Hi! We lost a cat and need help

[sweets3450]

Girlfriend's dad has dementia and tragically let the family cat out by accident. We've done everything from buying Blink cameras, cellular trail cameras, hired a german shepherd to track him, posters and flyers everywhere, vet/shelter calls daily, nextdoor/facebook, approaching all of our neighbors, and we've relentlessly put out food and catnip in the garage every night. The Blink cameras were a good start because we initially saw the little guy with them, but I now understand they operate on standby and only are triggered by the PIR sensor. While we saw the cat came back to the garage, we don't know in which direction he left. We now have a Reolink E1 Pro in the garage which records 24/7.

I've done some research and I think a Reolink Duo 2 Wifi in front of the house would work. There is an outdoor outlet in front of the house so we could put an extension cord all the way up and mount it underneath the gutter. The Reolink app is not great. While it's mostly adequate, we found out that if we didn't keep track of the notification date/time popup then we can never find the motion event again without scrubbing through the entire recording or seeing motion in the 2 minute incremented thumbnails which are inconsistent.

Is there another camera which can be managed by a nicer app than the Reolink Duo 2? The Duo 2 is probably good enough at night since we're just looking for a cat, but better IR performance would be nice. I think we can get the same coverage with two bullet cameras although installation gets a lot harder. No PTZ (they think they're too intimidating), no POE, wifi only, 24/7 recording. The Unifi app looks so awesome but that's way too complicated and expensive to manage just for a cat.

Help us find this little rascal!

 

[Holbs]

for temp purposes, it's AOK to run a loooong patch cord or a Cat5e/Cat6 cable through a crack in window or even underneath the door weather strip (gently close the door...cable will get somewhat crushed but may survive). This would give you the ability to slap a POE camera on a 5 gallon bucket full of sand/rocks and a pole. Then, can use AI. Granted, this does not help you this evening or next evening as you have to order/ship a AI reliable POE camera and set it up. You did not mention what NVR system you are using (if any).

I mean...for 'omg I need instant notification and alerts'... I've done that. But it involves the free Home Assistant program, a smart tv, Blue Iris, and a AI POE camera. Home Assistant (it's free), smart tv, Blue Iris can be bought in a single day. However, a AI camera (such as Dahua) will take over a day. Andy has a Amazon link to sell something like a Dahua 5442 with AI and that may be the fastest way to get an AI camera. Heck, any camera with IVS tripwire or motion detection will work as well. If you need help with this kind of setup, we can talk on the phone and I'll help where I can.

I know next to nothing about Reolink cameras or system. But I had a situation with a tire slasher where I needed instant alerts to my smart TV and mobile phone alerts when "something" came within view of cameras.

Future reference, look into Apple's AirTag or Samsung's SmartTag. Or one of them GPS animal collars.

 

[sweets3450]

I think we could rig a cat5 somehow if needed, but there is an outdoor plug right next to the router in the kitchen. Perhaps there's some kind of POE injector which also acts as an AP to send wifi? Maybe I'm dreaming of something that doesn't exist...I wonder if we could put it directly below the garage door. The cable might get destroyed over time but maybe not after a few months.

An NVR is too big, cumbersome, and complicated for this family. The Reolink is cute, small, and the app is easy enough to use and gets the job done. The alerts are very fast, the problem is falling asleep and closing the alerts in the emorning, not keeping track of the time so it's almost impossible to find the location of that alert. Even a simple alert history would be really helpful. I like everything else about it, albeit the night time performance isn't great it's still a step up from the Blink cameras. I see on the forums there are many better options for night time IR performance so anything that is wide and can detect 30 feet away or less is perfect. We have no need for security, in fact the spotlight feature is something I'd turn off as it will deter the cat.

Another issue is the mounting. I'll post a picture tomorrow, the underside of the gutter is slanted so I don't think a turret style camera would fit. A bullet style would work, I really like the way the Duo 2 is mounted (albeit by cheap plastic) for our purposes. We ordered one but I can order a better one tomorrow and we can try both.

