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Cat name: Honey

Male or Female: Male

Neutered or Intact: Neutered

Age: 10 years

Breed: Domestic Short Hair

Personality: Scaredy cat, timid, cautious, mellow, very friendly or dominant personality?

In the home he is mellow but dominant, and very friendly with us or people he chooses. He's picky about who he decides to be nice to. In the vet, which is his only exposure to the rest of the world, he is more than a scaredy cat -- he bit my hand down to the bone once because I tried to get him out from under a bench in the examination room.

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?

I don't want to just say that he is equally bonded to his cat and his human family... He gets different things from the different relationships. He grew up with an older female, and they played like crazy for eight years until she died. He got a kitten almost two years ago, and though it took a few weeks for him to accept her, they are very close and play like crazy. When people come into the house, he is around and struttin his stuff, but doesn't want to be touched unless it is his decision. He's been known to let one know that he is not happy with being pet -- he's quite loud. We also have a large dog. Honey has never been afraid of dogs in our home. I had a stray for a few weeks once until I found it a home and the dog and Honey shared a food dish from time to time. Also, Honey told our Rottie who was boss from the time she came to live with us. He never smacked her or anything, just stood there with confidence. They even gave each other a bath when Honey thought nobody was looking.

Was your cat feral at one time or born to a feral mom? No to both.

Date missing: October 26

Circumstances of cat missing: I opened the windows to let in the fresh air (it was Indian Summer) about 1 pm. We heard a noise about 10 pm and went to investigate. We found that the screen had been pushed out and our basement was full of frogs and toads. I don't know how long he had been out, but it was long enough for the amphibians to come inside.

Has cat ever been outside or missing previously? He has never gone missing, and has only been outside for moments when he's shot out between our legs. We've always scooped him right up and thrown him back inside. He is allowed to hang around on the screened-in deck in the backyard.

Describe behavior when outside: He loves to scratch his back on the sidewalk when the sun is out. That is how I always get him back inside so fast -- because he is relaxed happy cat. He is always the first one out on the deck as soon as he hears the door open. He is always sniffing at the breeze when he's out there.

What is the most frightened that you have ever seen your cat? Describe the circumstance, describe your cat's behavior, how long did it take for cat to recover.

The most frightened I have ever seen Honey is at the vet's office. He got worse as he got older. He slinks real close to the floor and hides under a bench in the examination room. I let him hang out there until the doctor comes back. Once, when I stuck my hand under to pull him out, he latched on and didn't let go. He growled really low and long. I didn't realize how strong he was!! He made a nice whole in my hand, that the vet techs all went crazy over. Once we got home, he ran for cover, and was fine when dinner got started.

Describe the area where your cat first became missing: He escaped from the basement window in my backyard. It is a full-sized window at ground level. The deck where he lounges is to the left of the window as you look into the back yard. Directly in front of you is yards and yards of wooded area.

Describe the area and direction that your cat was last seen heading: He hasn't been seen at all, but a search dog indicated that he was headed to the right of my yard and deeper into the woods. The handler called the dog off as soon as they caught a trail so that we wouldn't scare him further away. We found remnants of a bird in that direction that disappeared entirely over the course of three days. Food that we placed was also eaten there -- that was a week ago, and there has been no further activity since. Yesterday I received a call from a lady who may have hearding him yowling from a bush in her yard the day before when it was raining. She didn't call right away because she assumed the cat was home and only changed her mind because of a second set of flyers was distributed.

Any predators in area: coyotes, aggressive dogs, etc? We have lots of wildlife around -- foxes, raccoons, and opposums.

Any positive sightings? Does sighting seem solid? No sightings, but I do believe the lady was hearing Honey crying. She described his yowl perfectly -- the same one he makes at the vets office. Also, her yard is in the same direction as the dog pointed. Only much further away.

Any health problems? Not right now.

