In sad personal news, our beloved cat, Danderfluff Purrington, disappeared from the front yard on April 14th at approximately 5:15 pm. It was her birthday, too, and she was turning 18. I have reason to believe she was stolen so I’m making this post just in case it might help bring her back. Sealpoint tortoiseshell Himalayans (“tortie points”) are not particularly common, plus she’s a objectively a very, very pretty girl. Maybe some kind person out there will notice a for-sale listing and recognize her. It’s a complete long shot but I have to try.
I have of course posted her information to a variety of missing-cat groups (e.g., here and here) as well as filed a police report. And there is always the possibility that she just went to a quiet place to die, which is something cats do when they get to the end of their nine lives, and at 18 that point was likely near. Finally, I can’t rule out that a coyote took her. Coyotes are present in Delaware County and one in nearby Broomall was recently seen carrying off a dog. And there are some free-range dogs in the neighborhood, too.
If anyone has leads, please contact me or Officer Mattioli (610-543-0123) of the Swarthmore Police Department.
UPDATE: on May 11th, there was a coyote sighting two blocks away from our house. I’m thinking that fact explains our cat’s disappearance the best.
UPDATE: People really don’t know the difference between coyotes and foxes.
Sorry about your cat. Our dog ran off for ten days before he was found so there is hope. But at 18, you may be right about going off to die.
Good luck.
Thanks. Yes there’s hope but sure feels like that’s draining away as days tick by. I really wish cats would stop hiding before dying. An annoying habit.
I’m so sorry to hear this. My girl is 19 and it’s so hard to think of losing her in any way. I hope you find her alive but at least find her. The not knowing is the absolute worst of all.
Yes, it’s just so unsettling not to know. Thank you.
You probably know all the things to do — leave familiar smelling clothes, cat bed, etc. outside, leave a door open, maybe set up a trail cam if you have one. Sit outside, speaking for as many hours as you can… or play a recording of yourself…
Sometimes cats get spooked by a person, dog, coyote, owl, etc… and are afraid to actually come in during the day, but may come in for food/shelter at night. A few years ago I was helping some friends whose cat got spooked and ran out just as they were packing for their honeymoon in Italy, and I was able to discover that she was prowling around the back yard each night, but refusing to come inside… we actually had to get a group of friends to sort of “herd” her into the open back door, after we spotted her in bushes in the neighbor’s yard. It took four days of vigil…
The trail cam idea was really helpful, to prove to ourselves she was staying nearby…
Thanks so much. Very good suggestions.
While researching the negative effects of my neighbor’s mosquito spray, I clicked on a link that brought me to your site. I love the way you write! I found myself laughing out loud every few sentences.
But then I went to your home page & read your cat post. I am a cat lover and know that this must be so devastating. I enjoyed looking at all of the photos of her and will subscribe so that I can stay informed.
Thank you!
Aw, thanks a million. I’m so broken with her loss. My thumb is still sore from tacking “missing” notices all over town.
A sad update: somebody has reported seeing a coyote two blocks from our house. That’s probably the likely explanation given that we never found her and the whole town was looking.
So sorry. It’s tough to lose a pet. They are family.
Thanks. This is the third pet to lose and it never gets easier. Not know her fate makes it worse.
You know, I wanted to come back and maybe give you a little hope, though how much it will help, I don’t know. There’s a girl whose cat had gone missing and she’d posted on FB in the local communities hoping to get the word out as well as posting flyers on poles and in businesses locally. She posted in my local FB community and I contacted her, just to be kind and encouraging and we struck up an online friendship of sorts. She was so devastated and I felt so bad for her, but I continued to encourage her, even though she had the same concern, not only with coyotes, which we have a lot of, but we also have eagles and other predators. I know, tl;dr, but two and a half months after her beloved kitty went missing, she showed up on this girls doorstep. She was in rough shape, a little thinner, worse for wear, but she was home. No explanation for where she’d been, but this girl was over the moon happy. She ended up starting a group called Finding Mila and Friends on FB and it’s now HUGE. So please, don’t lose heart. You just never, ever know. Danderfluff may have gotten involved with a feral cat colony or any number of other things. I know, it’s so very hard. We lost our first doggie when she got out of the tiniest hole in the fence and we never knew what happened to her, but I always hoped. Don’t stop hoping. You just never know.
Thank you so much. Very kind words, and true.