One day last week, Bandit, an elderly, much loved female Jack Russell, managed to slip between two loose boards in her fenced yard and wandered off into the early morning. Her frantic owners immediately searched the surrounding area, but there was no sight of her. Fortunately, this tale has a happy ending…….. Bandit was found more than 24 hours later, several miles away from her house running down a major thoroughfare! She was brought to the town animal shelter, where she was reunited with her grateful family. Although luck certainly played a big part in Bandit’s safe return home, the actions of her quick thinking owners made a big difference. They did all the rights things, quickly, got information about their missing pet out throughout the neighborhood, notifying local vets and shelters, and networking for results. Ultimately, they were contacted by the shelter when Bandit was brought in.
When a pet is lost, it’s a terrifying experience, but you need to ACT FAST!! Here are some things you can do right away:
- Contact local animal shelters and animal control agencies. Immediately file a lost pet report with the local shelter and visit them daily, if possible. Let them know if your pet is microchipped. Most shelters won’t give information over the phone, so you may need to go in person! If your pet is a purebred, contact breeders and breed rescue groups in the area. Check with your local police precinct (do not call 911) – police officers often find stray animals. Stop in at the local firehouse too.
- Search the neighborhood. Walk or drive slowly through your neighborhood, at least several times a day. Enlist friends and family members to help! Call your pet’s name and then listen and look. (Try to remain in place long enough for your dog to have a chance to hear your call and find you). Ask everyone you come across- neighbors, crossing guards, letter carriers, landscapers and delivery people if they have seen your pet. Have a flyer with a recent photograph and information on how you can be reached ready to hand out.
- Notify local vets. Many times people will bring a found pet to their vet, so contact all vets and animal hospitals in your area and put the word out. Follow-up with a flyer if they agree to post it for you.
- Post Notices. Make up lots of flyers with a photo (preferably color), and use plastic sleeves to protect them if the weather is bad. Post them everywhere you can think of….start with pet stores, groomers, grocery stores, community centers, the library, churches, karate and dance schools, laundromats, convenience stores , soccer fields, anywhere people will see them. Contact the schools in your community and ask if you can post info in common areas. Include some details about your pet’s sex, age, weight, breed, color and any special markings. To protect yourself, consider leaving out one identifying characteristic so you can ask anyone who finds your pet to describe it.
- Use the power of Social Media Spread the word quickly any way you can!! Text, tweet, blog, anything you can think of. If you don’t have a Facebook account or don’t know how to use social media, ask your kids, (or your neighbors kids) to help. Ask friends to help spread the word. Don’t forget free community internet sites- if there’s a local website post in the lost and found section. Consider publishing paid advertisements in newspapers, and online papers. Use Craigslist (in the community/pets section) as a resource- you can post a notice and search for your pet at the same time! You never know- someone may have already found your pet and listed it on Craigslist so be sure to scroll before you post. (You can post anonymously on Craigslist if you prefer not to give your phone number- people can respond by email).
- Change the message on your answering machine asking for the date, time, and location when the caller may have seen your missing animal, as well as the caller’s name and phone number in case you have questions
- Consider a professional petfinding service. You may want to consider bringing in a petfinding service. There are companies which will autodial houses in your neighborhood broadcasting a message about your pet (www.findtoto.com is one of them). To take it further than that, there are a number of pet finding services advertised on the internet, but like anything else, there are also a lot of scams. If possible, check with the Better Business Bureau, and ask for references before you contract with them.
- Be cautious If a stranger claims to have found your pet, make sure they describe him thoroughly before you offer any personal information. If they can’t provide that identifying characteristic not included in your posting, they might not really have your pet. Don’t ever wire money to anyone insisting on that as a condition of returning your pet.
Don’t give up your search! Animals that have been lost for months have been reunited with their owners.
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