"Jack" is a 17-yr-old neutered male house cat who slipped out the door June 26.

The door to our Forest Hill home was cracked open around 6 a.m. to run an electric cord outside and Jack pounced on the opportunity.

Jack is a total house cat and has no idea about being outside. He has been raised with other cats and with dogs. He is extremely friendly and loves all people and children. I completely expect he will find a neighbor's front door and sit outside and meow loudly to be let in. Even though he is 17, he doesn't look or act anywhere near his age!

DESCRIPTION: Jack is white with brown tabby markings. He weighs about 10-12 pounds.

He does have a bit of a memory problem and sometimes gets "lost" inside the house and meows as loud as he can until we call him or go get him. He has very few teeth left, although he eats dry cat food just fine. He is a bit hard of hearing. He does have a slight cold (or maybe allergies) and has been sneezing (and needs to be on antibiotics to clear this up - this is a yearly problem since he has gotten older and the other cats don't catch his colds).

This could be why he is not able to smell his way back home. He also coughs like he is bringing up a hairball if he gets too much exercise or gets upset, again, not something the other cats will catch or anything. Otherwise, he is very healthy and looks & acts MUCH younger than his age. His favorite thing is to lay on top of you and just sleep!

He has always been pampered so I really don't expect that he would go very far from home - he is not the type of cat to go through weeds or anything that would take effort, so I expect he would travel only where lawns are mowed or along driveways/roads (although he doesn't know anything about cars either). He has always eaten food for "sensitive systems".   I also expect that he would find someone's lawn furniture and curl up on it, especially if it has a cushion !!  One of the sightings mentioned that the cat came up to their front door and was asking to come inside, which sounds exactly like something he would do.

Jack is a family member, like a brother or even a child to my daughter, and like another child to me !! We want him home desperately and want him back even if he is found passed away.

We have an area Pet Amber Alert activated for Jack and flyers posted all over.  We have set out a live trap in one of the sighting areas, but that has failed to catch anything.  We also have a tracking team coming to try to see if we can find him or at least tell in which direction he was headed.  We are trying everything we can think of to find Jack.

REWARD: We are now offering a REWARD for Jack's safe return!!!!
Please call 443-864-8076, anytime day or night, if you find or even see a cat you think might be Jack.

SIGHTINGS: Jack may have been sighted on Johnson Mill Rd. a few days after he got out, at 3 different addresses along that road. He came up to the front door of one of the houses and wanted to come in, but their cats chased him away. I am praying he is still in the area and that he did the same thing to another house and was taken inside !! If you have him or have seen him, PLEASE contact me. We have been SO upset and miss Jack terribly - my 20-yr-old daughter and I have been complete basket cases !! If you have taken him in, we are so grateful, but we really need to have him back home where he is a part of our family !

Jack has been sighted again on 7/1 across from Deer Creek Church Rd. across the street from the church - he could be traveling in a circle around our house - all of the sightings are not really that far from each other! Thanks to all those who have called with sightings and for your prayers !!

Another sighting on 7/12 between Deer Creek Church Rd. and Ward Rd. by 2 different neighbors.  We have placed a live trap near these sightings, but have not caught anything so far.

Please let us know if you have seen Jack or a cat you think might be him.  We are praying these sightings are really our cat and that we will be able to bring him home soon !!

*** Thanks to all who e-mailed suggestions and prayers ! We have looked under and around everything and when my daughter gets home today from her vacation she will be going out and looking more (she had to leave the after afternoon after Jack had gotten lost). Unfortunately, my next door neighbor has a number of outside/barn cats and if we put out a live trap, we would have all of their cats in it !! Likewise with the food. They are monitoring their food station though, which really isn't that far from my house, for any sightings of Jack. Jack also doesn't like anything that is not his regular kibble cat food, although I'm sure he will try once he gets hungry enough. I'm also afraid that his cold will be throwing his smelling ability off and that may be why he can't smell his way back home. Thanks again for everyone's suggestions ! ****