Spooky is missing!

[jjnl...@earthlink.net]

Well -- guess I will be the first to post on my own list!! How odd.
Wish me luck searching -- the questionnaire below gives all the
details. I am heading out again now to search. J.


Spooky has only been missing less than 24 hours right now -- I am
hoping the knowledge I already have will help me find him quickly. For
one, I am not waiting a day or two to see if he comes home -- I'm
looking NOW -- I've already posted him on LassieComeHome and will be
getting an ad in the paper ASAP. I am hoping against hope that he
pulls the old "stayed out too late and too long" outside male cat
behavior and shows up in the next 12 hours!!

TODAY'S DATE: 02 March 2008

SECTION 1: BASIC INFO ON YOUR CAT:

Your name:Judy

Your email: jjnl...@earthlink.net
Your cat's name(s): Spooky

Is this an indoor-only cat - or an outdoor-access cat: outdoor-access
Outdoor-access
Does your cat have a kitty door? (can cat go in and out as he/she
pleases, or did you have to physically let him/her out each time?):
let him out, he mostly likes to go out late at night - prefers to stay
in during the day and sleep; first of all, he's scared of people and
second, I think he has been being very territorial and roaming. I
always try to get him in before bed

Cat's age: 8

Cat's sex: male

Type & Color: (large, small, shorthair, coloring): large, solid black,
lanky and muscular

Was your cat neutered or spayed? yes

What age was your cat neutered or spayed? 6 months

City and State where your cat disappeared? Winston Salem, NC

Date, Time, and Place you last saw your cat: am or pm? He "escaped"
when I was leaving for a few hours yesterday (Saturday) afternoon
about 2:30 pm. I got home about 8:00. He didn't come home for dinner,
bedtime or in the AM - all unusual

When did you become aware that your cat was missing: Date, Time, am or
pm? Mar 1, 8 pm

Did your cat have a collar on? Was it a breakaway or a regular
collar? If breakaway did it ever used to come off? Red breakaway
collar with reflectors

Did your cat have I.D. tags on? no

Does your cat have a microchip? yes

Do you have a good, clear photo of your cat? Pretty good photos - but
he is black and hard to take pictures of

Do you have a current missing cat flyer? Does it have a good, clear
picture of your cat? If you don't have a picture of your cat, put a
similar looking cat picture on the flyer. Get one off the internet if
you have to.
I have not made one yet. I have made a sheet with his picture to pass
out to folks that I see today. If he doesn't come home by tonight I
will make a flyer and run 200 in color at work tomorrow and start
posting at lunch and after work.

How many missing cat flyers have your posted so far? None yet,
projected 200 or more

Have you sent flyers to all vets, shelters, and pet stores in your
area, if
so, what mile radius? Will starting this week

Describe your search efforts thus far, e.g., have you searched each
neighbor's yard, garage? Went door to door (every door within how many
blocks?) with flyers? Asking for tips? I have walked around the
block calling and will head out in a bit to do again - it is Sunday AM
so am trying to wait to start knocking on doors. Have gotten my next
door neighbor to open her basement door (I was SO hoping he was in
there). After typing this I am going to put out some dirty clothes and
litter in the yard and in the storm drains. I have also driven around
to check to see if he had been hit - I feel like, since it is Sunday
and I drove around early, he would not have been picked up yet. I am
going to get started looking again in a moment. I just thought filling
out the questionnaire would be good and might make me think of
something I have forgotten.

Have you called for your cat late at night around 3am when it is quiet
and cats abound? Around 11:00 pm

Have you checked your local shelter? Checked online, will go there
Tuesday - want to post flyers tomorrow. I will also have to check the
hours - it isn't open all of the time. If I can go after work I will.
Our shelter does post pics online of the animals that are picked up
and also allow folks to post lost and found cats so that is a plus -
and, he is microchipped so that is a lifesaver (literally) with the
shelter.

Tell us about your cat, his/her personality, and his/her normal
everyday
routines, e.g., likes to go lay on porch but never leaves the yard,
leaves
the yard but always comes in to sleep at night, etc.
timid cat, but enjoys going out. Always stays nearby, comes in at
night, sleeps on bed
Spooky certainly roams. He has been being a real "cat's cat" lately.
He is afraid of everything - people, cars, noises - but not other
cats. He likes to roam after dark, generally too "scaredy cat" to go
out during the day. Usually he stays within hearing distance of my
voice but has been roaming a bit further lately and has stayed out all
night a couple of times.

