Help reunite a lost kitty with their family
Read Time: 5 minutes
Capture and Contain the Cat
If you’re able to do so safely, try to capture and contain the cat. If it’s a domestic cat that got out, it may be easier to capture than if it’s a stray. For a stray cat, you may need to contact the police or animal control.
Approach Cautiously
No matter how the cat is behaving, it’s important to approach it with caution. You never know when a sudden movement of yours could spook the cat or make it feel threatened. From a distance, it can be difficult to tell if it’s a feral cat, a stray, someone’s house cat that escaped, or an outdoor pet. It’s better to be safe than sorry!
Speak Gently and Bribe with Food
Speaking in a friendly, gentle voice can help put the cat at ease. If the cat is hiding in a small space and is difficult to reach, you can try using food to coax it out into the open.
Confine in a Cat Carrier
If you are able to successfully capture the cat on your own, place it in a cat carrier or some other sort of secure container that has air holes. If the cat is stray or feral, it may dislike being confined, so it’s important that the container is secure or it may escape.
Call Animal Control
If the cat is behaving aggressively, call the authorities. Animal control can more safely catch a cat that is aggressive or running away. The more information you can provide about its exact location or its appearance, the easier it will be for the authorities to capture and contain the cat.
It’s important to not risk your own safety in order to catch the cat.
Take the Cat to a Vet
Once you have captured the cat, take it to a vet for a check-up. The vet can tell you if there are any health issues that need to be addressed.
Contact the Owner
It’s essential to try to contact the owner, if there is one, as soon as possible. A family may be missing a vital furry family member. If you’re able to reunite them, you’d be doing a good deed that will make the family and cat very happy.
Check for ID Tags
First, check around the cat’s neck for a collar. If it’s a pet, especially an outdoor pet, there may be an ID tag with an owner’s contact information. If there is an ID tag, you can contact the owner immediately to return the pet. If you’re unable to reach the owner, even with their contact information, you can try calling back a few hours later and either hold on to the cat until then or take it to a shelter.
Scan for a Microchip
If there is no ID tag, the next step is to get the cat scanned for a microchip. An animal shelter should be able to do the scan for you. You can either take the cat there yourself or call animal control or the police.
File a Found Report
If you’re not immediately able to get a hold of the owner of the cat, it’s important to file a report with the local animal shelter to inform them that you’ve found the cat. The owner may be contacting local shelters in an effort to find their pet. Especially if you’ve decided to hold onto the cat until you can get a hold of the owners, it’s important to leave a found report with your contact information so the owner can find you.
You can also make a listing on Facebook announcing that you’ve found the cat. There are specific pages dedicated to lost pets. If there’s one for your area, you can make an announcement online with a picture of the cat.
Take the Cat to an Animal Shelter
If you can’t get a hold of the owner or there is no ID tag on the cat, you should take the cat to the local animal shelter. The shelter can take care of the cat as well as scan for a microchip. Some animal shelters cannot take the cat to keep, however. Ask about this over the phone before you bring them in. The owner may stop by the shelter to look for their pet in the hopes that someone stopped by to trop it off or to file a found report.
What If the Cat Has No ID Tags?
If the cat has no ID tags, finding the owner is more difficult. If the cat’s behavior suggests that it is a pet, it’s important to make the effort to try to find the owner.
Take the Cat to an Animal Shelter
If you take the cat to an animal shelter, they should be able to scan for a microchip. If the cat has no microchip, the shelter may still have received a report from the owner about a missing cat and may be able to help find the owner. If no owner can be found, a shelter can look after the cat until they can get it adopted.
Post a Picture in the Shelter’s Database
Filing a report with the shelter and posting a picture of the found cat will help the owner find their cat. This will increase the chances that the cat is reunited with its rightful owner and family.
Post Fliers
You can also post fliers around your neighborhood and where you found the cat with pictures and your contact information. Also, try posting a found cat announcement online. You never know who may know the owner.
Look for Lost Cat Fliers
Check around your neighborhood, especially where you found the cat, for fliers. The owner may have posted fliers with a picture and their own contact information (and possibly a reward!).
Check Online
Look online to see if anyone has posted a notice that they’ve lost their cat. Social media platforms like Facebook may have pages where people can post lost or found reports. Craigslist can also be a good resource. The Internet has made it a lot easier to reunite lost pets with their owners and many strangers online may be willing to help.
How Can I Tell if the Cat Is Just an Outdoor Cat?
Some cats are outdoor cats. Their owners purposely let them roam and they return home regularly for food and to sleep. But how can you tell if the cat you found is an outdoor cat, if it’s a stray or feral, or if it’s an indoor cat that’s gotten out?
Look for ID Tags
First, check for ID tags. If the cat has identification, that rules out stray or feral.
Check the Cat’s Appearance
Look at the cat’s appearance. Any outdoor cat that regularly returns home would be clean and well-groomed. Feral cats are actually the same way – they know how to fend for and groom themselves and will look nicer. An indoor cat that has escaped may be thinner than normal or may look scruffy. Indoor cats aren’t used to hunting or otherwise fending for themselves.
Look for Nervous Behaviors
Is the cat skittish and nervous? If it’s an indoor cat that got out, it may be scared and anxious. Feral cats tend to be nervous around people and may run or be aggressive. Outdoor cats are often very friendly and may come up to you for petting. A stray cat could be either friendly or standoffish, depending on the cat’s personality.
All cats do tend to be wary of people, so you should observe the cat over time to see how it behaves. Owned cats do tend to be more trusting of people. Indoor cats that get outside may follow you anxiously or meow at you as if they need something from you.
Call the Owner
If you find a cat with an ID tag and you’re unsure if it’s supposed to be outside or not, call the owner. They can verify for you whether their cat is meant to be outside. If it’s an outdoor cat, then no harm was done and you’ll know for the future that that particular cat is supposed to be there. If it’s an indoor cat, then you’ve just helped reunited it with the owner.
Ask Around
The people who live in that area may know more about the cats that are there. Neighbors may recognize the cat and be able to tell you if it’s supposed to be outside or not, or if it’s stray.
What If There Is No Owner?
There may be no owner. The cat may have been abandoned or it may be a stray. If you have done your due diligence in trying to locate the owner and were unsuccessful, you have two options: keep the cat yourself or rehome the cat.
Keep the Cat
If you cannot find the owner and have forged a connection with the cat you found, you may decide to keep the cat. You’ll want to make sure that you can provide a good home for it and take care of it properly, though.
Take the Cat to a Vet
If you’re keeping the cat, the first step is to take it to the vet. You can establish a relationship with a vet early in your pet ownership and make sure that the cat is healthy. You can also get the cat spayed or neutered as well as get any shots or medication it might need.
Buy Food and Supplies
Next, stop by a pet store for food and supplies. If you’re a first-time cat owner, you’ll need a bed, food, toys, litter, a litter box, and treats. The employees can help you find what you need. Even if you already have cats or other pets, you may want to have some supplies specifically for the new cat.
Learn to Care for the Cat
If you’re new to owning a cat, it’s essential to do your research. Look online, ask your vet or the pet store employees for advice.
Find the Cat a Home
If you’re unable to take in the cat yourself, you’ll need to find it a new home.
Take the Cat to a Shelter
One option is to take the cat to a shelter. They may have more resources to care for the cat and to find it a new home. However, shelters can be over-crowded and some are unfortunately forced to put down animals that they are unable to rehome.
Rehome the Cat
Alternatively, you can try to find a new home for the cat yourself. Post fliers and ask around. You can also post online to find a new home for the cat.
