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| You've lost or found a pet, now what? Here is some important information on how to find your pet or how to find the family of a pet that you have found. | ||
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Lost A Pet Losing a pet can be devistating and starting the search right away can make all the difference. Cats that are spayed or neutered usually do not venture very far and they often can be found under the house, or in a dark place within a few houses of yours, while dogs fixed or not, can cover ground very quickly. The same rules apply for finding dogs and cats, although with cats your search can be limited to a smaller radius of a .25 mile or so, while the search for a lost dog needs to cover several miles. Often friendly pets are taken in by the people that find them, who then decide to keep them, so It's important to start your search as soon as your pet has gone missing.
Post flyers where you last saw your pet and call your pet's name while doing so. The flyer should be made on brighly colored paper and make them big (12x16) if possible. Put "Reward" at top, but do not include reward amount, and "Lost Cat or Dog" at bottom. Include a large color photo, your pet's name, description (breed, length of coat, color, tail type, eye color and any distinct markings even if they are obvious in the photo), if wearing collar or tags - put a description of them, include where and when your pet was last seen, list your phone number and email address - but do not include your home address. List whether your pet is friendly or scared of strangers. Here is a link to a website that will create a flyer for you: Best Friends Flyer Maker Go door-to-door in the area your pet was lost. Talk to your neighbors and let them know your pet is missing - they are more likely to keep an eye open if your have talked to them. If no one is home, leave a flyer in the mailbox or at the front door. Put flyers on all cars parked on the street. For cats, three square blocks should be sufficient, for dogs, expand that to 10 square blocks. Bring a copy of your flyer to all vet offices and pet stores in the area. If possible ask them if you can post them on a bulletin board, or leave several flyers on the counter. It is very important to check your local shelter. Most shelters are only required to hold your pet for 3 days before your pet is either put up for adoption, or euthanized. The euthanasia rate at most City and County shelters is very high. Do not rely on shelter staff to be able to tell you if your pet is at the shelter. They see dozens and dozens of animals every day and will not be able to identify your pet - you must physically go to the shelter. When you are at the shelter, make sure you ask a staff member to show you all animals that may be in isolation, or not checked-in yet. Post your flyers at the shelter, and plan on going back to the shelter every other day. There are many online resources that can help you find your pet. In the Austin area, www.austinlostpets.com, and www.austin360.com are good online resources, but don't limit yourself to just one site. You can post a free ad on www.craigslist.com - they have a Lost and Found section and a Pets section, and you should post ads in both. Additional lost and found pet sites include: www.missingpet.net, www.petharbor.com, www.petfinder.com, www.fidofinder.com (dogs), www.tabbytracker.com (cats) Put an advertisement in your local paper. Often the local paper will put in a free ad for lost/found pets. Also, check the Found Pets section to see if someone that has found your pet has placed a "found pet" ad. Check to see if their is a local neighborhood newsletter or smaller paper that services your particular area. Again, it is always best if you can include a picture. Local rescue groups are very well connected in the community and visit shelters often. Call local rescue groups and see if they will post a message to their members about your lost pet - and don't forget to send them a picture. Now that you've found your pet, they should be microchipped so you never have to go through this experience again, and make sure that their ID tags are up-to-date. On the Spay and Neuter page there are several places that offer low-cost microchipping. Make sure you take off your postings from the various online websites and let the rescue groups and veterinarian offices know that you have found your pet. If possible, remove your lost pet signs. |
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Found A Pet So you've found a pet, now what? Different municipalities have different laws regarding lost pets. Some require that you bring the pet to the shelter, while others require that you notify your local shelter and make a significant effort to find the pet's family. Often people that find pets decide to keep them without realizing how devistating losing a pet can be. It is important to do all that you can to find the pet's family. Cats that are spayed or neutered usually do not venture very far, while dogs fixed or not, can cover ground very quickly. You can often tell by the pet's health and grooming if they have been missing for a long time, or have just gotten out. A well kept, healthy pet, probably has a family frantically looking for their pet, while a pet that is thin, is very dirty, or hasn't been groomed for a while, or has nails that are very worn down, may have been lost for a while or abandoned. Note whether the pet is male or female, and neutered/spayed or intact.
Check to see if there is an I.D. or Rabies tag. Rabies tags can often be tracked through your local animal shelter. Check to see if the animal has a tattoo, usually found on the abdomen, inner thigh or ear. If you find one, check with the following to see if the pet is registered: 1. Your county or city Animal Control office 2. National Dog Registry: (800) NDR-DOGS 3. Tattoo-A-Pet: (800) 828-8667 4. www.WOLPet.com (scroll down for tattoo number entry) Take the pet to a veterinarian and have them scan the pet to see if they have a microchip. Microchips cannot be felt or seen and require a special scanner that most veterinarians and shelters have and they will scan the pet at no cost. Post flyers where you found the pet. The flyer should be made on brighly colored paper and make them big (12x16), and include a photo if possible. Include a description (breed, length of coat, color, tail type, eye color and any distinct markings even if they are obvious in the photo), if wearing collar or tags - put a description of them, and include where and when your found the pet. List your phone number and email address - but do not include your home address. Here is a link to a website that will create a flyer for you: Best Friends Flyer Maker Go door-to-door in the area where you found the pet. Talk to neighbors in the area because they may know whose pet it is. If no one is home, leave a flyer in the mailbox or at the front door. Put flyers on all cars parked on the street. For cats, three square blocks should be sufficient, for dogs, expand that to 10 square blocks. Bring a copy of your flyer to all vet offices and pet stores in the area. If possible ask them if you can post them on a bulletin board, or leave several flyers on the counter. It is very important post a flyer at the shelter. Most shelters are only required to hold a lost pet for 3 days before that pet is either put up for adoption, or euthanized. The euthanasia rate at most City and County shelters is very high. If you are interested in adopting the pet, you must come back to the shelter in the morning on the day the pet is made available for adoption. You can still continue to look for the pet's family thereafter, but at least you will have peace of mind knowing the pet was not euthanized. If you find a pet in Travis County, call 311. To have a Travis County pet registration tag traced call (512) 972-5678. If you have found a pet in Williamson County call (512) 943-3322 - Sheriff's office, or (512) 943-1389 - WC Regional Shelter. There are many online resources where you can post messagees about pets that you have found. If you are unable to hold the pet until the owner is found, make sure you include information about the shelter where the pet was taken. In the Austin area, www.austinlostpets.com, and www.austin360.com are good online resources, but don't limit yourself to just one site. You can post a free ad on www.craigslist.com - they have a Lost and Found section and a Pets section, and you should post ads in both. Additional lost and found pet sites include: www.missingpet.net, www.petharbor.com, www.petfinder.com, www.fidofinder.com (dogs), www.tabbytracker.com (cats) Put an advertisement in your local paper. Often the local paper will put in a free ad for lost/found pets. Also, check the Lost Pets section to see if someone that has found your pet has placed a "lost pet" ad. Check to see if their is a local neighborhood newsletter or smaller paper that services your particular area. Again, it is always best if you can include a picture. Local rescue groups are very well connected in the community and visit shelters often. Call local rescue groups and see if they will post a message to their members about the pet that you have found - and don't forget to send them a picture and let them know where and when you found the pet. |
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