What methods of locating cat have you tried so far: Original distribution of flyers the day after he went missing, and updated distribution to same group yesterday to keep things fresh. They went into each mailbox within a one-mile radius of our house -- all of the neighboring communities are enclosed by three major highways. We have performed foot searches early morning, early afternoon, early evening, and wee hours. We've tried calling for him and shaking food. I've turned the backyard and deck into kitty paradise, complete with his kitten's dirty litterbox, my clothes and comforter, food, Feliway spray, etc. I have a trap set outside of the window from which he escaped, and another in the woods in the direction that was recommended by the search dog. I've also been to the pound every two to three days.

If you are trapping, please describe your trapping routine: time that you set trap, time that you bring it in, do you cover trap or uncover trap, what food bait do you use, is that your cat's favorite food, how much food do you dribble, describe the locations you are trapping and why you think locations would be attractive to cat.

I have left both traps set at all times, and have been checking them frequently. (I am fortunate to do most of my work from home.) I have tried lining the bottom and outside of the trap with my clothes. After the last two-day rain, I brought the clothes in and have been using cardboard to make things a bit cozy -- he does like cardboard boxes. I have used canned cat food, tuna, dry cat food, and today we set out Jack Mackeral (horrible stuff). I closed up the trap in the woods today, because I think he is much further down thatn would benefit. Plus, I am not sure that he is interested in being around the thing. We removed it once from the woods, but left the bait -- the bait disappeared. We reset the trap, but the bait, even on the outside of the trap, has gone untouched. Today, we set up two kitty buffets in the woods -- one near the trap, and another in the back yard of the lady with the bush.

I am sorry that I didn't fill out the questionairre with my first post. I was so anxious that I didn't go back and reread the directions. I have read and reread some of the other posts for ideas, and I feel like I'm not doing enough. I think I am too impatient for good footsearches, and I am overwhelmed by the amount of ground we believe that he has covered. He's probably about seven house-lengths away in the woods, and as of the day before yesterday, only about three from the first major road. Some neighbors are not very tolerant of my digging in their bushes.

Thank you so much for taking the time to respond to my posts… It helps a lot having a cheerleader out there.

ANSWERS TO YOUR QUESTIONS:

1) "The deck where he lounges is to the left of the window as you look into the back yard."

So from the window he could see the screened in deck, but once outside there is no way for him to enter the screened in deck area?

**From the window he can see the deck. At the time he escaped, there was no way for him to enter the screened in deck area because we usually keep it locked. However, since he has been gone, the door has been kept wide open. The concern I have about the deck appearing desirable to him is that there are five steps up, and there are no solid risers to the back of each step. He has climbed indoor stairs his whole life, but has never climbed deck stairs.

2) "a search dog indicated that he was headed to the right of my yard and deeper into the woods."

How many days after the escape did the dog come out to search? Was it a cat detection dog or a trailing dog? Did you get the handler's name from Kat Albrecht's website? (Please don't name any names.)

**The search dog came out to search ten days after Honey escaped. During those ten days, we had several days of rain, and the peak of falling leaves. The dog is a retired police trailing dog. It was absolutely amazing to watch her work. I did not get the handler’s name from Kat’s site… I live in Maryland, and researched every search and rescue dog organization in the area. Of the two groups who returned my call, I was given this lady’s name. She assured me that we would not find the cat that day unless he was seriously injured or deceased, and that she could only give me an idea as to where to place the traps. She called the dog off as soon as we got a reliable trail so that we would not scare Honey further in to the woods. The lady stayed another 45 minutes or so and walked my husband and I through two exercises to work on with our puppy, who is the same breed as her dog. I want to help people who feel as badly as I do!! (I had wanted to train Pumpkin as a search and rescue dog even before Honey went missing.)

3) "Also, her yard is in the same direction as the dog pointed. Only much further away."

Is this location the area that you say is 7 house lengths away? 7 house lengths is still within the norm of what a cat would travel. Honey is a more bold cat and may move more. In general, cats are often much closer than the owners think they are.

**Yes, the potential “hearing (sighting)” is about seven houses away. I am just concerned because the yards are so big. Do you think he’ll stay in the area? If it is him eating our food, he is having to come out from somewhere to eat.

4) Have you thoroughly checked under the deck area and locations right near your house that he may be hiding?

