How to Conduct an Effective Physical Search Outdoors for a Lost Indoor Cat

  • Research shows that significantly more lost cats are found when a thorough physical search is conducted
  • At least 30% of lost indoor cats are found during a physical search outdoors

A physical search is also what is known as “boots on the ground” searching.  This is the part of the search where you physically get out there and look for your cat.  Conducting a thorough physical search is one of the most effective methods for finding an escaped indoor cat.  

Many people think that they conducted an effective search for their missing cat, but few actually do.  As discussed above, many lost cats will not respond when you call for them or shake a treat bag even if they normally do so inside your home. 

Determining the Search Area

  • Conduct a very thorough search within 150 feet of your home or location lost
  • Search within a 3-5 house radius (250-1000 feet) of where your cat went missing

To conduct an effective search, you need to set realistic search boundaries.  Most escaped indoor-only cats are found within 500 feet (150 m) from their location lost with an average distance of only 128 feet (39 m).  This generally equates to a 3-5 house radius (e.g. 3-5 houses in each direction from your house or location lost).  

Locations Where Lost Indoor Cats are Found

Pie chart of locations where lost indoor cats are found

Figure 1.  Locations where lost indoor cats are found (unpublished LPRR case statistics 2020)

In all areas, start with a very thorough search of your yard and up to a 150-foot radius.

Depending on the type of location, expand your search area as follows:

  • Urban Areas: search up to a 250-foot radius (75 m)
  • Suburban Homes: search up to a 500-foot radius (150 m)
  • Suburban Condos or Apartments with few hiding spots: search up to 1/4 mile (400 m)
  • Rural areas: search up to a ¼ mile radius (400 m).  Focus on areas around homes or outbuildings rather than the woods.

Some indoor-only cats may travel farther such as cats with previous outdoor experience or those with very bold, outgoing personalities.  In these situations, expand your search area to ¼ mile (400 m), but still conduct a very thorough search within 500 feet (150 m). 

Using Online Maps

You may have an easier time visualizing the search area if you use online mapping tools.  One of the easiest tools is the Map Developers "Draw a Circle."  Alternatively, you can create a Google Map and use the ruler tool.  If you are more tech savvy, Google Earth Pro allows you to draw a radius around a point.  See the Online Maps Resources for more detailed instructions.

Recommended Search Areas for a Lost Indoor Cat

Map showing search areas for indoor cat

Figure 2.  Recommended search areas for a lost indoor cat in a suburban area.  Orange house icon = location lost.  Orange circle = 150-foot radius.  Red circle = 500-foot radius.

Here is an example search map for a lost indoor-only cat.   

Recommended search areas for a lost indoor cat in a suburban area. 

  • Orange house icon = location lost. 
  • Orange circle = 150-foot radius.  Most important area to conduct a thorough search.  Search this area at least once a day for the first week if possible.
  • Red circle = 500-foot radius.  Attempt to thoroughly search this area at least once.  Also distribute flyers within this radius.

Search Safety

If possible, do not search alone.  This is just safer and having a second set of eyes can be invaluable.  Your cat may run out from under one side of a deck or shed while you are looking under the other side, and if alone, you may never even see them. 

Consider bringing along a friend of family member that is sympathetic and willing to search but is less attached to your cat emotionally.  This is especially helpful if you are very stressed or sleep deprived.  I have seen cat owners easily overlook their cat because they were frantically (rather than thoroughly) searching.

At least have someone available by phone.  This way if you locate your cat but need assistance getting them out, you have someone to call.  You may even need them to bring a humane trap while you keep an eye on your cat. However, in general I do not recommend search parties!  Too many people searching together are much more likely to scare your cat away rather than locate them.

A thorough search can often take at least 2-3 hours.  Make sure to dress properly and bring water.  Long pants, boots and bug spray are recommended.  Many good cat hiding spots are rampant with poison ivy or poison oak.  Make sure that you know what it looks like.  Also, don’t forget to thoroughly check for ticks after your search. 

What to Bring on Your Search

In order to conduct an effective physical search, you need the right tools. 

  • A bright flashlight or spotlight (preferably not just the light on your cell phone).
  • A camera or your cell phone for searching in small spaces.
  • A small can of cat food or some treats to lure your cat out if you find them hiding.
  • A towel, small blanket or pillow case to wrap your cat up securely if you find them.  Your cat may panic when picked up.   Don’t make the mistake of finding them and then trying to carry them home only to lose them again.  You could bring their cat carrier if they are comfortable using it.  However, if they are likely to struggle when you try to put them inside, then this is not the best option. 
  • Flyers!  If you have time, be sure to bring along some lost cat flyers.  If you don’t yet have flyers, bring some business cards or post-it notes with your name and phone number.  If you skip this step, someone may see your cat right after you leave and have to way to let you know.
  • A small notebook or phone app.  Try to keep notes on what yards you search, where you couldn’t search, and which yards have good hiding spots.  This will be helpful if you don’t find your cat right away.  You might think that you’ll remember but searching for a lost cat is very stressful and there’s a good chance that you will forget.  If you're tech savvy, a GPS tracker app for your phone is another option.
Additional tools for the high-tech searcher might include a borescope (for checking inside walls or under sheds) and a thermal imaging or infrared camera (for checking outside at night or up in trees).  These can sometimes be rented from large hardware stores like Home Depot. 