SECTION 2: PROBABILITY OF THEFT

1. Is your cat a purebred, exotic cat? Describe what he looks like.
no

2. Does your cat have any distinguishable markings? no

3. How does he respond to strangers...runs & hides, aloof, or in
their lap purring? hides at first; will come out when she realizes
they are no threat? Hides, very afraid, seldom comes out when company
is around




SECTION 3: PROBABILITY OF RESCUE

4. Are there any feral cat colonies in your area? Any known "cat
person" who collects cats? Or anyone who feeds the neighborhood cats
or where a number of cats congregate? There is one lady around the
block that I will check in with later today.

SECTION 4: PROBABILITY OF INTENTIONAL DISPOSAL

6. Are there any suspected "cat haters" in your neighborhood? Has
anyone complained about your cat? Are there any neighbors who are
obsessed with their lawns, cars, or gardens that do not like cats
going in their yard? no
7. Any known "dog fighting dogs" i.e. skuzzy looking/acting gang-like
neighbors with pit bulls? There have been two reports in Feb of a
roaming pack of dogs killing cats - one five house down from me on the
other side of the street. It is a bizarre occurrence as I live in an
older residential neighborhood and if there was a pack of dogs around
a lot, folks would see them - but just yesterday I got pictures of
some roaming dogs about 1 mile from my house
8. Is there or was there at any time an abundance of loose cats in the
area? This is a neighborhood where folks let their cats out but there
is not a huge abundance of them - just two here, two there, that sort
of thing
9. Have cats been seen but suddenly they have all vanished from the
area? no
10. Have you seen or heard of any neighbors with a humane animal trap
in their yards before? no
11. Do you have any neighborhood children who fit the following
profile -- Caucasian male, age 10 to 17, introvert (loner) with a
suspected history of cruelty to other kids, animals, bed wetting
behavior, and/or fire setting? (don't expect you to monitor your
neighbor's peeing behavior, just if you KNOW of it!) no
12. Are there any other cats missing in the immediate area? If so,
provide as many details as possible. no
13. Any disputes with spouse, boyfriend, friend, roommate, neighbor or
any other individual who would want to do you harm? no

PROBABILITY OF UNINTENTIONAL DISPLACEMENT

13. Did this cat disappear during warm weather (when car windows were
left down?) no
14. Were there any moving vans, construction vehicles or property
being moved the day he vanished? None known
15. What day of the week did he disappear? What time of day was he/she
last seen? Saturday
16. Does your cat have a history of climbing into cars or laying on
top of cars? no
17. Does your cat seem attracted to cars, afraid of cars, or does he
not care much either way? afraid
18. Is your cat overly curious? Does he crawl into open spaces and
boxes and explore? Not especially into boxes and such like some of my
others
19. Is your cat missing from an apartment complex, condo, or area with
a high population of people and vehicles? Describe your neighborhood
(i.e., end of cul-de-sac in residential area of Los Angeles, rural
road surrounded by grape vineyards in Sonoma, California, etc.)
Describe each household within 5 houses on each side and behind, do
you know these neighbors, what are they like? Did you search each
front and backyard of these houses? Are there piles of junk around or
places a cat could get into or stuck? What is
the farthest house you have seen your missing cat at, or the farthest
distance? Jumped out of car at gas station, shopping center;
commercial area near highway, not very residential. I live in an
older residential area right in the city. It is very large and runs
for blocks and blocks in all directions so I will certainly be able to
do some aggressive yard searches - I haven't started yet because it is
Sunday AM and didn't want to go knocking on doors till after lunch. I
have searched the yards of some empty houses. Lots of the homes have
sheds. Most of the yards behind me have dogs. Two houses over has a
fence and dogs. Usually I see him roaming up the street or across the
street. I have seen him go in the storm drains.

