Make sure your windows and doors securely latch. One of my tricks for keeping my cats inside, and still being able to keep my windows open, is to go to a home improvement store and buy some lattice work. The type that gardeners use to train ivy and rose bushes to grow upwards. In the past, the lattice work has been made of wood, but now it comes in flexible, decorative plastic. You buy one sheet, bring it home, and cut it to fit the inside of your windows.

Using four screws, one on each corner of your window, you bend it in to fit. To remove it, you need to just bend it back a bit, and then shut or open your windows. There are all sorts of different patterns and designs to choose from, and the decorative holes allow for air to come into the room, and the cat to stay safe.

A note of caution, if you have small kittens, be sure that the decorative holes or slits are small enough that your kitten cannot get through it.

Keep a current photograph of your cat handy. Make it a full body shot. Keep it on your refrigerator just in case you need it to make up fliers should your cat become lost.