How to Effectively Search Outdoors

You may feel like you are looking for a needle in a haystack, but just try to focus on doing the most thorough search that you can.  If you do not find your cat during the initial search, you still have a very good chance of finding them. 

Should You Call for Your Cat?

Don’t expect your cat to respond (meow) or come out of hiding.  Even if your cat is strongly bonded with you or very vocal at home, they are unlikely to respond when lost outside.  Some cats will but the natural behavior of a frightened cat is to remain silent.  

Since some cats will respond, it is not a bad idea to call for your cat or shake a treat bag when searching.  If calling, don’t yell or call loudly.  Cats have very good hearing and calling works best if you do so using the tone and phrases that you typically use to talk to your cats when indoors.  

If calling, make sure to spend some time standing and just listening.  When cats do respond, they don’t always do so immediately. 

Start in Your Own Yard or Location Last Seen

  • Use a bright flashlight to thoroughly search all potential hiding spots within your own yard.
  • Don't expect your cat to respond or come out of hiding, but it doesn't hurt to call softly.
  • Be careful about searching in the woods as you may scare your cat farther way without ever seeing them.
  • Re-check good hiding spots in your yard (and up to 150 feet) at least once a day for the first week.  Don't just search once!

You want to make sure that you do the most thorough search on your own property or the location your cat went missing (and up to a 150 foot radius).  Check under any porches, sheds, decks or garages.  These are favorite hiding spots of lost indoor cats, and the best ones are low to the ground with a small gap or hole.  

Make sure to get down on the ground and look thoroughly with a flashlight from all angles.  If there are spots that you can’t fully see such as under the stairs, you can use a digital camera or you phone to stick your hand inside and take photos or video.  A borescope (i.e. inspection camera) also works very well for these situations.  

Check inside any outbuildings that have been open since your cat went missing including sheds, garages or basements.  Check under and behind everything, and don’t forget to look up in any loft spaces.  If the outbuildings are closed, check for any possible gaps or holes that your cat could fit inside.  

Also check less obvious places like under tarps, grill covers, inside hot tub housing or the car engine of any cars parked in your garage or driveway.  A frightened cat can hide in some really small spaces.  As a rule, if you think your cat’s head could fit into a hiding space, then check it.

Undoubtedly, you won’t be able to check everywhere completely.  Some cats get into places where it is just not feasible such as dense brambles/thorn bushes, down sewers or culverts, inside holes among boulders, wood piles or even under ground.  Search as best you can, but I don’t generally recommend crawling through bushes or taking apart wood piles.  Unless your cat is in danger (e.g. dragging a leash or has serious medical issues), it is better to leave these hiding spots intact.  If you attempt to fully search them, you are at a greater risk of scaring your cat away.  If you know or suspect your cat is in one of these hard to access spots, there are other methods to try to draw them out and catch them.

Occasionally an escaped indoor cat will get stuck in a tree though this doesn’t happen very often.  The easiest way to check up in trees is to go out at dusk or nighttime with a powerful flashlight or spotlight.  Shine it up into the trees and watch for the reflective eye-shine of your cat.  You can also try just listening, especially at dawn or dusk.  There’s some chance your cat will meow, especially after at least 3 days.  However, also listen for the alarm calls of song birds or squirrels that are upset that your cat is in the tree.  Larger birds like crows will sometimes also harass a cat in a tree.

Re-check good hiding spots in your yard (and up to 150 feet).  Don’t just search once!  This is very important for lost indoor cats as they will often come out of hiding at night, travel closer to home, and then hide again.  At least once every day (morning is best) check any good hiding spots in your yard. 

Again, the most important potential hiding spots are under/in any sheds, decks, porches or garages.  Do this for at least the first week that your cat is missing.  Just because your cat wasn’t there the first or second time that you checked, doesn’t mean that they won’t be there now.  In at least half the on-site searches that I have conducted, I found the lost cat somewhere that the owner had already looked.

When searching garages, sheds or basements, consider closing any doors or windows open to the outside.  First search without moving anything, and then be careful about moving items.  If you suddenly expose your cat’s hiding spot, they are likely to run in fear (and possibly out an open door). 

Search Your Neighbors' Properties

  • Get permission to search within your neighbor's yards.  This is really important!
  • Don't just ask your neighbors to check for you.

Use your search map to determine properties within your search area.  In general, this is a 3-5 house radius from your home or location that your cat went missing.  See Determining the Search Area (above) for more details.

When checking other people’s yards, do so with the same thoroughness and techniques that you used to search your own yard (see above).  If you are unable to check inside any outbuildings or garages, call for your cat from outside and listen for at least a minute. 

