Siouxsie: It's been a sad week here at the Paws and Effect Palace, because Sinéad is missing!

Thomas: Sinéad came in for dinner and petties on Tuesday night, and Mama hasn't seen her since then. It's now Sunday. Mama's really upset, but she's trying hard to stay calm and hopeful.

Siouxsie: Thomas and I are going to do the best we can to write this column without Sinéad's help. And in order to help other people whose cats go missing, we're going to tell you about what to do if this happens to you.

Thomas: A lot of books about cat care give good advice about how to find a lost cat, but they're generally geared toward people who live in cities and suburban areas. We live in the country, and our nearest neighbor is pretty far away (by cat standards, at least), and cat finding is a slightly different task if you live in a rural area.

Siouxsie: The most important thing to do if you realize your cat is missing is to remain calm. If you panic, you're not going to be able to use your rational mind or your intuition to help you find your missing kitty.

Thomas: It's perfectly okay to be sad and worried. Bast knows Mama's spent plenty of time over the last several days being sad and worried! I even kissed her face and licked her tears the other day. But with our help and the help of loving friends and family members, she's been able to talk about her feelings and get them outside of her so she can be calm enough to do what she needs to do to help find Sinéad.

Siouxsie: The first thing to do when you notice your cat is missing is to look in any closed space where she could have gotten trapped. For example, Mama looked inside a storage container, she looked inside campers and vehicles, she looked in closed rooms, and she even looked down a chimney that's under construction to make sure Sinéad hadn't fallen into the chimney and gotten stuck there.

Thomas: If your cat isn't stuck inside a closet or other container, the next step is to look around your immediate area. Cats -- especially spayed females like Sinéad -- don't tend to roam very far from their homes. If you live in a city, your lost cat will usually be within a block of where she lives. If you live in the country, the chances are that she won't be more than a quarter mile away.

Siouxsie: Cats that are lost tend to be scared. Because they're scared, they'll usually hide in places that feel safe to them. Look under porches, in crawl spaces, in tool sheds or garden sheds, and in garages (with your neighbors' permission, of course).

Thomas: If you live in the country, one or more of your neighbors may have a barn. Barns are ideal hiding places for lost cats because there's shelter and lots of food, in the form of mice and other yummy snacks, available.

Siouxsie: Walk around the edges of your property calling your cat's name. If your cat is lost and scared, she may not answer your call. But she will pick up your scent and she may be able to follow that scent back to her home. Look for cat tracks in mud or sand; the direction of the tracks may provide a clue about where your cat has been.

Thomas: Walk up and down the edges of any roads near your house, up to a quarter-mile in either direction. If your cat has been hit by a car and injured or killed, you may find her on or near the road. Don't forget to look in the ditches or underbrush. It's grim, we know, but if a cat is hit a glancing blow (rather than run over) by a car, she could be thrown several feet.

Siouxsie: We live pretty far from the road, and Mama knows that Sinéad has never gone near it in the year or more since we've lived here, but she looked up and down the road anyway. Just in case.

Thomas: When you go walking around in search of your cat, you should bring a couple of things with you, in case you find your cat injured and you need to carry her back home. Mama took a pillow case, which she could have made into a carrier of sorts, and her bottle of Rescue Remedy. That way, if Mama had found Sinéad injured, she wouldn't have had to waste precious time going back to the house and finding a way to carry her home.

Siouxsie: And if she'd found Sinéad's body, she could have carried it back home so we could pay our respects and bury her.

Thomas: Mama called the local animal shelter and described Sinéad, and the date and location where she was last seen, to the manager, so that if the animal control officer or a good samaritan brought her in as a stray, the shelter staff would call Mama and let her know.

Siouxsie: She also contacted the local veterinarians and gave them Sinéad's description. Again, she did this in case Sinéad was brought to a vet injured or ill.

Thomas: Mama made posters to fax to veterinarians' offices and distribute to our nearest neighbors. The poster contained two photos of Sinéad, a complete description, and a contact number.

Siouxsie: We want to talk to you a little bit about describing your cat. It's really important that you are able to recall characteristics that distinguish each one of your cats from others like it. Had Mama simply said, "She's a black cat with yellow eyes," she could have been mistaken for any old black cat.

Thomas: This is the information Mama put on the poster: "10-year-old spayed female short-hair, black with golden eyes. Last seen Tuesday, Aug. 15, around 6 p.m., at [our location]. Weight when last seen: 8 pounds. Current on all vaccinations. Had Frontline Plus flea treatment applied 8/13/06."

