Lost and Found Pets
Lost and Found Pets
Losing your pet can be heartbreaking and trying to find him can feel daunting. We hope this never happens but if it does here are some steps to take.
Drive or walk around your neighborhood calling for your pet.
Report him missing to all the local veterinarians, and local animal control.
(Andover Animal Control 316-733-5177, Wichita Animal Shelter 316-350-3366)
If your pet is microchipped, call the microchip company to make sure your contact information is current.
Check with all of the local animal shelters. It is vital that you go in person to do so. Shelter employees can see hundreds of lost pets daily and many animals can have similar descriptions. Only you can identify your pet. It is also extremely important to visit the shelter at least every 3 days. Many shelters have a minimum time that they will hold on to a stray pet. If you wait too long, your pet could have already been in and out of the shelter.
Put up local flyers. Occasionally people will find stray pets and keep them at home in an attempt to find it’s owner themselves. Placing several flyers with photos in as many conspicuous places as possible will help get the word out that you are looking for your pet. Places to put posters would be vet clinics, pet stores, grocery stores, and utility poles. Even posting flyers in your backseat car windows can help.
Go door to door in your neighborhood. Sometimes cats can accidentally get locked up in a neighbor’s garage or shed or fall into a window well.
Remember that lost pets can travel a lot further than you think! Be sure to extend your search at least 10 miles out.
Place an ad in all local newspapers. You can also place a free ad on www.craigslist.org. as well as check the listings for found pets on Craigslist.
Check www.petharbor.com, a lost and found website. Remember to be open minded about your pet’s description. Your Schnoodle may look like a terrier mix to someone else!
Don’t give up too soon! Sometimes it can take weeks to locate your pet.
There have even been several reports of owners being reunited with their pets years later!
What to do if you’ve found a pet.
If the pet is not wearing a collar, check on it’s belly and inside it’s ears for any tattoos. Next take it to the nearest veterinarian or shelter where they can scan it for a microchip.
If the pet has no form of identification, you must decide if you would rather keep it at your home to try to locate the owner or take it to a local shelter.
If you are trying to locate the owner yourself, be sure to contact all local veterinarians and shelters to report that you have found a pet.
Place an ad in the local newspaper and list it as found on www.craigslist.org
Make flyers and distribute in as many conspicuous places as possible. Go door to door in your neighborhood and hand out flyers. However, it may not be advisable to put photos on the flyers. If a person claims to be the owner, make sure that they can give an accurate description.
With so many lost pets in shelters and such a small number of them being returned to their owners, it is vital to make sure that your pet is wearing a good fitting collar and current identification tags at all times. Also, since tags and collars can come off, microchipping is an inexpensive way to permanently identify your pet!
