On 20 Aug 2003 12:39:03 -0700, (Calvin Rice) wrote:

Purposely trying to keep this matter of fact, without any expressions of grief,
I'm curious to know if I've covered all the bases, and what the probabilities
might be, hoping to learn from the experience of others.


Hi Calvin,

What kind of neighborhood do you live in? Do you have busy streets?
Are you in a "buffer zone," near trees or forests? Check with all
neighbors within a couple blocks on all sides and ask them to check
their garages and sheds. Walk up and down roads near your home and
check in the nearby brush. If cats are hit by cars sometimes they
will limp off into the brush into the smallest imaginable holes.

Our family cat disappeared a few years back without a trace. She
never ventured farther than 500 feet from any side of the house. We
spent $300.00 just mailing out notices to every single house within
our neighborhood, we spent $250.00 to put a 1/4 page ad in our local
newspaper, we offered a $1000.00 reward even if somebody found her
dead. Nothing. It was a trying time for us but fortunately we have
two new loving cats who aren't allowed to go outside the backyard
area. We did find out through our mailings to neighbors that 2 other
neighbor cats had disappeared around the same time while another
neighbor reported hearing packs of coyotes in the woods near our house
during the same time. We put two and two together and assumed that is
what happened to her. I hope your search turns out better. Good
luck!

Don


***********************************************

"Free-ranging cats in the United States have an average lifespan in
the general population of only 3 to 5 years; indoor cats have an
average lifespan of 12 years and frequently live longer than 20
years..."
(Karen L. Overall, M.A., V.M.D., Ph.D., Diplomate, American College
of Veterinary Behavior; Department of Clinical Studies School of
Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania)

"The hazards of the outdoors-automobiles, dogs, rival cats, poisonous
plants, infectious diseases, and fleas, to name but a few-are
compelling reasons to keep cats exclusively indoors."
(Dr. James Richards, Director, Cornell Feline Health Center,
College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York)

"Cats can be happily kept inside all the time"
(Robert J. Holmes, BVM&S, PhD, MRCVS, FACVSc,
Cat Behavior and Training
Animal Behaviour Clinic, Malvern Vie 3 144, Australia)