Tips for Finding Lost Pets

by Keri Mann

We’re good pet owners, right? We would never let anything happen to Buddy or Daisy! But it happens sometimes. Pets get lost. You might be the best dog or cat owner ever but despite our best efforts to avoid it, sometimes the unthinkable happens. A gate gets left open, maybe even by someone you don’t know! Your cat dashes out the door just as one of your friends comes in. Sometimes Lucy or Max finally makes the great escape she or he has always dreamt of. But now what?! They’re lost and confused. You’re in a panic and don’t know what to do now. Well, if the unthinkable happens to you, or someone you know, here are some tools to help you find Fido or Ginger.

Lost Pet? – Tips to Locate Your Lost Pet

• Notify the shelter immediately. • Walk or drive through your neighborhood several times each day. Ask neighbors, dog walkers, letter carriers and delivery people if they have seen your pet.

• Focus on searching under decks, bushes, sheds— any dark hidden places around your house. At night, use a flashlight and look for glowing eyes. Indoor cats can be very frightened and remain hidden even when their owner is nearby. Ask the neighbors on each side of your house if you can search their properties as well. Don’t forget to look inside garages, sheds, and covered window wells where your cat may be trapped.

• If after hours, report to the Police Department (within city limits), Sheriff’s Department (in county).

• For tourists and travelers who have lost a pet, seek out law enforcement on Wind River Indian Reservation, or federal law enforcement in National Parks and other federal land areas, national monuments and National Forest Service lands.

Notify every veterinarian in town. It could be possible that someone found your pet and wants to keep them. If the veterinarian facilities have a picture and know your pet is missing, there is a chance they will notice if the pet is brought in to them. • Make sure microchip or collar tags have your current information. A microchip is your pet’s best chance to make it home, if they venture very far. So, make sure your pet is microchipped.

• Share pictures, what area they went missing from, and the date, on social media, PawBoost, and any other online lost and found sites.

• Make up flyers and put them up anywhere possible —especially in the area where the pet was last seen; post notices at grocery stores, truck stops/ convenience stores, laundromats, barber shops, community centers, veterinary offices, dog parks, traffic intersections, pet supply stores and other locations. Include your pet's sex, age, weight, breed, color and any special markings. Include a photo. When describing your pet, leave out one identifying characteristic. Listen for this characteristic when people who claim to have found your pet describe your pet to you. If you lost your pet in a community that is bilingual, make sure the flyers are in both languages.

• When talking to a stranger who claims to have found your pet, ask them to describe the animal thoroughly and where the animal was located—or, better yet, meet them in person or have them send you a photo of the found pet—before you offer any information. If they don't include the identifying characteristic you left out of the flyers/posters, or if they refuse to send a photo, they may not really have your pet.

• If your pet has been gone more than a day, go to the shelter to look for them and be sure they have a photo of your pet. Otherwise, your description and what they understand your description to be could be completely different. This happens a lot. Check daily.

• Ask friends to share and help look.

• As a courtesy, inform everyone you have contacted when your pet is found. • DON’T GIVE UP!! Now the coin has flipped! You’ve found someone’s lost pet. What do you do? Here are some tips: Found Pet? —Tips to Locate the Owner

• Report the found pet immediately to a local shelter (some shelters require that found pets be relinquished to them); if after hours call the police department (PD) in the city limits, or sheriff’s department out of the city limits

• If the animal has rabies tag—the local shelter, PD, sheriff department or issuing veterinary office may have owner information

For tourists and travelers in isolated areas or federal land, seek out appropriate law enforcement on Wind River Indian Reservation, or federal law enforcement in National Parks and other federal land areas, national monuments and National Forest Service; connect via online searches with a local animal rescue or shelter to leave the pet as you leave the area.

• Contact local area lost and found pet registries online. For pure breeds and exotic pets see if there are any clubs and rescue organizations who can be contacted for assistance.

• Preparing for longer-term searches. When pet owner isn't found within the first 48 hours, list the names and telephone numbers of area resources such as vets, shelters and animal control organizations. Keep a record of all attempts to locate the owner through these sources.

• Make up flyers and put them up anywhere possible – especially in the area where the pet was found; fliers should begin with the words "Found Pet", then list only the basic information to describe the pet, where and when found, and finish with a single telephone number.

• Legally, you cannot decide that animal is now yours to keep, nor to re-home with someone else.

• In cities throughout Wyoming if the owner is not found within a specified time period, the person who found the animal can adopt it. For example, in Gillette, if the owner is not found after 21 days you can now claim the animal as yours.

• You may be able to “foster” an animal until an owner comes forward, depending on your city’s ordinances, but the shelter must be notified.

• If you are unable to “foster” the pet, the animal shelter or a local rescue should take them. Some rescue organizations may serve as foster care givers as well. Give them a call.

• Verify the Claims Of Pet Ownership. Finally, your search appears to be over because you think the pet's owner has been found, however, how can you be sure? The pet's name and owner's description of him/ her is not conclusive so, for all concerned, we recommend that the owner be told to present some of the following information in order to claim his/her pet: Current rabies tag and certificate: Veterinary clinic treatment records: Picture or pictures of owner (s) and pet together in the same photograph; adoption papers: sales slips: American Kennel Club (AKC) papers, etc.

Ok, now that you’ve found Lucky, recap what went wrong and what you can do to make sure you never lose your beloved pet again! Keri Mann is an animal advocate in Gillette, Wyoming.