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Protect Your Pet

Most escapes are easily preventable if you take some precautions to secure your dog in his home/yard. 

 

  • Microchip. This permanent ID is well worth the money!

  • ID tags on collars!

  • Secure outdoor spaces

  • Check fencing for holes or gaps around perimeter.

  • Ensure gate has a secure lock.

  • Provide a sandbox away from perimeter if your dog digs.

  • Ensure all gates closed/locked before letting dog outside.

  • Remove items that may be stacked against fencing.  Dogs have been known to springboard off of items pushed up against a fence like furniture or firewood.

  • Secure entry doors to home.

  • Train your dog to wait at open doors/gates.  

  • If you’ve got a repeat offender escape artist, consider a GPS tracking collar.

  • Stay Safe on Walks

  • Ensure proper fit on collar/harness.  Make sure you cannot fit more than two fingers under dog’s collar/harness.

  • Keep collar and ID tag on at all times.

  • Flexi-leads can snap.  Use a fixed-length leash instead.

Lost & Found Dogs

Listed below are some tips we hope you’ll find helpful in the event that your beloved dog escapes or you find a wayward dog needing help.

Locate a Missing Dog

Escapes can happen no matter how vigilant you are.  So many factors contribute to why a dog leaves and how far and where your lost dog may travel;  personality, weather, terrain, population/busy streets, etc.

 

Note: If your lost dog is wearing a collar with ID tag, people are more likely to help that dog as it is perceived to have a home and can easily be returned.

 

Listed below are some tips to help bring your pet home as soon as possible.

 

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Dog is IN SIGHT:

 

  • Do NOT call a stray, loose or panicked dog.

  • Do NOT run/chase after your dog in pursuit!  This is counter-intuitive but important.  Your dog may think it’s a game or be stressed or anxious and yelling out to or chasing will push them further away.

  • Get low and look away or move in the opposite direction.

  • Do not reach over their head.  This could cause them to bolt.

 

PLEASE WATCH THIS VIDEO on how to use CALMING SIGNALS to attempt to get a dog come to you that may be stressed as a lost or stray dog. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmiZzB643is

 

 

Dog is OUT OF SIGHT:

 

  • Contact local animal control and shelters / rescues to report missing pet.  You may want to reach out to local law enforcement, as well, particularly if you suspect that your dog was stolen.

  • Alert social media.  Include photo, phone number along with last main intersection / cross-streets dog seen and in what city.

  • Post on   ​                    

  • Post on NextDoor App and other local community Facebook groups.

  • Post in local online newspapers

  • Post Flyers.  Create flyer with photo and phone number.  Distribute in area where dog went missing.  Post poster size signs at main intersections.  Speak to your neighbors!

  • Tag your car!  If you’re driving around, post lost dog info on your vehicle.

  • Talk to everyone you pass on your search through neighborhood to create awareness.  Hand our flyers.

  • Visit local animal shelters to see if your dog is there.  Don’t just call.  Provide flyer and physically visit all cages. If you live near a city/county border, visit multiple animal shelters as your roaming dog could have crossed boundaries and/or been picked up by a Good Samaritan.

  • Contact local vet clinics and pet businesses and send them a photo of your dog.

  • Contact micro-chip company if your dog has a registered microchip.  They will post a bulletin to area shelters and pet businesses.  **Ensure that your contact info is up-to-date.

Be Wary of Pet Recovery Scams

When speaking to a person who claims to have found your dog, ask them to describe your dog before you offer any information. If no identifying characteristics are provided, that you’ve left out of lost dog ads, this person may not have your dog.  Beware of scammers asking you to wire money or ‘pay them first’ for the return of your dog.

You've Found a Dog.  Now What?

You want to reunite that dog with their humans as soon as possible.

 

Keeping a stray dog without reporting it can be considered theft.  Note: A dog’s physical appearance and behavior is not necessarily indicative of the life they had prior to you finding them.

 

If the dog doesn’t approach willingly or appears aggressive, contact local animal control immediately.  Do not try to restrain an aggressive dog. 

 

If dog is approachable and you are able to secure on-lead, walk them through neighborhood up to a 1-mile radius, knock on neighbors’ doors to see if anyone recognizes him/her.  Many dogs travel less than a mile when loose. 

 

Check for ID

  • ID Tag – Call number(s) and leave message if nobody answers.

  • Scan for microchip.  Vets, shelters and rescues have scanners and will scan dog for free. 

 

If there is no way to identify owners, contact local animal control to report found dog.

 

If you are unable to get close to dog, it’s a good idea to snap a photo and/or video to post on social media to help locate owners.

 

  • Post dog as found on area Lost and Found social media. Provide exact location found, cross streets/main intersection and city.

  • For the Love of Louie

  • NextDoor App and other local Facebook groups.

  • Create flyer to post in 1-3 mile radius of where you found dog.

 

Shelters in our area generally operate at or close-to capacity.  If you are unable to locate owners and wish to foster, please contact us!

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