LOST AND FOUND, HOPES AND IDEAS

[suzi]

I lost my cat for a week, I spent every day wandering the streets, knocking on doors, posting leaflets, putting up posters! Me and my boyfriend must have looked like mad people, it got to the stage that we were approaching people and they already knew about him through their friends, neighbours etc I actually lost a stone in weight during the week, through not eating and walking the streets, shaking his biscuits! I covered every house in the area, over 5000 leaflets!!

I remember during my searches, meeting other people who had lost thier cats and most of them hadn't really done very much to find them. Some people would just say..dont worry he'll come home eventually..ours did! It used to make me so angry that some people did absolutley nothing, so obviously didn't care much, and they got their cats back. And that i was doing everything, had my family and friends helping me!

I got him back though, a woman had cat napped him in another village!!! I think she initally had good intentions, but then had grown attached to him, renamed him, changed his collar, and worse of all, had seen one of my posters not long after she found him, but didn't want to call me!!!!!! He is/was micro chipped, and she knew about micro chipping as she had another dog that had been chipped! In the end her son had convinced her to phone us as he had also recognised him from our posters and through his friends!!

Anyhow, he back home safe now!!! Never want to haveto go through that again!

[Ela]

to be honest were trying to catch him to take him to the sanctuary

The sad thing is that cat rescues are full to bursting and quite possible would have no space anyway and a large list of cats waiting to come in. Also if a rescue had an inkling that the cat was borrowed they would not be allowed to help as that would not be right, would it? . If anyone else has this idea they would also need to be sure that the cat were not microchipped.

[Sue P (Paddysmum)]

Carol's story made me smile, as I was also like some kind of lunatic when our Flynn disappeared - midnight forays round the neighbourhood, peering into people's gardens and ransacking hedges with two boxes of cat crunchies and a torch.  Never did find the little fella, but it wasn't for want of trying.  I made myself ill I was so upset at losing him, and tried everything I could think off.  Can't understand how people can be casual about it.  People say daft stuff like "oh don't worry - cats wander, he'll come back..."  and you feel like spitting at them because you know your cat's routine, and you know when something's wrong and you can't believe they could say something so incredibly stupid when you're feeling that low!

[smudgepickles]

i cant stand how people just don't look after their pets my sisters neighbour went on holiday over Xmas and left the cat with no one to look after him to be honest were trying to catch him to take him to the sanctuary if mine were missing the very minute i realised they were missing id be making poster and ringing people as i did it 

Grrrrrrrrr dont that just make you grind your teeth. They should be fined like when children are left home alone.

I cant remember the last time i had a holiday and I dont want to either. My husband and youngest daughter go away 3 times a year. I know my eldest daughter is more than capable of looking after my cats,dogs,horses and Bunnies but Im afraid I miss them  all too much. Two years ago I said I would visit my sister in Lincolnshire for a long weekend I was so stressed for 2 weeks before about leaving them I made myself ill

We went just as I felt guilty having not been away with them for years arrived on the friday on the saturday afternoon we had to come home as I couldnt bare to be without waking to my babies. good job I have a hubby that loves the animals as much as I do

How these people can go away and enjoy christmas knowing their babies are home alone beats me. Nothing better than saying happy xmas to each and everyone of them xmas morning and saying merry xmas I know I only get a purrrrrrrrrrrr or a lick back but i would rather that that a voice saying merry xmas from someone who's left their babies at home

xxxxxxxxxx

[Angiew]

petsearcher -
(though my list is a few months out of date so it may be worth doublechecking at www.petsearchuk.org.uk)

canterbury 01227 457957

[CarolM (Wendolene)]

It doesn'tmatter how many stories like that I hear Teresa I still find it hard to accept that people can be so offhand about life.  When my Tiny was very poorly he managed to get out (I didn't think he had the strength) and disappeared.  Within an hour I had posters all over the village and was lucky not to get arrested climbing people's fences to search their gardens.  It worked though.  He must have fallen asleep somewhere and when he woke up and set off for home just about every house he passed phoned me to say he was on his way.

[Canterbury_cats (Sharon)]

Hi Teresa
What a nightmare! I would be jumping up and down if one of my pusses got lost, posters plastered everywhere. Vets are a problem as I reported a bengal cross to one back in the Summer we had in our care. After 2 weeks I on the off chance walked into the vets and found a poster on the wall reporting her missing, but the vets never put two and two together.  We returned her to her owner under the previso that she get her chipped! She was missing 3 months.

Is there a petsearch this way? Our papers dont help at all. The white fella we have in has been a real cutely and someone out there must be deverstated to be missing him, or perahps they just couldnt be bothered to get him neutered and dumped him.  He had not been outside long as his white coat was still relatively clean and he wasnt starving at all, but he was on the verge of being knocked down when we first got a report about him.

What do branches do! I dont really get involved with llost and found but when a cat comes into our care that we feel has a home somewhere out their we do our best. Its abit like searching for ET do we speak or listen!!

[Teresa Pawcats]

Similar problem here,we picked up a gorgeous white boy on Christmas eve, spent hours ringing round vets posting on lost sites and emailing local newspaper. Got one hopefull lead a mobile number so rang the person up for a description of her cat that wasnt our Cringle, asked why she hadnt reported hers to be missing she said she had rung her own vet to tell him and that should be sufficient if I could find her then so could the person who finds her cat that has no collar or microchip.
So pleased that Cringle isnt hers.

[Canterbury_cats (Sharon)]

Hi all
Just thought I would post a thread about lost and found! During Christmas we had some many cats reported to us it was getting ridilous. Not all were our area either. We try to keep a log ourselves and give people general advice etc, but its a real nighmare, as our resources are abit limited to go ringing every vet in the area.  The petshearch this way is not very well known, vets dont talk to each otehr, there is no central CP register (heavens know why!) people never get their cats chipped (no matter how much we go on about it, when they are lost is usually too late). I reckon 30 per cent of the cats we get in have just become lost and although we do our best with adverts, vets, websites etc, its a nightmare! I wish we could have a central register or at least someone where the majority of lost pets can get reported to.  Abit of a winge I know, but HQ CP should do much more then they do helping smaller branches, they ahve the people that could set up a central database of lost and found cats that we just all fed into.

What does everyone else do when they pick up a cat that just looks as though it belongs to someone but wondered to far! We have a loveley white fella in at the moment, only a 9 months old, not neutered, found wondering in the middle of a busy rd before Christmas. Felt sure he was wondering just for the ladies and be reunited with his owners, but he is still with us, no one has rang up despite posters, vets, webistes and other rescue organisations knowing he is in our care.

Any thought appreciated.