How to make a poster for a black cat (or any cat without clear markings)
Ask people to report any black cat near a place and date, use words for what a photo will not show, and keep a private detail to check every call.
Change what the poster asks for
A normal poster asks people to spot your cat. For a black cat, or any plain cat, that fails, since nobody can tell one black cat from another across a yard. So ask for something else: Please tell me about any black cat you see near Oak and 5th, even if you’re not sure it’s her. You sort the sightings. The stranger only has to notice a black cat and call. Put the place and the date as large as the photo, since these do most of the identifying. A neighbor who knows there has never been a black cat on the block can answer that without knowing your cat at all.
Put the color in the headline
On an ordinary poster, LOST CAT is fine, because the photo does the rest. Here the photo may print badly, so the word must carry it. Use LOST BLACK CAT, or LOST PLAIN GRAY CAT, in the biggest type that fits. Then add the size and the build in plain words. Say: small and thin, or large and heavy, long-haired, short-haired. Say the age if it shows: senior, bony back, or young and leggy. Use the words the public uses. A cat breeder’s blue is gray to everyone else. A smoke coat is dark gray. A plain brown tabby looks like a thousand others, so call it a striped brown cat and give the same treatment as a black one. Our post on how to choose the best photo covers lighting and printing.
Find the details a stranger can see
Sit with your cat’s photos, or better, a person who knows your cat well, and list what a stranger could see at 10 feet. Check eye color first, as yellow, green or copper eyes are the one bright thing on a black cat’s face. When Middletown, Connecticut animal control appealed for help finding a lost pet, the description was an 11-year-old indoor black cat with yellow eyes. Then the tail: long, short, kinked or thick. The ears: a nick, a fold or a tip. The fur: a patch of white hairs on the chest, a few gray hairs on the muzzle, a brownish cast in sunlight, or a thin area. The collar, if your cat wore one, with its color. Then the walk and the voice, such as a limp or a loud meow. Pick two for the poster.
Hold one detail back
With a plain cat this step does double duty. You need a detail that scammers cannot get from your poster. The Better Business Bureau warns of callers who claim to have your pet and ask for money. You also need a way to tell your cat from an honest finder’s cat, since many kind people will call about the wrong black cat. So choose something the caller can only know with the cat in front of them, such as white hairs under the chin, a pink spot on one toe pad, or a small scar. Do not put this on the poster or online. When someone calls, ask: Can you send a photo of her chin? Do not say what you expect to see.
Lay it out for a printer
A black cat on a dark background disappears, and so does a white cat on a pale one. Crop tightly, use a plain white page, and avoid dark borders around the photo. Use two pictures if your cat’s face and body each show something: a face for eyes, a full-length side view for size and shape. Then test before you print many. Print a single copy in black and white, tape it up, and look at it from across the room. If you see a black shape with no eyes, try another picture or lighten it. Our free poster tool has color and black and white options, so you can compare both.
Sample wording
LOST BLACK CAT. Near Oak and 5th, since Tuesday, June 3. Medium size, short hair, yellow eyes, kinked tail, red collar. Shy. Please call about ANY black cat you see near here, even if you’re not sure. Do not chase. Text a photo if you can. 555-0123. Then a line to neighbors: Please check your garage and shed. Every piece has a job. The date and place set the search area. The eye color and kinked tail can be seen from a distance. ANY tells people that you want the calls that might be wrong. Use your cross streets, not your address, and leave off the private detail you chose.
Handling sightings of a look-alike
Expect more false leads than other owners get. Dark cats are also hard to see at dusk, so reports will be vague, such as a dark cat near the fence. Log each one with the time and exact spot on a map, and look for repeats. A camera at a feeding spot is the best way to sort them out, but infrared night images show no real color, so a black cat and a dark tabby can look the same. Look at the shape, the tail and how the animal walks instead. Ask neighbors if they know of any black cat living nearby. Get a photo of that cat if you can, so that you can rule it out. Our post on how to tell if a lost pet sighting is real goes through this further.
At the shelter
A paper report that says black cat, shorthair, will fit plenty of cats. Go in person and ask to see every black cat that came in since your cat went missing, including those in intake, medical and foster care. Do not depend on an online listing, because a photo of one black cat looks much like another. Bring your photos, and ask staff to scan any likely cat for a microchip. For a plain cat, a chip is your strongest proof. AAHA’s lookup shows which registry holds a chip, but it will not show owner details, so keep your chip number and registry details with you. Bring vet records as well.