Lost dog signs can be seen everywhere you go, and listings for missing pets are all over the internet and in newspapers. If you are like me, the thought of losing your dog makes your heart drop to your stomach. In fact, I did lose a dog once. She discovered a weak spot in a friend's fence and wandered away. Fortunately, she was found quickly by a kind soul who saw her crossing the street. I was very lucky, but it was the longest 24 hours of my life.
As a dog owner, one of the most frightening things that can happen is the disappearance of your beloved dog. Learn now - before your dog goes missing - how to find a lost or missing dog. Fortunately, there are tons of resources for owners of lost pets. There are also ways to prevent your dog from disappearing in the first place, but a dog can still go missing in spite of the best laid plans.
The good news is that there are many of us dog lovers out there who will take in "stray" animals and actively search for their owners. Personally, I cannot just leave a wandering dog without trying to coax it towards me and look for tags. I even keep extra leashes in my car just in case. Some run away, in which case I look for signs, fliers, newspaper ads and online listings. Happily, many of the dogs I have found were wearing updated ID tags. Have you ever lost or found a dog? How did it turn out?
Comments
Very interesting!
I work for an organization based in Arizona called VitaHound, I am responsible for visiting the various pounds checking with their staff on dogs that may be severely malnurished. I am constantly over hearing conversations between pound workers and owners who have been searching for days for their dog before calling the dog pound. The pounds believe they pickup anywhere between 80 and 90 percent of strays the first day their lost. Because municipal budgets do not allow ad campaigns educating the public on contacting them for lost dogs, many people are unaware of the percentage of lost dogs that end up their.
Check you local dog pound first
Help. We have 7 Irish Setters…fenced in on 1/2 Acre, plus walked a lot. They do look for an opening (fence/gate) to check out everything. BUT we have had 2 instances where 2 of our setters have been playing and become entagled in their collars. The last time this happened, we had to take one of the pups to the vet because he had ruptured his eyes from chocking on his siblings collar. In a mere minute or two that it took to cut off and remove the collar the damage had been done. He is OK now. But my wife will not put any of the 7 in the yard wearing a collar. This worries me that one will find an opening and escape. I’m not entirely sure that someone, unless it is a close neighbor, would return the pups to us. We live in a very rural area surrounded by state forest and a busy hwy. near our property (75 yds.). What would someone recommend in this case?
I am one of those people that will pick up a wandering dog to get it back to it’s owner as soon as possible. I figure it is good karma and hope that if it is my dog(s) that is wandering and lost that someone will do the same for me. The last truly lost dog I found was someone new to my town. He had not been here long enough to even get a local phone number never mind update tags. I took him home and began my search by calling the number on the tag and then the Shelter to see if the dog had been reported and make a report. I then called the previous vet’s number. I got a name of the dog and the owner and left my information. The vet tracked down the owner through emergency contact information on the dog’s record. We had the dog late into the evening but he was eventually reunited with his owner.
With regard to your Irish Setter / Collar issue. I have two active dogs and rather than use tags we use brass plates riveted onto their collar. It contains all of the information and is very easy to read. I had it done at an engraving place that also put it onto the collar, but since we moved I now buy them on-line and have a shoe repair rivet them on.
I have been complimented many times by dog day care personnel as they wish every one used them, they would not have to tape the tags. Besides loose tags can fall off.
Just an idea, because having once owned and loved an Irish Setter, I know I would never feel comfortable without ID on them, even with a chip.
Regards
For the Irish Setter owner, try doing a search online for breakaway collars. There are a few companies that make collars that open when too much pressure is put on them. They are made to prevent just the problem you described, and still allow you to make sure your dog has I.D. in case he gets out of the yard.
I have some wonderful advice for anyone who has lost a dog and desperately wants to get it safely home again. I nearly lost my very best friend, my Boston Terrier, Delano in 2007 and managed to find him after three weeks. For people who don’t want to hear the details of his amazing story I will just say you need to do the following:
1) Immedately post fliers, as many as possible with a very large picture of your pet… preferably one that stands out in some way.
2) Post the fliers ahead of where you think the dog might be headed. (home or somewhere nearby)
3) Give them to the mail delivery person in the area, they are the most likely to spot the dog.
4) Figure out what personality your dog has as a runaway. If they are friendly, someone might grab them and take them home and an ad in the paper will help. If they are likely to bite, you might want to keep checking with shelters in the area. If they are terrified of strangers, you’ve probably got a “survivalist” pet that’s going to hide and keep on running.
5) Don’t give up, even if you think there’s no way your dog has survived the duration of time on the run or the busy roads nearby.
I promised myself I would share my success story to help other pet owners in trouble. I was on vacation in Rome with my boyfriend (now husband) and left my dog Delano with my father in St. Petersburg, Florida. I didn’t find out until we came home (engaged) seven days later that Del had escaped the very first day of our trip. We were at a huge disadvantage right off the bat. He had already spent 7 days on the run.