If possible, you also want to re-check any really good hiding spots in your neighbors' yards, especially your immediate neighbors (up to a 150-foot radius).  If your cat is trapped inside an outbuilding, they may not meow until 3-7 days and sometimes as many as 10 days.  Do this at least 2-3 times in the first week, but don’t spend so much time in your neighbors’ yards that you wear out your welcome.  You may need their help later if they see your cat in their yard and you need to trap them.

Getting Permission to Search Your Neighbors' Properties

Many people will search within their own yards but are reluctant to ask permission to search their neighbors’ yards.  Searching your neighbors’ properties is really important!  You need to knock on your neighbors’ doors and try to get permission to do a thorough search of their property.  Don’t just ask them to look for themselves because they are unlikely to do a thorough enough job. 

Explain that your cat is an escaped indoor-only cat and is likely hiding in fear.  If you have one, give them a lost cat flyer or business card.  Also ask if they had any sheds, garages or basements left open (especially overnight) since your cat went missing.  If so, ask if you can search those too.  Most people are very sympathetic and will let you look.  If they won’t (perhaps because they have a dog), then make a note of it and move on.

Searching in the Woods or Dense Vegetation

Be careful about searching in the woods or dense vegetation.  You may scare your cat away rather than find them!  If your cat is a kitten, elderly, potentially sick or injured, or wearing a leash, you may want to conduct a thorough search of the woods.  However, in most other cases, you have a much greater chance of scaring your cat away, especially if you are bushwhacking through dense vegetation or walking on crunchy, dry leaves. 

When searching the woods, try to stay on trails or edges of yards/fields.  Look thoroughly into any thick bushes within yards or at the woods edge with a flashlight.  In general, I do not recommend sending search parties into the woods.  Also resist the urge to dismantle any good hiding spots (i.e. don’t take apart a wood pile).  If you do, you risk injuring or scaring your cat.  It is best to keep plenty of good hiding spots near your home as it increases the chance of finding your cat through methods other than searching.

Expanding Your Search Area and Night Searching

  • Expand your search area up to 1/4 mile.
  • Search around the neighborhood from the street using a powerful flashlight or spotlight.
  • This type of searching is most effective at dawn, dusk or (best yet) the middle of the night.

If you don’t find your cat in your initial search, you may want to expand your search area up to ¼ mile.  Even if you can’t thoroughly search every yard, you can still do a good night search.  This search is best done at dawn, dusk or the middle of the night when your cat is most likely moving around.  Walk along the road and check under cars and in front yards with a powerful flashlight.  Be careful about accidentally shining it into people’s houses.  You want to avoid having them call the police on you.  

Make sure to quietly call for your cat and spend some time just standing and listening.  In my experience, even some skittish indoor cats have responded when this was done in the middle of the night.

Search Enough but Not Too Much!

  • Don't search constantly, especially all night.  You may be scaring your cat!
  • Be sure to give your cat some quiet time to return home on their own and/or enter a humane trap.

While searching is important, it is just as important to NOT search continuously.  Some people are out at all hours of the day and night looking for their cat.  This can actually scare your cat away from returning home or hiding someplace nearby.  Often the most critical time to stay inside is between 12am-4am when your cat is most likely moving around.  Occasional searching during this time can be helpful, but don’t do it every night or all night long.

Remember that Searching is About More than Just Looking

When searching for your missing cat, don’t just look for them.  You will conduct a much more effective search if you remember to use your other senses as well.

Don't Forget to Stop and Listen

Most escaped indoor cats will not meow, but some will.  When searching be sure to spend some time just standing and listening.  If you move too quickly in your search, you may not give your cat time to respond.  It is easiest to hear your cat when it is really quiet outside. 

If you think that you hear something, you can increase your ability to hear by cupping your hands behind your ears.   This can also help you determine the direction that the sound is coming from.  Don’t forget to look up in trees, on roofs and even the attic. 

If you think you keep hearing your cat, but can’t figure out where it is coming from, you might consider purchasing an amplified listening device.  These are most effective if they are directional.  Don’t get tricked by the cat bird.  The call of this bird is somewhat like the “mew” of a cat. 

Don’t just listen for your cat, listen for alarm calls of birds, squirrels and chipmunks.  Since cats are their natural predator, these animals will often raise an alarm to alert others if they see a cat.  If your cat is hiding in a bush or stuck in a tree, birds may surround your cat and make alarm calls.  Squirrels and chipmunks will also alarm call, but they usually stay farther away from the potential danger.  Learn more and listen to example alarm calls here.  You don't need to memorize the calls. If you listen to a few of them, you will find that the nature of the calls are fairly similar. An alarm call is often a series of loud, repeated notes.

Use Your Sense of Smell

When checking potential hiding places, don’t forget to use your sense of smell.  If your cat is trapped or hiding for any length of time, they will eventually have to urinate and/or poop.  Cat pee has a very strong, pungent odor of ammonia.  If a shed or garage smells strongly of cat pee, be sure to do an extra thorough search for your cat.

Most indoor cats can survive outside for a long time, so you are unlikely to find them deceased.  However, be sure to notice any smells of decomposition during your search and try to find the source.  Be aware that something as small as a dead mouse can produce a strong odor of decomposition, so don’t worry too much if you smell something and can’t find the source.