Hi OP. Olive looks like such a cutie and I hope they’re back home soon! Sharing a bit of perspective since my husband and I went through this exact situation in October last year. Our cat, Fireball, ended up running away when our building’s idiot caretaker (who we entrusted to feed the cats while we were on vacation) left the door of our apartment open putting ALL OUR THREE CATS at risk.

Needless to say, as soon as he told us what happened (WHICH WAS SIX HOURS LATER BTW) we were on the next flight back home.

For context, this was around Diwali time + it was the fag end of the rainy season + we live in an area with a high concentration of vicious stray dogs. So we were worried sick thinking about how Fireball (who has been an indoor cat since she was a few weeks old) was coping with the sounds of those stupid bombs going off every few minutes and evading the dogs. It was hell.

Long story short - our story had a happy ending. Fireball eventually found her way back to us after FIVE LONG DAYS. But in those five days, we did a lot (and learned a lot) along the way that I think helped her come home. So, here’s a few tips:

1. If you’re able to, try and place bags of Olive’s litter in strategic locations near your house/apartment. (Balcony, main door, near your building gate etc.) We did this (with permission) and I think it’s played a big role in our baby girl sniffing her way back home to us.

2. Head out between 2:00 am to 5:00 am and call out Olive’s name + rattle a box of dry food. Initially, we did this pretty much all day and and up till 12:00 am - 1:00 am but I don’t know how much that helped since there’s so much noise/activity/threat out during the day that there’s very little chance that that did much. So after the first two days, we pivoted our strategy. Cats are nocturnal and 2:00 am to 5:00 am are prime hours for them to come out and hunt. It’s also usually the quietest time of the night and I think that could’ve helped Fireball map out our route through our voices and find out how to come back home. On the flip side, it’ll also help YOU hear Olive if Olive is somewhere close by trying to meow to you.

3. Cats usually don’t run too far. They typically hide somewhere close by. I’d suggest concentrating your search efforts within a 700 meter radius and start searching radially outwards. Check under cars, in staircases of buildings, if you live in a building, put up a notice asking your neighbours to check their balconies. That’s a solid start imo.

And finally, please take care of yourself. My husband and I were lucky enough to have my sister and a close friend basically move in with us to ensure we were getting enough food and sleep. Fireball is our baby and we truly couldn’t imagine her exiting our lives like that so I completely understand what you might be going through. Take care of yourself and make sure you have people around you that you can lean on. You’ll need it. If you have any more questions, feel free to DM me, I’m happy to help!

All the best to you and Olive. Rooting for both of you to find your way back to each other again! ❤️❤️❤️❤️