probably going to the final step. Once the table is inside I will remove the inside buffet. That was a good idea to check for creaky boards on the deck and try not to move frm the hiding place in the first place. Thanks for everything - hopefully the next email will be all abt a successful capture! Lyn
mizmeowski	Re: LIBBY STILL EATING ON TABLE	#15	[-]
Posts: 708 (10/10/03 19:59:36) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	10/8/03 "We want to make sure she goes inside, whch whn you think abt it, should cause her to realize "Hey this is home" and stay." Just being inside won't necessarily switch her over to pet mode. Another person was able to lure her cat into her apartment window, but when she approached from inside the apt, the kitty scrammed outwards, even though cat was very familiar with apt. For some reason, timid cats need to be inside AND have the access outside closed before they will switch from complete cover to pet mode. "We are attempting to reroute the cord on the door, so that James can stay hidden and we can avoid stringing it across the doorway, whn the table is inside." That would be great if you can manage that because the rope would be in a direction (upwards) that she wouldn't be looking since she is looking downwards at the food. Is there another upstairs or downstairs window that the rope could be pulled from yet still be concealed? Are you noticing any changes in her behavior? Is she still very cautious? Keeping all fingers crossed for you Pauline
lecny2	Libby is back inside !!! after 42 days	#16	[-]
Posts: 10 (10/10/03 20:04:22) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	10/9/03 Oh Pauline - joy of joys - we got up this morning and she was sitting in the living room! The table was right at the door and she had just walked in. She is in pretty good shape. She weighs 7lb 10 oz, and probably weighed abt 9 lbs 42 days ago. She has at lst one fight wound and her long coat is matted up with these little burr like things. She was covered in ticks. Based on the wound and the little burrs, I am going to speculate on where she was and I think it is the area that my husband caught a fleeting glance on abt Day 18. Of all the areas that we searched, that was the only area where I too picked up the little burrs. This would have been three houses away, or abt 2/10s of a mile, no resident dogs or cats and very quiet since that neighbor travels alot and except for a periodic cleaning person, had been on the road for the entire 6-wks that we searched. It is also an area that we trapped and had someone eating frm the traps in a manner that suggested the animal knew how traps worked. It is also in the vicinity of where I think I spied her on Day 8, or two houses away from the burr area, probably another 1/10 of a mile or so. what got her back to our neck of the woods, literally, I further speculate was a fight. She may have got run out of someone elses territory. Or, once we started trapping the wild critters, decided the pickings were too thin. If only she could tell us where she's been........... Right now she is acting like she did aftr the PA 8-day adventure and like many other cats have been described on the web site: Still very fearful, dead tired, hungry, and periodically wanting attention. She will cry these little chirppy cries and want to be held and have her head patted, at which time she purrs lightly. We have not let the pep squad up frm the basement for now since they will not recognize her at first. I will take her to the vet today and stay home from work so that she is not alone. Pauline, you were an answer to our prayers and I do not think we would have had her back without you. We will be eternally gratful, especially because you helped us so much on your vacation. I will continue to visit the web site and if I ever get the e-z board figured out, try to respond to others. Thank you, thank you, thank you! Let us know how we can help you now. Best regards, Lyn & James
mizmeowski	Re: Libby is back inside !!! after 42 days	#17	[-]
Posts: 708 (10/10/03 20:29:48) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Hurray!!! I'm sooooo happy for you and your family and LIBBY that she is back home again! She sounds like she is in great shape considering the circumstances. I'm sure the picnic table Kitty Buffet for the past week helped her out a lot! I like your hypothesis of where she may have spent her time away. It was not until Kim and Buzz's story that confirmed what I had earlier believed: indoor only cats don't make distinctions of space in human measurements of feet or inches necessarily, but rather by turfs and territories. So the space of 3 urban house fits on the space of one rural house, yet rural kitties stray the same amount of houses away. They have a sense of our human property lines, whether by scent or fence lines, or whatever. So that is why I tend to use the measuring stick of "how many houses away" rather than "how many miles or feet away". Whether rural or urban, kitties tend to stay within a few houses away. Now you must tell us how Libby behaved when you first saw her, if she was in pet mode by the time you found her on the couch. I love hearing this part of the story So happy for you all! Pauline PS. I hope you don't mind I took the liberty of posting our email conversation under an "alter ego" name I created so that the story was easy to follow. I DO hope you will soon figure out how to post on ezboard so you can help other families in search of their lost kitties.
YMatlosz	Re: Libby is back inside !!! after 42 days	#18	[-]
Posts: 48 (10/11/03 17:48:21) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Congratulations! What was your first thought when you saw her sitting calmly in the middle of the living room like nothing was going on? LOL! Honestly, I just wanted to tell you how inspiring this e-mail thread has been -- it was like reading a spy novel and hoping for a good ending! I'm imoressed at what great lengths you went to to get your kitty back int he house. I'm so glad that your story had a happy ending. Yvonne
lecny2	Re: Libby is back inside !!! after 42 days	#19	[-]
Posts: 10 (10/12/03 14:48:24) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	When we found Libby inside (about 5 AM), she was running around the house crying. The first thing we did was to go for the backdoor and get it closed. Then we had to chase Libby down. This is fairly typical Libby behavior - she will keep running from us for a while, then give up and just sit still. In this instance, she gave up quickly. We fixed her up a spot in a downstairs bathroom, where she has all the amenities. She was tired and very hungry (maybe too hungry as it turned out). She also had a large number of ticks on her. That day Lyn took her in to the vet, who went over her and pronounced her in pretty good shape (no wounds, we were wrong about that), given what she had been through. The vet did say that it was possible that she might later come down with FELV or FIV (?), but there was no way to tell at this point - tests would be reliable only after six months (!) He suggested we separate her from the others. Once back home, Libby ate with too much gusto, and ended up regurgitating most of what she'd eaten. We got worried for a while that maybe she did have something else going on, but since then she has done just fine: good appetite and no further digestive problems. We have continued to keep her in the bathroom. In that environment she's essentially a different cat. She is calm, enjoys being petted and combed. She does cry out from time to time, but mostly seems interested in catching up on sleep. We're going to try to keep her there for two weeks, on the vet's suggestion. If she doesn't develop any further symptoms in the two week period, then we'll probably integrate her with the rest of the kids. She is acting just like she did aftr the PA adventure: tired and willing to have attention. After she had her kittens she was also friendly and interested in attention, as long as she was in the nest with the newborns. We will rpt bck ltr, aftr she goes with the othrs, and see if she goes back to the old Libby, essentially a Complete Cover cat inside as well! It is just so good to go in and see her.
lecny2	Re: Libby is back inside !!! after 42 days	#20	[-]
Posts: 10 (10/12/03 14:56:44) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	It sure is nice of you, and Lori earlier, to say something. The first thought was probably "GET THE DOOR CLOSED"!, whch we did and aftr that it was probably "is she OK"? Hopefully it will encourage others to stick with it.