**One lady told me to get down on my hands and knees, starting at the point of exit, and crawl in semi-circles, widening each time. I did this quite a few times, as did my Mom. We were even allowed to do this in a few of the neighbor’s yards. My immediate next-door neighbor is creepy and will not let me near his… I am afraid that if Honey gets even close, the neighbor will destroy him.

YOUR SUGGESTIONS:

1) Is there any way you can leave the same window open that he escaped out of and turn it into a House Trap? Could you turn the screened in deck area into a House Trap?

It would be difficult to leave that window open because of the other pets in the house (another kitty and a young dog). I can definitely turn the deck into a House Trap – I’ll go back and reread your information on those. I just don’t remember how you get the animal to stay in once it is there. Do you think the steps would be an issue?

2) It's great that you are changing around the food in your traps and putting out food beside the trap to see if he would eat. Don't use Jack Mackerel on a regular basis unless you KNOW for a fact Honey likes the stuff.

The fish that we placed last night was devoured by some animal. I left a glove and a plastic baggie in the area (the baggie held the fish, and the glove was used to place it). Whoever ate the food, also carried the bag and glove off about 30 yards. We put another can of fish in the same spot as last night, and the cat food where the glove and baggie were. I won’t use the fish every day.

3) I would also experiment with not putting cardboard or any covering and leave the trap bare. Some cats prefer to see all around them.

We brought the trap from the woods in today. It seems like wherever a trap shows up, the animal who eats stops coming. It is like the mere presence is spooky or something. Once I get a better ID on the critter we’ll have to have a better trap plan.

4) Sprinkle flour around the food to see if you can get footprints to ID the critter eating. I have a 36 inch diameter circle around both food placements.

5) If you have a video camera try to set one up to see who is eating. Whoever is eating is coming between the hours of 10 or 11 pm and 7 am. I think my camera only does 2 hours – plus the battery is wimpy. Do you know of any affordable surveillance equipment? The more I check, the less critter activity that seems to happen… I would love to have something that would watch for 8 or 9 hours. Is there any benefit to trying to stay up out there all night? Would my breathing scare him? Or would he smell me and stay away? My husband suggested letting our other cat play in the trap, for her smell to rub off, but I’m not sure it would stick.

Thank you again for your support… I know time is precious and hard to find sometimes. You are really helping me. I am also glad your kitty came home. I can’t wait to have my life back – I feel guilty being in a warm house because I know he is cold. Oh, and we are expecting 20 degree temps tonight… Will he be okay?

I am a little more hopeful today... Our little friend did not eat the fish from the blanket, so I am assured that I made the right decision in not staying out in the cold.

I left two soccer chairs in the woods last night, and when I went to check on the area, one of them looked like a cat was laying in it from behind -- there was a sag in the bottom of the chair. When I got up close, it was empty, but there were little tan furs all stuck to the chair. Those chairs have not been in the house since we moved in a year and a half ago. We brought them in last weekend because we needed extra seating, and Angel (the young cat) sat in one, but her fur is different. The furs may have been there from before they were stored, but who knows... I left one chair out there and brought one in the yard. When it is not raining, I'll use that to make the yard a happy kitty place.

Also, two other spots that I had laid out food are missing their stock. One of them was from a night before, and I had spread flour around it. That food container is MIA, but the flour is stuck to the ground like glue, and there are no paw prints to ID.

The other container was in the original ravine -- which is much closer to my house. It was empty. I put Honey's ceramic food dish full of sardines in it's place this morning. If I can get that dish closer and closer into my yard, and there is some kind of evidence that it's Honey, I can turn the basement window into a house trap. I can't risk doing that every night because of the other pets, but if I know it's him I'll bet that's the best way to get him in.

Hi There,

I felt the need to regroup today, so I created a timeline... It includes only information that might pertain to Honey's location... I have been to animal control, and set up kitty paradise on the deck and all. This is just stuff that you might look at to tell me if I am thinking logically... I created a map to go with it -- but am not sure how to post it. Do you want me to e-mail it directly?

October 26, 2003

Honey escaped through a loose window screen (point A) sometime between 1:00 and 10:00 pm. The weather was beautiful during the day… It began to rain shortly after we noticed that he was out the window, and it didn’t stop for three days.


