Finding Your Lost Dog

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Prevention

I'll start by saying that the best thing is to prevent your dog getting lost in the first place.  Make sure that your yard is secure including putting a padlock on your gate to prevent someone entering and taking your pet.  If you don't have a fenced yard please only take your dog out on a lead, NEVER let them roam free as they could be killed or injured, picked up by animal control or even worse captured and sold for animal experimentation, dog fighting or even food.

In addition your dog should wear a collar with identification tags, including a current rabies tag.  If your dog is in an area with a rabies problem and is not wearing a tag it will likely be immediately destroyed. As well as a collar you should consider having your dog microchipped or tattooed. Microchips are the size of a grain of rice and are injected just under your dogs skin by a vet.  There are three types of microchips, which used to be a problem as scanners would only detect their own chips.  Now all can be read by a new universal scanner which the AKC is distributing to animal shelters and vets country wide.  If you prefer to have your dog tattooed please have the tattoo placed on the inside of the thigh as a thief will simply cut the ear off a dog who has a tattoo there.

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Your Dog is Missing

If you find your dog is missing the first thing you should do is to very carefully check your house and yard. Once you have determined your dog is not on your property there are several things you should do:

1. Walk round your immediate neighbourhood and talk to your neighbours, their children, your postman, school crossing guard etc.  Ask them if they've seen your dog or anyone hanging around your property.

2.  Go round your neighbourhood calling your dog, but don't spend hours travelling round in the hope of spotting them, you're time can be more valuably spent doing other things. Take a torch with you to check in dark spaces - injured animals will often find dark places to lie in.

3.  If you have not located your dog within an hour or so then you should phone your local animal control office and all local animal shelters, rescue groups and vets, reporting that you have lost your dog. You may also try contacting your local television or radio station and if your dog was registered with a pet tracing organisation e.g. (AKC Companion Animal Recovery) you should report the loss to them too.

After you have spoken to shelters and vets on the phone you should visit each one in person, taking with you a written description of your dog along with a good photograph if you have one.  If your dog was tattooed or had a microchip include this information as well.  It is important that when you visit shelters and vets you ask to see all the animals they have, including those in quarantine or a hospital.  You should visit each shelter daily and look at all the dogs / talk with staff about any new admissions.

It may not be pleasant but you should also contact your local town council, animal control and Transport Department as well to see if they have picked up any dead animals that could be your dog.

4. Get the word out that your dog is lost... Make up eyecatching posters to place on telegraph poles (make sure first that you are allowed to do this) and display in neighbourhood shops.  These posters should contain a photograph of the dog along with a description and preferably a reward.  The description shouldn't however contain your address or every little detail about the dog, there are unscrupulous people who will try to get reward money from you by pretending to have your dog.

You may also consider putting an advert in a local paper and in anycase should look at all local papers in case someone has put an advert in saying they have found a dog.  Finally if you have access to the internet put your pets details on one of the missing dogs pages you will find.

You may also consider employing someone to look for you pet for you.  There are pet finding services around the country, the most well known one probably being Sherlock Bones. A collection of links to both lost pet listing sites and Pet finding services can be found below.

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Someone Says They Have Your Dog

If someone phones to say they have your dog please be cautious as there are con artists about.  Firstly ask the person to describe the dog they have.  Be careful not to ask questions requiring only a Yes / No answer, you want them to do the talking to make sure it is your dog they have.

If you think the dog is yours then you should arrange to meet in a public place to see the dog; never go alone, always take a relative or friend.  If you have agreed to pay a reward don't hand it over until you have your pet back with you.

There have been cases when people say they have animals and will return them only if a ransom is paid. If this happens or you suspect you dog was stolen don't get involved, go to the police.

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Pet Finders and Internet Lost Pet Sites.

This section lists some of the sites which list lost and found pets as well as those who will try to find you pet for you. These are links I have found on the internet and as such I have no experience with or knowledge of  any of them, nor do I endorse their products in any way.  As with any service you should check out any company carefully, asking for references, charges and what to expect up front before you hand over any money.

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