SECTION 5: PROBABILITY OF INJURY, ILLNESS OR DEATH

20. Is this a male cat? Yes If yes, have you noticed any problems
urinating in the litter box lately? no
21. Is this an elderly cat? no
22. Was this cat recently injured or sick? Under the care of a vet or
on medications? no
23. Have you ever seen this cat in a situation where it was hurt or
sick and it took refuge and hide somewhere? No, the only time he was
hurt was when he had an abscess on his neck. He lay around, but he did
not hide. I do think, though, if he got injured somewhere several
houses away, he would be hiding.
24. Before your cat disappeared, did you notice any cat fights as of
late? no
25. Have there been any new cats or new dogs brought into the
immediate neighborhood? If so what kind (size and type): no
26. Is there a know rat or snail problem in your neighborhood? no
27. Have you heard that any of your neighbor dogs are aggressive
towards cats? Don't know. Probably. But most yards are fenced or
folks walk their dogs on leash - except for the pack of dogs that has
been seen
28. Considering the houses where your kitty spent his time, what homes
in that area have dogs? Spooky did not seem to go towards the areas
that had dogs - he spent a lot of time across the street near an empty
house and I have been in that back yard already. My guess is, he has
probably been seen in the houses directly behind there, too so that is
the next area I am going to.
29. Is this a solid black cat? yes
30. Are you aware of any occult activity in your immediate area? no
31. What is the average speed of cars that travel on the roads right
by your home? 35 (supposed to be 25)
32. Are there any known cultures in your area known to consume cats
(Korean, Chinese)? No en masse

SECTION 6: PROBABILITY OF WILDLIFE KILL

33. Do you live in an area where there are coyotes, fox, bobcats, owls
or hawks? (if you do not know have you called your local state Fish &
Game department and Animal Control to ask?) have seen hawks
34. Have you seen or heard the above wildlife in your area? If so,
when and where? Other than hawks, no
35. In your search for your cat, did you come across any tufts of cat
fur? Not yet, still many places to search
36. Did your cat disappear at dusk, dawn, or in the middle of the
night? overnight

SECTION 7: PROBABILITY OF BEING TRAPPED OR STUCK SOMEWHERE

37. Has this cat every disappeared before? If yes, did it come home
acting hungry or thirsty? How long did you cat stay gone? He has
stayed out all night before but usually comes home in the morning

38. Has this cat come home with cobwebs, grease marks, or lots of dirt
on it's fur? No, just grass from rolling
39. Are there any homes under construction in the immediate area? no
40. Was there any yard work or construction projects being done
(involving any tools) the day he vanished? I imagine a lot of folks
were working in their yards yesterday as it was unseasonably warm and
is again today so, hopefully, if he got shut into a shed, they will be
opening it up again today
41. On the day he vanished, did any neighbors leave to go out of
town? no
42. Have you ever seen this kitty trapped on a roof, up a tree, or up
a pole before? Does he climb much? no
43. Did any new neighbors move in recently? no
44. Do any neighbors work on cars in your area (either on your street
or the street over?): no

SECTION 8: PROBABILITY OF RUNAWAY

45. Have you owned this kitty all his life? (how long have you had
him?) since about 12 weeks - he was found at a convenience store

46. Did you bring a new baby, a new cat, or a new dog into your home?
We have had a foster dog in the house for a few months

47. Have you noticed any new neighbor cats or stray/feral cats in your
area? no

48. Did any traumatic event happen right before your cat vanished? I
have been struggling with a lot of personal issues and have been under
a lot of stress lately. I have mental health type issues and they have
flared up and I am struggling with that too (I don't mean I'm hearing
voices or anything, I just get depressed and a lot of anxiety and
having a sense of doom). I don't know how much the cats are affected
by it. I have also been very busy lately and overwhelmed with having
the extra dog and feeling like I don't give the cats as much attention
as I would like to and as they would like.

SECTION 9: YOUR FEELINGS ON YOUR CAT'S DISAPPEARANCE

49. What do you think happened to your cat? Is there anything that
sticks out in your mind about your cat's disappearance that you can't
get out of your mind or that you can't put your finger on but think it
might mean something? Anything unusual happen around the time your
cat became missing?
Lord, every time the dogs bark I jump up and run to the door, thinking
maybe Spooky is there. Can you believe that I am posting with a lost
cat AGAIN?? I am hoping against hope that he shows up later today or
tomorrow, like the proverbial wandering cat - but I know to start
looking now and not let time waste in case he doesn't. He got out
yesterday when I was leaving to go to Greensboro. I let him stay out
because he usually knows what he is doing. My other two cats that go
outdoors were at the door when I got home around 8 pm. When Spooky did
not come home shortly after, I knew something was wrong. So, I guess
that means whatever happened to him was between 2:30 pm and 8:00 pm on
Saturday, Mar 1. I have been on this list and researching lost cats
long enough to know that something has happened to him to prevent him
from coming home. He has either been injured or killed, chased from
his territory into an area he is unfamiliar with or, something scary
to him is between him and home. I know I always tell everyone to
listen to their heart - and, right now, my intuition is preparing me
for the worst. I feel bad, like something bad (like death) has
happened. But I'm going out now to keep looking, regardless.

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