Siouxsie: Then she made a list of Sinéad's distinguishing features: "Slight bump on her back, just behind her shoulder blades; high-pitched hoarse/gravelly meow, tends to "talk" a lot; heart-shaped face, oval paws, tapered tail, looks somewhat Siamese/Oriental in her build; tends to be shy with people she doesn't know, especially men with loud voices or heavy footsteps; her fur is very glossy and black in the sunlight and looks almost brown or coppery in certain light; her fur is thin on her abdomen between her rear legs."

Thomas: The only reason Mama could pull together a description this complete -- and she can do this for each one of us! -- is that she knows us very well and has periodically done an exercise where she closes her eyes and "visualizes" each one of us. She thinks about features that are unique to each one of us and adds that to her mental description.

Siouxsie: This visualization exercise is very good practice for people who want to communicate intuitively with their animal friends, and it's a great asset to know these things for times when those animals disappear.

Thomas: Understand that grief, anxiety and guilt are normal emotions for cat lovers to feel when one of their cats goes missing. Mama's been having waves of guilt at times, wondering things like "Maybe if I'd just gone a couple of feet farther, I would have found her," or "Maybe she's dead and she suffered terribly for days..."

Siouxsie: As Thomas said, these are normal feelings to have. But if you allow yourself to be overwhelmed and paralyzed by these feelings, you're not going to be able to help your cat. So talk about them to sympathetic people, or even to the deity of your choice. Move those feelings through and out so that energy can be replaced by hope and positive action.

Thomas: It's perfectly okay to pray and/or do rituals for your cat. We believe that the Creator loves all animals equally, and that the Creator understands how important the relationship between people and animals can be. If your cat is just out having an explore, your prayers will help your cat stay safe. If your cat is hurt or lost, your prayers can serve as a "locator beacon" or a means of sending that extra energy your cat needs to get back to a place where she can get help.

Siouxsie: And after you've done everything you can do, sometimes you just need to leave the rest in the hands of a higher power.

Thomas: Mama knew that when she decided to let us be indoor-outdoor cats, there were benefits and risks. When we lived in town, she never let us go outside because there were more risks (traffic, mean people) than benefits. But when we moved to the country in a house far away from the road, she allowed us to go outside and explore. We've had so much fun being indoor-outdoor cats, I can't even begin to tell you!

Siouxsie: I never knew it would be so wonderful to walk in the grass and feel the soft earth under my paws, and how exciting it is to hunt mice. I never imagined how huge and amazing the world could be, and I'm so happy that I can go outside!

Thomas: Me too! I feel so strong and sleek and healthy, and my fur always smells good and clean. And mice are so delicious. And Mama's very proud that we're such good hunters!

Siouxsie: And we know that Sinéad loves it outside, too. There are dangers, but there are benefits, too. I sure hope Sinéad is okay and she comes back soon; I have to admit I kinda miss the silly little thing!

Thomas: So, basically, if your cat goes missing, the things you need to do are:

• Stay calm. Search any enclosed spaces in your home or on your property.
• Write a description of your cat, including distinguishing features and vaccination status. If your cat has any special medical needs, include that information on the poster. This information will help people know that your cat is well cared-for and loved, and it will help any veterinarian who happens to receive her for treatment.
• Say a prayer or do a ritual if it helps you feel better.
• The next day, expand your search to your block or within a quarter-mile on either side of your home, including neighbors' sheds or barns (with their permission). Look by the roadside, just in case. Make and distribute a poster about your cat, using recent photos and the description you've put together. Be sure the poster includes your contact information!
• Contact local animal shelters, your local animal control officer, and area veterinarians. Provide a copy of your poster to them if possible.
• The following day, search the perimeter of your property again. Be sure to bring the means to carry your cat if you should find her injured or dead. Don't give up hope. Continue to pray or do ritual if you like.
• You may find some assistance in contacting an animal communicator. But remember that many animal communicators don't like to take on "missing animal" cases because no matter how good they are at other types of animal communication, missing pet cases tend to have a much lower success rate.
• At some point you may have to accept that your cat either doesn't want to be found or can't be found. One of the most difficult parts of the grieving process is coming to this acceptance. You'll probably find that just about the time you accept that your cat is gone, she'll show up on your doorstep looking at you like "Hey, what's the big deal?"

Siouxsie: We hope this helps you if you should find your cat missing. And we all hope that Sinéad decides to come back! *sniffle*

Got a question? Need some advice? E-mail us at advice@paws-and-effect.com. None of the material in this column is meant to be a substitute for regular veterinary care.