 

[CCTVCam]

I think you're missing the point with AI. AI will be able to flag up the fact it's a cat (within some margin of error) and prevent you getting alerts constantly from false triggers from people, vehicles etc passing by.

 

[sweets3450]

I understand, but there are so many critters that we'll get false alerts anyway. Opossums, rabbits, racoons, etc. I have to use detection zones as the sidewalk gets a lot of traffic (people, dogs, etc) regardless.

 

[Smilingreen]

How much does a new cat cost vs. finding a cute camera that does everything that a POE PTZ with IR and 15X optical zoom, AI, cloud and rejects everything but cats and sends a picture to your phone, but yet it will do all this on your regular network via wi-fi? Maybe it's just me and I read your requirements wrong, but it seems like what you may want is a Hav-A-Hart cage trap, so you can trap the little bugger and take him back inside where he belongs. HAV-A_HARTs can be had for under $100.00. Just a thought.

 

[sweets3450]

How much does a new cat cost vs. finding a cute camera that does everything that a POE PTZ with IR and 15X optical zoom, AI, cloud and rejects everything but cats and sends a picture to your phone, but yet it will do all this on your regular network via wi-fi? Maybe it's just me and I read your requirements wrong, but it seems like what you may want is a Hav-A-Hart cage trap, so you can trap the little bugger and take him back inside where he belongs. HAV-A_HARTs can be had for under $100.00. Just a thought.

Hav-a-hart cages are terrible and are dangerous to animals. We bought 3 coated cages thanks to the advice from the local animal rescue which are better in every way. I think I came to the wrong forum, I'm not looking for a new cat. I'm just looking for something like the Reolink Duo 2, perhaps two bullet cameras instead of a dual lens like Duo 2, with better an easier to use app and better IR vision at night.

 

[wittaj]

Most will find that the reolink app is one of the better ones out there for consumer grade cameras, so if you do not like that, then you need to consider making the jump to a VMS system like an NVR or Blue Iris. And with that jump to especially Blue Iris, you can have much more control of the AI and get the notifications and searches you want as others have already mentioned.

And then get a quality 180 camera like the Hikvision or Dahua version.

Keep in mind that reolinks, especially at night are horrible.

Yes it is just for a cat, but it can completely miss a person at night, so a cat will be problematic....Take a look at these sample where a person is either missing or a good chunk of their body is missing, now imagine it for a cat...

What you mean a missing hand isn't normal LOL :lmao (plus look at the blur on the face and he is barely moving and this should be ideal indoor IR bounce and it struggles):




How about missing everything but the head and upper torso

The invisible man, where can he be. Thank goodness he is carrying around a reflective plate to see where he is LOL (hint - the person is literally in the middle of the image at the end of the fence)

I've seen better images on an episode of ghost hunters





And of course, this is an example from Reolink's marketing videos - do you see a person in this picture...yes, there is a person in this picture.... Could this provide anything useful for the police other than the date and time something happened? Would this protect your home? The still picture looks great though except for the person and the blur of the vehicle... Will give you a hint - the person is in between the two visible columns:

Reolink: Deconstruction of a dangerous misleading youtube review "Finding the BEST 4K Security Camera NVR Package (Reolink vs Amcrest vs Swann)"

Executive Summary: DO NOT be a sheep. Ask what a reviewer can be missing, ask if a reviewer is using hype words to sell the cheapest product. Test your cameras and kits right away. Just do a bench test. Test real world conditions. Test moving suspects. Test at night, test at day. Use a test rig...

ipcamtalk.com

 

[sweets3450]

Thanks for the heads up, I knew Reolink cameras were notorious for poor night image quality but if we can't even identify a cat then it's no good. I see there are some Dahua cameras with SD card slots, are you familiar with the DMSS app? I'm trying to figure out if the Dahua cameras can operate independently without an NVR. Unfortunately the Reolink app is already borderline too complicated for this family as much as I'd love for them to have more technology like an NVR. There must be something on the market with a better app. If the Reolinks are that bad we may as well bite the bullet for Nest cameras to at least have a smooth app experience if both are going to have mediocre IR quality.

 

[TonyR]

If the Reolinks are that bad we may as well bite the bullet for Nest cameras to at least have a smooth app experience if both are going to have mediocre IR quality.

