IF YOU FIND A DOG: No matter how the dog behaves or what it looks like, assume that this dog is owned and loved by someone who wants the dog back. THINK LOST, NOT STRAY. Dogs who are skittish and run from strangers, especially when lost, are often mistaken as having been abused. Also, a lost dog will lose weight, become dehydrated, obtain injuries, become matted, and pick up ticks, fleas, and burs in their fur so never assume that the dog you found was dumped or homeless until you have concrete evidence or until all efforts to find an owner have failed. 1. By law, you are required to turn found dogs over to local authorities (animal shelter, pound) where their owner/guardian will be able to claim them. One of the primary reasons why lost dogs are not reunited with their families is that the animal shelter is the primary location where dog owners search for their lost dogs, but it is typically the last location where found dogs are taken (due to the fear that the dog will be euthanized). Very few municipal shelters have the resources available to house lost and stray animals more than three days. If you are not willing to take the dog to the shelter, most shelters will allow you to foster (house) the dog while also filing a found report by providing the description, the location where you found it, and your contact information. 2. Check the dog for ID tags or tattoos. Tattoos are often found inside the ear or on the inner legs. Place a long leash (and secure collar) on the dog and tell him Go Home! Unfortunately, some people do allow their dog to roam off leash and it is possible that you found a dog that knows exactly where its home is. See if the dog will lead you to its home. If you pass by any people, ask them if they know who owns that dog. Dont release the dog to ANYONE until you are positive that you have found his or her rightful family! 3. Check the area for any LOST DOG posters, but understand that the dog might have traveled and the posters could be one mile away or more. Also consider that the dog may have escaped in the last few hours and the posters havent gone up yet. Just because there is no poster, dont automatically assume that there is no owner! Chances are there is an owner who desperately wants his or her companion home. Be sure to check back in the area and within a one-mile radius for LOST DOG posters for up to seven days after you found the dog. Different circumstances (health problems, being out of town, etc.) can prevent people from posting lost pet flyers immediately. 4. Take the dog to a vets office and have it scanned for a microchip. Most vets and animal shelters are equipped with the readers needed to detect and interpret microchips. 5. Check the lost & found ads in the local paper, and place a found dog ad yourself. Remember to check the lost ads periodically, as well as local lost pet websites. Even if the description given doesnt perfectly fit the dog youve found, call anyway. Youd be surprised how many pet owners, shelter workers, and individuals who find lost pets and place found dog ads get the breed wrong! 6. Post a giant FOUND DOG poster near the exact spot where you found the dog and a couple more at major intersections in that area. Use florescent posters that are 28 X 22 in size (found at most office supply or drug stores). Using a wide black marker (do not use water soluble markers), write five or six words that convey your message, then put your phone number in smaller writing at the bottom. For example, if you find a white teacup Poodle, you could write: FOUND TINY WHITE FLUFFY DOG and your phone number. Thats it. Dont be too descriptive. If someone calls to claim the dog you found make THEM tell YOU what their missing dog looks like. Ask the caller if the dog is licensed and/or microchipped. If it is, then ask him or her to bring proof of that or photographs of the dog when you meet each other with the dog. If there is no paperwork or photos, then ask him or her to meet you at your veterinarians office where you can have the dog scanned by your vet. If you dont meet at your vets office, be sure to take a second person with you and make sure to meet in a public location. Let someone at home know exactly where you will be going. If you belong to an organized rescue group or if you routinely encounter loose and stray dogs, you can actually pre-make florescent FOUND DOG signs and have them on hand for the next time you find a dog. You can also affix them (with duct tape on the back) to recycled campaign signs made with a wire A frame. These signs are reusable and if there isnt a telephone pole nearby, you can simply stick the signs into soft dirt next to a busy roadway and get your message out to many drivers passing by. 7. Finally, take a photo (digital if possible) of the dog and make up some smaller (8 1/2 X 11) black & white FOUND DOG flyers with a partial description of the dog, the location where you found the dog, and your contact information. Leave off certain details so all callers will be forced to identify the dog. Deliver these (delegate if you need to) to rescue groups, vet offices, and pet supply stores in your area. All national pet supply store chains offer lost-and-found bulletin boards in their stores, including PETCO and PetSmart, so be sure to take flyers there. Do not let just anyone claim that the dog you found is his or hers. Do not answer any questions (from the caller) pertaining to the description of the dog. Do not ask leading questions like Does your Poodle have a kink in its tail? but instead ask open-ended questions like, Describe your dogs tail or Is there something unique about your dogs tail? Make the caller give you a full description of the lost pet. Never agree to deliver the dog to the caller unless you have first told a friend or family member where you are going and take someone along with you. If you end up reuniting a lost dog with its family, we want to congratulate you on a job well done! You not only helped make a family very happy, you also helped prevent needless suffering, potential injury (or worse) or homelessness, and you have prevented one more dog from ending up in our overcrowded animal shelters and rescue groups! missingpetpartnership.org/recovery-stray.php
Posted on: Tue, 19 Aug 2014 02:24:30 +0000
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