If your Savannah gets out and lost, what do you do?

[s&jdavis]

I live within the city limits of a very rural town. Woods to one side and a house pretty close to the other side. My f3 has discovered the art of door darting and my children forget occasionally to not leave the door open while waiting for someone to go through :/
Anyway, he will not let me get close when he is outside. I can do one of 2 things...open the door of the garage and chase him in there or leave the house door open (once other cats are secure) and chase him around the house until he goes back in on his own. Once or twice he has gotten out unnoticed (falling through a screen eek!) but has always come back to the front door meowing for the door to be opened.


-Sonya

 

[Brigitte Cowell]

I hope that continues to be true, Sonya!

 

[Eddies]

Thanks everyone.
i AM securing the house etc.
i don't plan on he or she getting ever out, but I rather be proactive than reactive as well.

HOPEFULLY someone will actually answer the question I had.

The 1 & only time Eddie got out I sent my George to bring him back, not exactly what you were asking for though...English Mastiff trained to "Go find Eddie" ever since Eddie got to me... there IS a thread about your question in here somewhere tho...seems most open the door or window, some put a live trap out in the yard with owners "dirty clothes & a snack in it... guess sending George out after a F1-3 would definitely have different results than an F5 that plays tag with an English Mastiff in the house & "Kitty Pen"... I have their pictures on my door, also trained with "stinky water" in a spray bottle to stay away from the door, & made certain the cats enjoy the dog...good thinking on your part to try to have a plan in place!

 

[GlennG]

Looks like http://www.whistle.com/ is the best backup plan!

GPS, only $100 a year, activates when the pet goes outside the "safe" zone..

Battery lasts a month without charging!

PurrFecto!

 

[Kristin]

My male tends to be a door dasher. We have extra doors set up to keep the savanahs away, but Jimmy found a way to bypass a barrier and I live in a very active house where I am the only one who is concerned about the cats getting out....so yes, he's gotten out. The first few times he did it, I grabbed some treats and he came back and let me pick him up. Then he opened the back door and let himself out and we didn't even notice, except my other savannah cried until we did. Again, he came back in for treats.

The worst one was when my niece let him out and he hid under branches and ran up and down the street for half an hour every time I got close. Eventually my cousin scared him enough for him to run home and in the house. Now he keeps a collar on, which did have a tracking device attached but it broke and I haven't replaced it yet.

Something to also consider with a GPS is the amount of radiation the cat is receiving directly into it's skin. They have been likened to cell phones...except your cell phone isn't always on and touching your skin.

 

[GlennG]

My male tends to be a door dasher. We have extra doors set up to keep the savanahs away, but Jimmy found a way to bypass a barrier and I live in a very active house where I am the only one who is concerned about the cats getting out....so yes, he's gotten out. The first few times he did it, I grabbed some treats and he came back and let me pick him up. Then he opened the back door and let himself out and we didn't even notice, except my other savannah cried until we did. Again, he came back in for treats.

The worst one was when my niece let him out and he hid under branches and ran up and down the street for half an hour every time I got close. Eventually my cousin scared him enough for him to run home and in the house. Now he keeps a collar on, which did have a tracking device attached but it broke and I haven't replaced it yet.

Something to also consider with a GPS is the amount of radiation the cat is receiving directly into it's skin. They have been likened to cell phones...except your cell phone isn't always on and touching your skin.

The GPS is only active when the cat goes outside the set perimeter,so no worries there..

 

[Green eyed kitty]

I'm still looking for a collar, that can track when not in an area of service, that doesn't weigh down a cats neck, that breaks free when caught on something.

Mystique, never tries to exit the house...

Seraphimah is a dasher....has escaped twice! Both times, I chased after her immediately! Called her name, and told her to stop.

The best thing I have found, is distraction. Throwing something ahead of her (food worked once)...a twig worked the next time. She stopped to check out the item. Long enough for me to catch up to her, and pick her up.

I live out in the country on acreage also. No matter how much I secure the door, carry her backwards over the threshold, place her in a harness before her walks or an outing. She loves the outdoors and tries to dash.

When a collar comes out....please let me know.

I know of a serval owner, who uses collars. Those collars only work when in a serviced area. Not out here! Plus those collars are still too large for a smaller cat.

 

[Sunny]

Double entrance combined with an outdoor enclosure. They are unlikely to exit my way in and probably in the enclosure already enjoying outside time. The reality though is that I am greeted at the door warmly by all three after work every day, so the double entrance method has been absolutely key. Zero escapes since I moved to this arrangement. When Isis has escaped in particular she wanders back when she has had enough and needs food. The longest escape has been 36 hours and required stomach surgery a week later, which made me reevaluate my priorities on where and whom I live with to prevent it from happening. This post just reminded me I needed to kick the relative responsible off my Facebook friends list - if I could financially or psychologically punish them in some way it would give me great satisfaction. This happened Aug '14 and I am still not over it.