Rescue cat hell- he's made an escape :(

Hectors_House

butler_helen wrote: »

Ok so the rescue cat who doesn't like us and who we are still training has made an escape... I asked my boyfriend to put the washing out, which he did, but in the process he let the cat out!

he spent around 5 minutes exploring our garden and our neighbours gardens and now he has disappeared - I'm really worried as the people opposite (massive fence between) have a dog and he is barking like mad (im imagining bootsie as lunch for said doggie).

How can we get him in? or has anyone got any ideas for a humane trap for him? we've got oily tuna in his bowl at the moment and are calling him, although it isn't working - he's clearly either a) lunch or b) enjoying the hot weather!

any help or reassurance would be welcomed. Obviously my boyfriend is feeling bad and so it'd good for his peace of mind and mine if we hadn't let the cat get hurt

Although Bootsie acts like he doesn't like you he has had time to get to know you and take in the smells of you and your house and realise where the food comes from. I think he'll come back...just in his own good time.

My cat is a rescue and she worried me silly when I moved her to my partners house in Leicester. She kicked her way through a locked cat flap and we were out in the garden for ages calling her. She eventually came back in during the night.

They have to explore a new area to set their boundries so Bootsie will be out there sniffing for other cats and getting the lay of the land, like he's been doing in your house.

Try putting some nice food outside for him at night, as the smell will help him to find his way home.

zzzLazyDaisy

The first time my rescue cat escaped he didn't come back until 4am... purring like mad, with a gift of a dead mouse for me.

Now he comes and goes as he pleases.... but faced with a locked door/catflap/window he goes demented!

I trained him to come to the whistle, by shaking a canister of cat treats and giving him one when he came so he associated it with food. Then I'd whistle and shake, and then just whistle. He alsways comes to the whislte now, as he knows he'll get one of his favourite treats.

I am sure he will come home when he has worried you enough!

butler_helen

zzzLazyDaisy wrote: »

The first time my rescue cat escaped he didn't come back until 4am... purring like mad, with a gift of a dead mouse for me.

Now he comes and goes as he pleases.... but faced with a locked door/catflap/window he goes demented!

I trained him to come to the whistle, by shaking a canister of cat treats and giving him one when he came so he associated it with food. Then I'd whistle and shake, and then just whistle. He alsways comes to the whislte now, as he knows he'll get one of his favourite treats.

I am sure he will come home when he has worried you enough!

we can now see him, although we can't get near him- which means he knows where home is. Although I think the dog has frightened him away from 'the other side of the fence'.

when he comes back in, should we let him taste freedom again? or wait until he's been re-flead and wormed (not to mention chipped/collared).

I feel bad letting him out then making him stay in for ages.

thank you for the empathy - it means loads that we aren't the only ones to have had this/got this!

RacyRed

It's really, really good that he escaped the dog by heading back to the safety of home. He knows where it is.

I know it is stressful, but probably the best thing to do would be leave the food just inside an open door and keep away from the garden while he is out there, apart from the occasional wander out there to check. If he isn't trained to come to the sound of his name already, calling him when he is in sight is possibly just going to transmit your stress to him.

Let him wander back in his own time and on his own terms rather than letting him see that you want him to come in, he's a cat, what we want has absolutely nothing to do with them in their opinions :rolleyes:

As to letting him out in future? See how badly he wants it, and only allow him out when hi is hungry. And please do get him microchipped asap.

shelly

I know how you are feeling. When we got Lily she was very shy and timid and took ages to get used to us.
She got out unexpectedly after only having her for about 2 weeks. I really didn't think she would come back but she did.....at about tea time

We decided that as she came back we would let her go out as and when she pleased.


Keep us posted!

larmy16

This happened to me when I acquired an adorable cat from some people who could not keep him.

I let him into the garden wherupon he disappeared very shortly. I had just come to terms with the fact that it was fate, a couple of hours later who should come padding down the stairs but said cat who had made himself completely at home on my bed!!

Tigsteroonie

We rescued two cats about 10 days ago, and both expressed interest in the outside world after only 3 days . They worried me silly by disappearing over the high fence on their first trip out (we have dogs both sides), but did eventually reappear hours later - they seemed to know which fence to jump to get back, or they recognised our voices.

Just give the cat time ... it's an exciting new world out there for him!

BitterAndTwisted

I think RacyRed has given you the most sensible option. If old Bootsy hasn't bonded with you he won't come to your calls and may not feel confident approaching the house with you in sight. You just have to hope that he won't go far and will be tempted back in once he gets hungry.

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

A Gourmet, too... !

butler_helen

we've got him back

although... it was eventfull... he headed back indoors, so I closed the backdoor (his flea/worm treatments are running out, he has no collar and he isn't chipped yet - all booked for next week).

However I closed the back door with me outside doing the washing and sorting some pots out. When I went back in, he was sat on the other side, obviously ran out again (clearly an outside lover), which was fine as he came back in quickly through the cat flap- so I closed it.

However I closed the cat flap so he couldnt get out again, but he got spooked and went to run out the cat flap and got a nasty shock when it was shut! (imagine a cat running head first at a cat flap- they bounce!).

therefore he is upstairs ignoring us, I think we might be a few steps back on our progress. I also feel quite bad, as we're trying really hard. Possibly too hard. :rolleyes: