Luring Your Cat Home
At least 30% of missing indoor cats are found because they return home. This number is probably even higher, but many people use the wrong methods. Their cats likely try returning home, but leave again without them ever knowing.
Putting out food or cat litter may help attract your lost cat, but they also carry the risk of attracting other cats and wildlife, which could scare your cat away. Continue reading to learn when the benefits outweigh the risks.
When to Leave Out Food
- Don't put out any food for the first 3 nights unless it is inside a humane cat trap.
- After this time, the benefits of putting out food may outweigh the risks.
During the first few days that your cat is missing, they are less likely to be attracted to food. For this reason, I generally do not recommend putting out food for at least the first 3 nights unless it is inside a humane trap. This will give your cat some time to return home without the risk of attracting other cats or wildlife.
After 3 nights, the benefits of putting out food often outweigh the risks. Your cat needs to eat, and if they are unable to find food nearby, they may be forced to travel farther away.
Good locations to start with food are near the point of escape or inside a porch, shed or garage. If you do put out food (not inside a trap), it needs to be monitored in some way such as with a wildlife camera, security camera or baby monitor. For more information on leaving out food, see Feeding Stations.
Know the Risks of Putting Out Cat Litter
- Despite what you may have heard, there's no proof that dirty cat litter attracts a lost cat.
- Contrary to a popular meme, it is highly unlikely that a cat can smell their dirty litter from a mile away.
- Don't put out cat litter without understanding the potential risks involved.
You may have heard that you should put out your cat’s litter box or spread dirty litter around your yard to help them find their way home. You may have even heard that your cat can smell their dirty litter a mile away. Unfortunately, there is no evidence that a cat can smell their litter box from that far away. More realistically, they might be able to smell it up to a few hundred feet away (depending on wind and weather conditions) and often a lot less.
You may have found examples of people swearing that dirty cat litter really works. However, in many cases, lost cats return home on their own for other reasons, and the presence of cat litter is likely just a coincidence. In some cases, cat litter is more likely to reduce the chance of finding your lost cat.
There is some chance that the scent of your cat’s urine and feces MIGHT help them find their way home. However, before you go and put out the cat litter, you should be aware of the potential risks involved. The most likely risk is inadvertently attracting other cats. With an escaped indoor-only cat, your yard may be within the territory of one or more outdoor-access or stray cats. If you put out your cat's litter, other cats may see this as a threat to their territory. They may be attracted to the litter box and possibly use it or spray objects around the box. If your cat smells the scent-marks of the resident cats, they may feel too threatened to return home. Worst case, you might attract an aggressive territorial cat into your yard, who might chase your cat away.
Many wild predators like foxes and bobcats use their feces to mark their territory. To do this, they place their scat on prominent locations such as on top of rocks or logs. Domestic cats on the other hand tend to bury their feces. This may be an instinctive behavior to protect them from detection by other larger predators like coyotes.
By putting your cat's dirty litter outside, you risk attracting predators around your home. Depending on where you live, the risk of attracting predators may be relatively low, but do you want to take that risk?
Guidelines for Putting Out Cat Litter
I generally do not recommend putting out dirty cat litter due to the potential risks of attracting other cats or predators. However, I cannot conclude at this time whether or not it is a potential attractant for a lost cat. If you feel compelled to put out your cat's litter (just in case), please at least follow these guidelines:
- Don't spread the litter around your yard. Keep it in a litter box or bowl.
- Don't put the litter box near the point of escape. This is the location that your cat is most likely to return to on their own. Don't risk attracting other cats that might scare your cat away.
- Only put out the litter box in an enclosed area such as a garage, shed or basement where it is less likely to attract predators.
- Use some sort of surveillance or wildlife camera to ensure that you are not attracting other cats or predators.
Using Other Scent Articles and Lures to Attract Your Cat
- If you decide to put out scent articles, it is safer to use items that smell like you or other family members rather than like your lost cat or other indoor cats.
- If you try putting out scent articles and they are sprayed by other cats, then remove these scent articles.
- By conducting a physical search, YOU are leaving scent trails that your cat may follow home.
Some people also try putting out items that smell like their missing cat or someone (human or animal) that the cat is strongly bonded to. This method often works for attracting lost dogs, but the evidence is less clear on how often it works for lost cats. Research has found that stressed cats in shelter environments are not very attracted to the scent of their owners.
Putting out scent items (such as cat beds or blankets) with your cat’s scent may attract territorial resident cats or possibly predators. If there are other cats in your neighborhood, I would not recommend putting out other scent articles for the first few days. Give your cat a chance to return home first without the risk of attracting other cats. If you try putting out scent articles and they are sprayed by other cats, then promptly remove these scent articles.
Scent articles that smell like you or another person that your cat is bonded with are probably safe to put out at any time. Keep scent articles near the point of escape, inside open porches or sheds or placed along the edges of your yard. You don’t want to put them all over the place and confuse your cat. If you put out clothing, make sure that it won’t blow around in the wind and possibly scare your cat.
Does Spraying Human Urine Attract a Lost Cat?
You may have heard the suggestion that you should collect your own urine and place it in a spray bottle. Some people suggest spraying it around your yard or in trails leading back to your house. There is currently no research on this method and no clear evidence that it works. Just by walking around, YOU are leaving scent trails that your cat could possibly follow home. However, if this is something that you want to try (just in case), it probably wouldn’t do any harm. FYI: your neighbors may not feel the same way.
Using a "Magnet Cat" to Attract Your Cat
In some cases, a “magnet cat” placed inside a cat carrier may draw the missing cat out of hiding or at least get them to meow. Place the magnet cat securely inside a cat carrier. The last thing you want to do is risk losing another cat! Then place the carrier near the point last seen or near the most likely point of escape. This method is most effective if the magnet cat will meow while in the carrier. Be sure to stay somewhere nearby and don’t leave your cat out too long as this process can be distressing for them. This method probably works best when the missing cat is bonded with the magnet cat.
If you feel that it is unsafe to bring another cat outside, you could try recording the meowing of another cat and playing that outside. If you don’t have another cat available, you could even try playing Youtube videos of other cats meowing.