Missing- Female Himalyan persian cat

Question
I have a brother and sister Himalayan Persian cats, 5 years old. They have lived at the same house there whole life, and 2 weeks ago I moved house with all familiar furniture and belongings, but to a smaller house and land and about 10 minutes drive from last house.

My male cat (both desexed) who mostly liked being outdoors, has settled in very well. My female cat who was an indoor/outdoor cat, meowed constantly since leaving the old house, and then at the new house all night long, and then seemed to settle well after a few days.

I went out on tue 22nd Dec for a few hrs, a week after being at our new house, came home and as usual took both cats out in the street for a supervised late night 'walk', and then locked them in the yard, which he can climb with ease, but does return home.

She takes time to get confidence with new things, and is not such an agile climber, so doesnt really got straight to climbing fences to escape, instead meows for me to open a locked gate. They never had fences and gates to climb before at their old house.

I was with them as they sat outside the door on tue night, inside their fenced yard, after there night walk with me, and they were lying on the ground, very relaxed. I went inside for a few minutes and came out to check on them and she had vanished - I haven't seen her since.  

She had been her for a week, before she vanished, on tue 22nd dec at 10.30pm, was the last time I saw her. When I came out to check on them that night, I saw her brother climbing a high fence, but couldnt find her anywhere. But she does master the climbing after a while and started to before she disappeared. I couldnt see her anywhere, and she hasnt been home or visible anywhere since that night.

She has had to get used to so many things, and hates change of any kind. She usually 'shadows' me everywhere and will come inside alot to be with me, the same behaviour she had at the old house, she is very attached to me.

He continues to come home after his exploring, and as I did with both of them, I took them for nightly walks, when all is quiet in the street and let them explore their new home and neighbourhood. Now I do it with him to try and find her.

I have always been protective especially of her as she is so attached to me. It has been 4 nights (the 5th day today) since I last saw her, and she is so spoilt and indulged, I wonder how she can survive out there.

I didn't have her microchipped, but they are both desexed. She doesn't have a collar on either.  

I know I allowed them to explore their environment with my supervision and then left a door open to let them explore the fenced in yard, and she seemed to stay there all night or be inside with me, mostly, the similar behaviour of the last house. He continues to do what he does and explore the environment and come home when he is hungry!

I have searched the area, especially every night, calling her, wondering if she is injured, she doesn't respond. I can say she loves drains, the kind that are in the street, she did at her first house, and when we had visitors there, she would go down them and not come out until they were gone. She has gone down the drains here, and as I search and call down them and look out for her all day and night roaming the streets, no sign of her at all.

It is now pouring with rain as the water gushes down those drains i wonder where she is?

Can she keep surviving out there? For how long? And knowing I had only a week to get her to know her new home and neighbourhood, will she be able to find her way back to me?

Her brother doesn't seem to be worried about her or bothered she is not around, does he have instincts she is ok, or does he just not care?

I have put flyers in all surroundings houses,and at the local shopping centre. I have called shelters and there is a vet at the back of this street, have given them details. Have checked the local paper for any found animals, nothing as yet..

She isnt the type who would go to others, he is so docile, anyone could take him easily, but she is too feisty, and would avoid others or attack, especially if frightened, that is why I would find it hard to believe that someone has stolen her.

I just feel she is near by, as she has never been a cat, unlike him to roam/walk long distances without me with her, but it is not like her to not respond to my voice, but then again she hates change, and has never coped with any small thing changing.

I don't know what to do and am extremely distressed. I guess all sorts of scenarios have run through my head as to what has happened to her. To get back to her old house, which is something she wouldn't do (?), because she is so attached to me (?), but there are alot of roads and a river separating us from there.

I continue to walk with a torch and look and wonder where such a spoilt and indulged pedigree would be and how she is coping, i imagine terrified by all the noises, after being here only a week; but if she is alive and well, and is still in the area, it has been 2 wks since I moved, and almost a week since she vanished, naturally I am concerned for her safety.

She has had encounters with neighbours cats coming to our door and she got very upset, naturally. I have seen alot of the neighbours cats go down the drains in the street also, and then come out later.



I understand there was alot for her to take in and cope with and she was doing well with me there to supervise, but she obviously got adventurous enough to climb the fence? But now where is she???


I appreciate any advice/suggestions/thoughts you have. I miss her terribly.

I thought i had done all the right things with moving them, and settling them, knowing them so well, but obviously something has changed with her, after she initially seemed to settle.

I have gone through neighbours yards etc to check for her, no sign of her. I have tried everything; searched neighbourhood land/open space/parks etc, every day and night since she disappeared. I have checked the main road, which is a distance from here to see if she has been hit by a car, no sign of her anywhere.

Is it likely someone has stolen her? She wouldnt go well to others. What are the likely scenarios, if you can offer any? Would she more likely to be injured and not visible to others to help her? Or is she staying hidden while terrified of her new surroundings? Will she be able to find her way home to me? Or is she likely to stay lost for longer, b/c she hasnt known the area long? Is she likely to turn into a streetwise/feral cat to survive?

Is she aware of my voice calling her, and her brother being around? Would she have travelled underground through the drains? Before when she went down drains, she didnt go far into them, and would respond to me calling her out, even at this new place, in the first week when she did it. Is there anywhere else i can look or anything else i can do to bring her home? Will she still be alive, after this time or longer?

Anything you can offer, would be greatly appreciated.

Thankyou,
Andrea  

Answer
Andrea,

In all your message, you never mentioned staking out your old house!!!!!  Cats being creatures of habit and tending to become very attached to territory, the first place I would begin looking is where you used to live. If it is only 10 minutes away, I would bet (although I am not a gambling person) that she might very well have traveled back to her old territory.  So, I would widen your search to include that neighborhood and check the neighbors, the shelters, put up flyers and the like.  Cats tend to stay very, very close to their home territory and, it sounds as if the week you spent in the new home with the cats, although you did all the right things, you probably did not do them for long enough.  I would expect it would take at least a month or so for your female to get used to the new place and not so attached to the old place.

Also, remember cats can hide in plain sight!!!!!!!!!

Please let me know how it goes.

Hopeful regards... Norm.