With a Nest, you're jumping from the frying pan into the fire ==>> The Typical picture of a Perp on Nextdoor-type Apps with Consumer Grade Cameras like Ring, Nest, Arlo, Canary, Wyze, etc.

 

[wittaj]

No you do not need an NVR for a Dahua camera, but you will probably find the DMSS app to be worse than the reolink app.

I used the DMSS app for a while when I only had one camera and it took forever to review clips. Once I got a 2nd camera there was no way the app was gonna cut it, so I went to Blue Iris and haven't looked back.

Granted BI might be overkill for what you are trying to accomplish, but you will find that any consumer grade camera and app will be a poor choice for what you are trying to do. They just are not good at night and the AI is not centered around a cat.

You need a program that can AI for a cat, only trigger and alert you for a cat, etc.

 

[CCTVCam]

Exactly. You say it's busy out side, that's going to mean hundreds of triggers a day unless filtered.

AI might not be perfect - small dogs etc might be identified as a cat. However, it will remove hundreds of people, cars, vans, trucks, birds etc from out of the alerts. You might not be bothered about alerts. The problem here is for every alert, you have to view the footage to see what triggered it. This could become a full time job trolling footage for a glimpse of your cat by which time it's probably long gone even if it was your cat that triggered it. Some commercial cameras have AI built in and by all accounts (I haven't tried it), it's pretty good. However, the dilemma you have is the commercial equipment is more expensive, needs cables and a means of recording such as an NVR / BI PC. The consumer stuff, especially if wireless, generally sucks at night and is often sub par during the day.

I hate to say it, but unless you're prepared to invest a lot of time and money into this, you're probably not going to achieve what you want to achieve in terms of picture and even then, the chances of finding your cat is probably slim.

You may have better chances with posters with pictures and a phone number to ring on lamposts, shops and ringing local animal centres in case someone has taken it in. However, I have to say as well, as unpleasant as it may be, often "lost" cats are never found. Many are killed on roads and subsequently dumped in bins, carried off by birds of prey, coyotes, or simply go off into the woods to die if ill (many animals like to die alone, even dogs). I hope you do find your cat. Just be aware CCTV is not cheap to do properly in time or money and will be no silver bullet. It will only find your cat if your cat walks past your home, in which case, if it walks past, why would it not come to the door in search of food? I feel you may be on an expensive hiding to nothing. The only positive is you could probably repurpose your CCTV system to rpotect your home afterwards especially if you buy a varifocal camera. I'm not saying don't do this. Just be aware, there may be nothing to be found. In my opinion, if your cats to be found, it's probably with someone else in which case posters with pictures and phone numbers may be the way to go.

 

[sweets3450]

I appreciate your honesty and criticism over the consumer quality products. We've done all of that for the cat and more. We've spent countless hours knocking on doors, dozens of posters, I lost count how many hours. This family is really attached to him so we will keep trying. We hired a professional service to come with a 20 foot cage wherever he's sighted so I think our only chance is with cameras, both at the house and in the neighborhood.

To be clear, the Blink cameras are almost good enough and they have by far the worst IR quality of almost any recent consumer camera. With detection zones and scheduled alerts the only false alerts are the squirrels, raccoons, rabbits, etc. The cheap Reolink E1 was a big upgrade for the garage trap we set so I presume the Duo 2 will be even better. Regardless we'll get it tomorrow to test it.

Is there not a single upgrade between a Reolink camera and a full NVR system just for slightly better image quality if an improved app experience isn't available? Seems like a gap in the market somebody like me would happily pay for.

 

[Smilingreen]

Hav-a-hart cages are terrible and are dangerous to animals. We bought 3 coated cages thanks to the advice from the local animal rescue which are better in every way. I think I came to the wrong forum, I'm not looking for a new cat. I'm just looking for something like the Reolink Duo 2, perhaps two bullet cameras instead of a dual lens like Duo 2, with better an easier to use app and better IR vision at night.

Well, Ok then. Seems like you know exactly what you want and got it all figured out. Good luck to you.