Lost
Finding Your Lost Pet:
As soon as you notice that your pet is missing, talk to your family members or housemates and ask when they last saw your pet. It’s a good idea to search your home carefully—under beds, in closets, dark places, small places, behind bulky furniture—in case your pet may be hiding or sleeping somewhere. Shaking a food dish, treat jar or favorite toy will sometimes lure animals out of a hiding place.
If you are sure your pet is not in or around the home, take a slow ride or walk around the neighborhood. Ask friends or neighbors if they’ve seen your animal companion; be sure to bring along a recent photo to show them. Check under porches and shrubs, and ask neighbors to check in sheds and garages just in case your pet was accidentally locked in.
Who To Call:
Your first calls should be to all the animal control agencies, animal shelters (both municipal and private), veterinary offices, and rescue groups in your area; one of them could have your pet in custody already. Check in with the bigger shelters daily—and pay your visits in person with photos of your pet to distribute, if possible.
LOST PET POSTER:
Create a “lost pet” poster. – Start with a big, bold headline that people can read from a distance: “LOST DOG” or “MISSING CAT”. – Under the headline, a photo of your pet would be ideal. Make sure he’s still well-represented after the picture’s been photocopied or printed. List his breed, sex, color, age, weight, distinguishing features, and where and when he was last seen. It is very important that your pet is described accurately. – Provide your name and two phone numbers; yours, of course, and a friend or family member’s in case you cannot be reached.
Poster Tips:
* Make them GIANT so that people driving by cannot miss them.
* Make them FLUORESCENT so that the color attracts the attention of everyone.
* Post your giant fluorescent posters on telephone or street light poles at busy street corners – especially at the major intersections nearest where your pet escaped or was last seen.
Use Social Media, Email, & Newspaper:
*Send descriptive emails about your lost pet to local friends, colleagues and family members, and ask them to pass on the info to anyone they can.
*Create a digital card with information about your lost pet and share it far and wide across all of your social networks–Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. Ask your friends to share with their friends too. Also, most places across the country have local “Lost Pets” Facebook pages where they post information about missing pets, so reach out those page admins and see if they will share information about your pet to their network. You can even create your own Facebook page for your lost pet and share that across all of your social networks.
*Place a “lost” add in your local newspaper.
DOCPAC can also share your lost pet’s photo and information. Email your lost pet’s photo and contact information to: petadoptions@docpac.net, or post directly to DOCPAC’s facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/DorothyOConnorPAC
Call DOCPAC at 361-575-8573 for more information.
Don’t Give Up!
This one’s important! And remember that many lost animals have found their way back home.
Found
What to do when you find an animal:
First, please be very careful if you are going to try to catch a stray pet yourself. Even normally friendly dogs/cats who are lost can be frightened and bite/scratch unexpectedly.
Report a found animal to your local animal control facility and animal shelter(s) immediately. If you find an animal, keep in mind that someone is most likely looking for this pet-and if you don’t report it, the owner may never be reunited with his or her animal.
Abandoned or Lost? Don’t judge the condition of the animal and make an assumption about an uncaring owner. Pets can be lost for days, weeks or months, and become sick, thin and dirty. An anxious owner may have been frantically searching for their lost pet that you’ve found!
Take the found animal to a vet clinic or animal shelter and have it scanned for a microchip. Microchips are tiny computer chips containing identification information that are injected under the skin of pets to provide permanent, positive identification. Most vets and animal shelters are equipped with the readers needed to detect and interpret microchips.
You may also wish to place flyers around the neighborhood, at local vet clinics, and an ad in your newspaper.
Send descriptive emails about the found pet to local friends, colleagues and family members, and ask them to pass on the info to anyone they can.
Post the found pet’s information and share it across all of your social networks–Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.
DOCPAC can also share your found animal’s photo and information. Email your found animals’s photo and contact information to: petadoptions@docpac.net, or post directly to DOCPAC’s facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/DorothyOConnorPAC
Call DOCPAC at 361-575-8573 for more information.
If you want to keep a pet whose owner cannot be located, consult your local animal shelter for advice on how to proceed.
