Meant to be feeding next doors cat but I've been locked out!

[Imthekingsmummy]

My Neighbour asked me to feed & water her cat whilst they are on holiday. I've been going in everyday to look after her but yesterday when I tried the door wouldn't open. There's a Yale lock and a normal lock and it turns out one of the in laws has been round to water the plants and locked the normal lock. I only have a Yale key.
I messaged yesterday and she said she would get the in law to come back and unlock the door. I've tried again today but it's still locked.
This means the cat hasn't been fed or watered for 2 days.
Neighbour doesn't get back until Monday.

I feel stupid keep going to check a neighbours door and not being able to get in but I'm really worried about the poor cat.

What would you do? I've messaged again but not had a reply yet.

Ah poor puss :(

I think I’d go for ice cubes and some sort of strong smelling wet food or tuna through the letterbox. Hopefully their hall isn’t carpeted!

ring your neighbour tell her the cat has had no food for 2 days and the in law needs to come round today or they do . Why did the in law come round anyway to water plants when she’d ask you to feed the cat . Never mind the bloody plants it’s the cat they need to worry about

This & tell them you're calling the RSPCA today if this isn't sorted by x o'clock. Then do it

Please let us know how you get on. The inlaws were very thoughtless to double lock the door. Did they think you had both keys?

Be awful if the letterbox had a cage!

Soak some small pieces of chicken in water and drop through letterbox

I would break a window. Be resourceful. You can't let an innocent animal suffer with thirst. This is urgent.

I would break a window. Be resourceful. You can't let an innocent animal suffer with thirst. This is urgent.

If the windows are double glazed this will be very difficult.

This is a welfare issue. The cat hasn't been fed/watered or checked on for 2 days already (100% not your fault) and it could be another 2 to 3 days until the owner gets back. I would message the owner one for time to get the Inlaw back to unlock the door and if they don't come back or owner isn't helpful I would get a locksmith.

Cats do drink a lot of water (mine certainly do anyway) and especially if they are being fed dry food. Mat cats may look like they don't drink much of they go out as they will find water when put and about. Cats kidneys can be harmed relatively quickly if they don't have sufficient hydration.
I couldn't imagine the distress if my cats were lcoked in for 5 days with no food, water, clean litter trays and company.

I doubt the police will come and break into the property as someone "helpfully" suggested

I still think the garden is a better prospect that the letterbox if there is a cat flap.

Have you tried asking one of the neighbors if they have a key?

The in laws have kidnapped the cat.

Does it have a catflap? I wouldn't be too concerned if my cat didn't have access to water as he drinks from puddles, licks wet grass and theres ponds about. Dry food through the letter box would be other option or tbh I wouldn't be fussed if someone squeezed a pouch of wet food through the cat flap in an emergency. We have a door mat so could just chuck it after but even a carpet could have a good clean

stupid inlaws if they dont want to feed the cat fine but make sure someone else can ffs

poor thing-defintiely ice cubes if u have any-wet food tomrorow if it hasnt been resolved dry food will jsut make them more thirsty

Update

Call a locksmith or phone the RSPCA.ive had cats my whole life, please don't leave her any longer!

Presumably the OP hasn’t updated because she’s been trying to sort the problem out.

OP you urgently need to gain access, either to the house, or to the garden at least if the cat has flap access into it.

This has made me so angry

Locksmith?? That’s what I would do. Phone cat owner, say you are concerned that her cat may not survive any longer without water, and you want her to pay for an emergency locksmith.

If it has a catflap it is hopefully going outside and finding some kind of water source out there.

And don’t agree to do this again - she’s an idiot to have one person watering plants and another person feeding cat, of course one locked out the other 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

I completely agree with this. And now "don't have time" to go to DILs house to unlock the door and the cat will be fine etc etc. I'd be bloody fuming if I was your neighbour. Poor cat can't be without water much longer and could already be very poorly

When I found myself in this situation through stupidly not leaving my neighbour keys I begged a relative to drive a three hour round trip and give the neighbours theirs.
I then got keys cut for the neighbour so it never happened again. If I was your neighbour I would either come home or pay for a locksmith and be extremely grateful to you for your trouble and caring.

Not sure why you need to keep going round and checking to see if the door has been opened. Surely if the idiot inlaws came back to unlock the door they would also call in to you to tell you that the door was now unlocked? And your neighbour would also contact you to tell you?

This happened to me. I left my cat (accidentally) locked in house. Very kind neighbour managed to entice cat out through large letterbox (yes, really!)by putting a plank of wood through for cat to climb up! Not suggesting this is possible for every letterbox, but ... it must be possible to push food through. Water is more difficult, but if you could drop a container of ice carefully through letterbox, it would melt and then ...

This happened to me with my neighbour's cat. I fed treats through the letterbox. She had enough water and was fine for 2 days.

Any letterbox I've had would not open enough to get some sort of dish in let alone fill it!
If the cat could get out it wouldn't be an issue as the cat could most likely get out of the garden to be fed and watered, or OP could just place good snd water through the cat flap.
I'm surprised the owner hasn't been in touch to find out if you've regained access.

Please don't put any dry food through the letterbox if the cat hasn't got access to water - it will dehydrate her further and could make her very ill. She could well die if it is very warm - and no cat can last anywhere near 10 days without a drink, that's rubbish! You are looking at around 2-3 days depending on the health of the cat.

She may drink toilet water if she can get in - but if they've got a "bloo-loo" thing she will be poisoned.

The in-laws sound like dicks! I'd contact the RSPCA/Police to see if they could help.

Thirst is a terrible thing to suffer and even if the cat doesn't die she is going to be in awful prolonged distress.

Your neighbour may well come back to a dead cat and a house full of flies - maybe you should mention this the next time you ring.