October 27, 2003

First flyer distribution takes place.

October 29, 2003

Animal Communicator says, “Honey is alive. He was frightened by a white or light-colored driving machine. He is on the other side of it. He is in or around a white or light-colored shed or garage with a green or gray roof. He has heard us calling, but is not moving from his spot. He sees a couch covered with a blanket and he is about ½ to 1 mile away.”


November 1, 2003

The rain stops. Mom and Charlie find a freshly killed bird in the ravine behind our neighbor’s house (point B).

Angel (the other kitty) is acting really weird and walking around meowing at the windows facing the back of the house.

All three of us humans in the house think we hear muffled meows coming from the woods at different times. (Charlie and I heard one together after 12:30 am Sunday morning.)


November 2, 2003

Mom convinces me to investigate the dead bird. The only thing left is a head, the feet, and feathers. Makes me think a cat got it, but Honey has never killed for food before. We decide to set a trap later in the afternoon in that spot. We go back at 4:00 pm and the bird has been disturbed and some of the remains are missing. We place the trap.


November 3, 2003

Mom brings the trap back into the yard after more than 24 hours. She leaves the bait behind.


November 4, 2004

The rest of the bird and the bait have been eaten. I spread moist cat food on parchment paper as a lure, and that was cleaned, plus a few teeth marks were left in the paper that could have been cat. The plastic container had been licked clean. I reset the trap in the same spot.


November 5, 2004

In the a.m. I see that the parchment lure near the trap set by the window has been licked clean. None of the other food in the yard has been touched, which makes me discount a dog, and maybe even wildlife. No teeth holes.

It has been raining lightly since sunrise.

The search dog and her handler come before lunch. The dog immediately caught Honey’s scent at the escape window (point A) and follows it into the woods at point C. She follows the fence line and makes a quick right into the alley made by my next-door neighbor’s privacy fence and his neighbor’s fence. She loses the trail in the front yard at my next door neighbor’s wood pile. This makes my stomach sick because he is the type who would destroy the cat and claim that he was a nuisance.

We continue moving, around neighboring yards in a clock-wise fashion. The dog finds two piles of doo doo that are shaped like Honey’s but a different color on the top of the hill in the back woods (point D). The dog is not trained to distinguish ownership of waste. The dog picks up Honey trail a bit further down the hill at point E. The dog is pulled off and we are told to continue trapping in the area. (point E is very close to point B).

It begins raining and doesn’t stop for two days.


November 7, 2003

Second flyer distribution takes place. Within 20 minutes, I get a phone call from a woman in my neighborhood. She said that she heard a meow/growl coming from a bush in her front yard (point F) during the day in the rain the day before. She said it lasted a long time, and stopped when she went outside.


November 8, 2003

Beginning of Indian Summer. Weather is warm and sunny… After a two-day search of the lady’s yard, we decide to place a kitty buffet in the woods behind her yard (point G). We also placed one in the ravine.

November 9, 2003

Kitty buffet in ravine is untouched. Food is cleared from point G. Also, glove and baggie that had fish smell were moved up the hill about 30 yards. The baggie was torn to shreds. We place some wet food right there, and more fish at point G.


November 10, 2003

Fish at point G is missing again. Wet food just up the hill was not touched. We decide to set a home made trap and place food in the center. Original plan to stake out cancelled.


November 11, 2003

Wet food up the hill is gone, container and all. Fish in center of trap is untouched. Food at the ravine is gone.

In the evening, I see that the trap has been disturbed. I thought it could be kids or an adult who didn’t want trapping in the area, but it was obvious that it had not been tripped. The food was missing, and the blanket had been folded over the area that was wet with fish juice. My brother thinks an animal did it. (He built the trap.) I did not bait the area at all tonight – it rained REALLY hard from 11 pm on… Fortunately it is in the 50s.


November 12, 2003

The cat food dish filled with fish that I left in the ravine last night was cleaned out.

Hi,

I e-mailed the map in JPEG format and in a PowerPoint file. I'm sorry that I couldn't follow the directions... my problem was getting the file out on my own space to link from.

My Mom and I just got back from another extensive footsearch. Here is additional data:

- The distance from point A to point B is 150 paces.
- The distance from point B to point G is 250 paces.
- The distance from point G to point F is 250 paces.

*Each step for me is approx. 2 feet.

Point A - escape window
Point B - ravine
Point G - spot where we put the kitty buffet and net trap
Point F - lady with the meowing bush


Honey has been eating the same dry food (Prescription RD) his whole life. Whenever we have run out and used grocery store food, he is irritated. I would not say that he is passionate about his food though. He loves loves it when he hears the tuna fish can open. He also loves Pounce, and comes running when we shake the can. They get stale really fast though, and he likes them fresh. He is a cat nip kitty.

We caught our first critter... an opposum was in the trap next to the window. I have learned that opposum poop is shaped like kitty poop and is darker in color. When we let him go, we followed him into the woods. He appears to live in a pile of sticks on the ground between our window and the ravine.

I got a phone call about a possible sighting. My Mom and I are on our way up now. I am skeptical, because this area is where I have gotten lots of calls on a different cat who is the same color. I don't get why folks wait to call until the next day?!?!

Good Morning,

I only set one trap in the yard because it was too dangerous to go into the woods last night. I got nothing...

I had set some dry food in Honey's porcelain bowl near the ravine during the day, and it is still there. I figure if an opposum eats it, I'll know the difference, because they are messy. Honey typically doesn't get food all over.

I video-taped the exit window from 11:30 pm through 8:30 am, having to change tapes at 5:30 am. Nothing there either... I am going to try and find a video tape today that holds more than six hours on SLP. I was worried that if Honey heard me come out the back door in the morning to change tapes, he would be scared back into the woods. (QUESTION: I had to keep the light on outside in order to catch image on the camera... do you think that would be a deterrant for Honey to enter the yard? It's not blinding light, but it would put him in the open. Also, once we get out into the woods with the surveillance equipment, what kind of light would you suggest?)

I have a serious tree situation in my yard, and I am so afraid to have chainsaws come in. There are two really dangerous trees that are only partially down. Someone could really get hurt if they are not removed. One of them is at Honey's entrance into the woods. I have to go down there a lot, and he may be travelling that way still... (although I'm having my doubts).

This is kind of weird... What do you think? The lady who called me yesterday lives about 1/2 mile from my house... Her next door neighbor has a white shed with a gray roof, which is growing green moss. From the shed, you can see into her sun room, which has a few chairs covered in blankets on it. Do you think that is reaching? It seems so far away from here, and I feel like I already know how the "animal communicator" came up with her messages -- I remember saying things to her that she might have used to make something up. Would you totally discount that information? We searched as thoroughly as possible, plus that is an area where there is another cat that looks similar... And, it's on a really busy road.

I have talked to a few people who's indoor cats have just come home on their own after days or even weeks. Do you think that there is any reason to think Honey might be able to find his own way? I just can't imagine being able to find him myself. The possibilities are just so huge out there, and I know that I haven't been able to look under every possible hinding spot. Plus, I can't imagine where he may continue wandering -- there are unlimited possibilities.

I am so frustrated...

Hi Pauline,

I am really surprised that I didn't catch anything at all last night. I had one of those feelings I'd have something in one of the traps.

Night #2 of video surveillance on the escape window. Nothing. I had run a trail of tuna juice from the woods to the window, and placed a bowl of tuna at the end of the trail. I guess nobody was hungry enough!!

My brother has collected almost 1,000 feet of outdoor extension cord for us to run the equipment into the woods. It depends on his schedule today on whether we re-survey the window or the ravine tonight. He'll be able to help me hide the wire really well.

Someone is hungry at the ravine. I had a dry bowl of food there the night before last, and nobody had touched it as of yesterday morning. When I went to set the trap there last night at 11 pm, the food was gone. Plus, there was no mess... I am trying to find hope in that.

