Indoor cat vanished

[Tillmers]

Our very shy indoor rescue cat has simply vanished. We've been through every inch on the house with a fine tooth comb and can find no sign of her what so ever. She's two years old and has never been outside and I'm beside myself with worry about her.

I saw her in our living room at approx 2:00am today (couldnt sleep) all the windows and doors were closed however she hasn't been seen since. We have 4 and 6 year old DC who did wake up before us so I can only assume one of them has opened the door for some reason and she's slipped out, there's literally no other explanation.

I have left her litter tray and some food by the back door and we have been out searching but no joy 😢 I don't know what I'm asking really, any ideas about where she could be or what we should do next wellcome, thank you

It sounds like she’s been kept at home in those 2 years, so if she did get out, ahe should be able to find her way back ok. They are fairly resilient

Ooooh, I bet she's hidden in some random little nook or cranny that you never thought of looking in! If not, I am sure she will be back soon @Tillmers

We once spent a whole day looking for our indoor cat. Came home from work at lunchtime, walked the neighbourhood couldn’t find him. Came home in the evening and he popped his head out from the top of the bedroom wardrobe. He had literally quietly ignored everyone shouting around the house looking for him.

Check places you wouldn’t think of usually.

You can look up a sound on YouTube or TikTok that attracts cats by searching something like 'sound to see if your cat would help an injured kitten' if your cat is hiding nearby somewhere (hopefully in your house still) it may lure them to the sound

Check in the wardrobe or under your bed if you have drawers in the base. That's where ours have sneaked to.

are there any hidden vents/ top of kitchen cupboards etc that she could have got into ?
We have under eaves cupboards upstairs and we found a hole which a cat could have got through into the roof space or cavity walls. Had we not done a thorough search wouldn’t known it was there.

That said, cats are fairly savvy. Hopefully she’ll come sauntering back soon !

Mine got spooked by the builders once and somehow got up into the kitchen cupboard that houses the boiler, then using a slight gap at the top around the flue, into the void between the ground floor ceiling and upstairs floorboards. Only figured it out because we heard scrabbling overhead. Left food on the counter but he ate it overnight and went back up! Took 3 days to spot him in the normal living areas and block it off. Same cat also disappeared whilst staying with my mum and had scratched a hole in the nest of the sofa and made a bed in the frame (he wasn’t invited back). The kids have accidentally shut him in places before too. My point is, he’s probably in the house somewhere unexpected. Open all the doors of all the rooms and cupboards in the house, put some stinky wet food down and go to bed. Hopefully she’ll reappear.

Airing cupboard?

Oh god I shut mine in a bed once too! Had the drawers out switching to summer duvets and had no idea he was even in the room let alone had popped into the bed itself!

Have you checked in all cupboards and drawers? You might imagine she would make a noise to get rescued but sometimes if mine get shut in a cupboard they just think "ah well may as well have a snooze".

Other hiding places have included under the bath, behind the bath panel thing, inside the duvet cover and on top of a wardrobe and behind the fridge.

This happened to my friend who had an indoor cat and it turned out the cat had climbed through a tiny gap at the top of the window and was hidden on the roof for a couple of days! So check the roof.

Pilchards in tomato sauce
then relax
cat will appear

Was there a door or window open when you came down for breakfast? And can your 4 and 6 year old open the doors and windows themselves?

Mine was in an under bed drawer. Didn't say a thing for hours while I was calling.

Would your young children really open the back door for no reason ? or even worse the front door ?
Are your doors to the outside not locked, esp at night ?

I believe kitty is somewhere in the home.

Mine squeezes himself under the chest of drawers in the bedroom and then climbs over the back of the drawers to sleep in them.

Check behind toilet bowl if a hollow back.
Check in top of kitchen cupboards.
Check all walk in cupboards, cloakroom , airing cupboard etc
Behind sofa etc

I once looked for 3 hours for my cat and she was under my bed but in a top corner so when I looked under I didn't see her

My indoor cat previously found in random places....

Shut in the airing cupboard
Shut under the bed (ottoman style)
Hiding behind the mug tree in the kitchen
Behind the bedroom door

All places she shouldn't have been obv.

The one time she did get out the garden, she made it 20m up the street before something spooked her and I found her on her way home at high speed!

Hopefully yours is in a weird place and not outside.

Mine was inside a duvet cover once..

IKEA Malm drawers have a good little cat sleeping place they can get to from behind or reach from the normal side without getting squashed.

Hope she’s turned up.

Retrace your steps op. Have you been in a cupboard you don't usually go in? Dgm's dcat was on a shelf above a doorway all day watching us searching for her!! Have you got a bed with storage space in? Recliner chairs? Dc got a doll's pram /Wendy house?

Have you asked the children if they saw her or opened the door ? Have you been in every room shaking the dreamies . Hope you find her soon .

Sounds obvious but have you asked the children? They may have tucked her up somewhere?

Offer a prize to whichever dc finds the most clues....