Since there is so little information on cat homing behavior, I started a research survey in 2013. These are the survey results as of July 2018. If your cat has ever displayed homing behavior, please consider taking this very short survey. To take the survey, click here.Homing DefinitionSome lost cats are able to find their way home […]
Wildlife cameras (also called trail or game cameras) are often recommended by pet detectives as a method to help locate missing cats. They can be particularly helpful to determine the presence of an escaped indoor-only cat, since these cats tend to hide nearby and venture out at night. Wildlife cameras are also commonly used by wildlife biologists in
Missing Pet Partnership has partnered with the University of Queensland, Australia, to conduct the first-ever Missing Cat Study. Lost cats that are not found by their families are a major contributing factor to worldwide feral, shelter, and homeless cat populations. In 2011 a preliminary, non-scientific study by Missing Pet Partnership determined that the majority (93%)
Many people with a lost pet think that a search dog is the best method for finding their pet. However, most people tend to have unrealistic expectations and a lack of understanding of how a search dog works. I previously wrote an article on considerations for Using a Search Dog, and in this series of articles, I
Using a Search Dog to Track a Lost Outdoor-Access Cat Read More »
I have written several articles on coyotes killing cats and one on coyotes attacking dogs. Observations of Coyote Predation on Cats More Observations of Coyote-Cat Interactions: What Can We Learn? Coyotes Don’t Eat Cats Very Often Understanding Coyote Behavior in Urban/Suburban Areas and Assessing Risks to Cats Trends in Coyote Attacks on Dogs Most of
Note: This article focuses on a few very old research papers on cat homing behavior. For more recent research, check out my Cat Homing Behavior Survey Results. This new research includes information on how to determine whether your lost cat is likely to display homing behavior. One of the most fascinating, but perhaps least understood
In a joint project by National Geographic and the University of Georgia, outdoor-access house cats were fitted with Kitty Cams, small video cameras that attach to the cat’s collar, to learn about the secretive behavior of free-roaming cats. Data were collected on 55 outdoor-access house cats in Athens, Georgia, from November 2010 to October 2011.
The secretive nature of cats makes it nearly impossible to observe their natural behavior when outdoors. Likewise, few cat owners know where their cats travel or what they do when allowed outside. A new study conducted in Britain used GPS loggers to map the travel of outdoor-access house cats. What makes this study more innovative
New Insights into Cat Behavior Using a GPS Logger and Cat-cam Read More »
I was excited to recently learn about a new research study on the behavior of free-roaming feral and pet cats. Here is a link to a summary of their findings from the Illinois News Bureau. The full research article is available free for download at The Journal of Wildlife Management website. I will also be
Many cat owners believe that a lost cat will find its way home. Lord (2008) conducted a survey of households in Ohio and found that 62% of cat owners believed that if their cat strayed from home they would be able to find their way home on their own. Only 21% of cat owners disagreed
I was surprised to recently learn that as many as 30% of people acquire their cats because they were found as strays or abandoned or “just showed up” (New et al. 2004) This does not include cats adopted from shelters, which accounted for another 13% of cats acquired, or those adopted from rescue groups, friends
Adoption of Stray Cats and the Importance of Lost Pet Posters Read More »
Road traffic accidents (RTAs) are a common cause of injury and death for outdoor-access cats. Olsen and Allen (2001) found that 51% of outdoor-access cats that suddenly and unexpectedly died were the result of RTAs, and Rochlitz et al. (2001) found that RTAs were the forth most common cause of death for cats after old
Factors that May Predispose Cats to Road Traffic Accidents Read More »