It looks like someone visited the trap even if nobody went in... right at the entrance, it looks like somebody was pawing around -- kind of like a squirrel who is looking for a buried peanut, only bigger. I had sprayed the heck out the of the trap and the cardboard box with Feliway. My Mom and I created a tunnel that is almost the same size as the trap. We slid the trap in so that you can see through the box tunnel, but the critter inside will be protected from wind. It is finally starting to die down a bit, but is still creating a wind chill factor. Plus, the box kinda hides the trap from the human eye... I am worried about my next door neighbor seeing it and walking with it. Especially if my cat is in there!!

Last night about 7 pm, we were driving down the road to go pick up some VHS tapes that can hold 8 hour on SLP/EP (found them). A cat ran out of the woods on my side of the street (about two houses down), crossed, and ran into the woods on the other side. The cat was the same color as Honey, and ran like I would have expected Honey to (fast, low to the ground, eyes on the truck, and tail curved down). The two things that make me question that what I saw was Honey are the fuzziness of the tail, and the fact that I have a VAGUE memory of having seen a cat fitting that description sitting outside nearby before Honey even got out. Honey can puff his tail out pretty good if he's freaked out, but that effect usually makes him look like he has a racoon tail rather than fuzzy cat tail.

Should I pay any attention to this at all? I got out of the truck and followed crunching leaves into the woods for a bit, and decided to back off. If it was Honey, I didn't want to push him out further and risk his not knowing how to come back. We have not searched at all on that side of the road since the search dog came, because she caught no scent near the street. Fortunately, it is just a residential street, and you rarely even see a bunny or squirrel get hit.

Do you expect that a kitty will have one safe place to return to for sleeping, and will be willing to travel a short disance in each direction to find food and water? Do you expect the kitty to move that safe place to another very often?

Thanks again!!

Good Morning,

Okay, I have dry food (and water) everywhere... on the screened-in-deck, outside of the escape window, in both traps (one set in my back yard and the other in the ravine), and outside of the trap in the ravine.

I haven't been dribbling any food... only juice from the tuna can. I made a trail from the exit of the woods to the window and placed the tuna itself at the window. That has not been touched at all. Should I be circling the traps with tuna juice as well as an attention getter?

Last night my brother and his friend ran about 600 feet of extension cord from our deck to the ravine. We set up the surveillance equipment about 8 pm, and I returned alone to set up the tape at 11 pm. When I was fine-tuning the camera, I noticed that my wierd next-door neighbor's porch light had come on, and just as quickly turned off. I had a feeling I was being watched, but I continued what I was doing. (I was visible because I was placing the lantern so that it would provide enough light for the camera, but not disturb a critter's appetite.) When I finished, I headed down to his fence line, because that is the easiest way out of the woods. I didn't use a flashlight, and I just stood there for a minute. Once my eyes adjusted, I noticed that he was indeed there watching... then I saw him get up and go in. When I got home, I talked to my husband, and he told me that I should bring everything in. I was worried that the man would sabotage our efforts. My husband was worried that we would get into some kind of trouble because it is not our property, and he was putting himself in our nextdoor neighbor's place -- what would he do if he saw lights all around his backyard in the middle of the night.... [My nextdoor neighbor has a peace order against him for throwing dog doo doo in his other neighbor's pool, and for building a permanent set of steps against their fence so that he could watch them swim in their pool. His son was also kicked out of private school for sexually molesting a little girl right in school. I have always worried that if anyone of them got their hands on my cat, they would hurt him.]

I brought everything in except for the trap. I am concerned about even leaving that there because I am sure that weirdo will be checking out the area today.

My husband is picking up a game camera for me today... They are sold at Bass Pro Shops (stores and on-line). It is heat sensitive and on a motion detector. They range in price from $69 to over $300. It uses 35 mm film and a flash. It won't tell me about behavior if it is indeed Honey eating, but it will verify WHO, and will be less conspicuous (needs no electricity -- runs on battery). I will use the electronics to survey the exit window from now on...

Today is three weeks. I don't feel like I am getting anywhere!! Can you think of anything else that I could use to draw him into his own yard? I have a Feliway plug-in on the deck... there are warm beds all over the deck, and food and water... I spray Feliway everywhere... I am not ready to give up, but I am starting to wonder about when it will be reasonable to give up. I can't stand that my head is even going there and I feel so totally useless.