The very first thing we did was start driving around the neighborhood calling for him and whistling. After a few hours, we realized it was futile and went home to make fliers. We used a hilarious picture of Del that my husband had recently photoshopped to look like a mug shot. We blew it up very big and wrote in magic marker his description, my name and number and a desperate plea. We made more than 100 copies to start with. We then posted them everywhere surrounding my father’s home.
That week, we also checked all of the local animal shelters to no avail and placed an ad in the newspaper offering a $1,000 dollar reward.
After several days, we got a call from a man who said he saw one of our fliers and had spotted a Boston Terrier running around loose in his neighborhood. It was 1.55 miles North and slightly East of my father’s house. It was difficult to believe he had made it that far or across the several major roads inbetween. We began spending every day driving around that neighborhood. On maybe the third day, my husband spotted him. He looked healthy and was trotting casually down the road. He leaned out the window and shouted his name, assuming Del would come running. Instead, he bolted.
Dogs that have been on the run for that long (over a week) often get into “survival mode.” Their goal is to find food, water, shelter and avoid capture. Especially dogs like Del, who hate strangers. When that much time has passed, no matter how much you think your dog will love and recognize you… they WON’T. They will run. Be prepared.
I left work to join in the chase, but Delano managed to outrun us and hide. (even though we were in cars)
Over the next week, we put up fliers throughout that neighborhood and gave some to the postman. He spotted Del a couple of times and called us, but every time we arrived it was too late. Del had run away and hidden again.
After several days, my mother found a website that suggested you put fliers ahead of where you think the dog might be headed. In my case, it was probably toward my old apartment in St. Pete which was North and slightly East of where my father lives. Dogs have an unbelievable internal compass that tells them which direction to head. So, I started putting fliers futher and further North while still looking for Del every single day.
I even left a flier at a 7-11 that was 2.35 miles North of where he was last spotted and 3.61 miles North of my father’s house. (I thought there was no way he would make it so far North, but it was close to my old apartment)
A week after that, I got a phone call from someone who said they saw that very flier at the 7-11 and spotted a skinny, old Boston Terrier crying in their mobile home park. I figured there was no way it was Delano. The last time anyone saw him, he was healthy. He was only 4 years old and I had never heard him cry. Instead of heading to the mobile home park first, I went to the shelters, I put up more fliers and I went to the neighborhood where he was last spotted.
As a last stop before heading to work, I went to the mobile home park. (which was 1.40 miles North and slightly East of the last place where he was spotted) As soon as I turned the corner into the park, I saw the dog. It was extremely skinny, but the right color. So, I drove closer and saw it was Del. Despite everything I had read, I called his name assuming he would rush to me. Instead, he took off.
I watched as he raced behind mobile homes and I drove down the street trying to keep an eye on him as he popped out from behind the small buildings. Then, he vanished. I slammed on the brakes, jumped out of the car and started calling him. A lady nearby asked if I lost my cat and I rushed over to hand her a flier and tell her about Del. She said she was blind, but would give it to her husband.
Drenched in sweat, I rushed around behind the mobile homes and realized there was a giant hole in the wall surrounding the mobile home park where Del could’ve easily slipped away. But, I decided to check one last time near the home where he seemed to simply disappear. I found that there was lattice work that could’ve blocked him from heading in the same direction. So, I walked around to the other side of the home and peered around the corner. There he was, huddled in a bush… ready to bolt. But, I had him cornered. I looked at him and said the one phrase I knew might snap him out of his “survival mode.” “Do you wanna goodie?”
It was like the lightbulb came on. He jumped on top of me and started yelping and licking my face. I grabbed him and carried him to my car, with the blind lady clapping from her porch. I think I was speaking in tongues I was so happy.
I rushed him to the vet and other than being very underweight and a little dinged up with scratches and bruises… he was healthy.
In three weeks, he managaed to run 2.69 miles toward my old apartment and would’ve kept running if he hadn’t gotten trapped in a mobile home park surrounded by a cement wall.
I’ve now had Delano for another three years, and every year has been a blessing. Every year feels like a miracle. So, don’t give up right away on your dog. They might be trying to find you, just heading in the wrong direction.
thanks so much HJDelano for your story–it sounds nearly identical to my own situation thus far, except i’m right in the middle of it, and hoping and praying mine ends as happily as yours. my little dog Peanut just ran away (same as you, when i wasnt home, except i was only gone for about an hour after she bolted from my roommate, who she hates, and who chased after her, which clearly made it worse) two nights ago. shes been gone for just a little over 48 hours but it feels like weeks. someone called today who said they spotted her sprinting down the street about 1.5 miles (and several busy streets) from my house, so we’ve been searching the area and papering it with signs ever since. it’s hard to take breaks, even though i’m exhausted. here’s a twist: tonight someone said they spotted her with a homeless man? hopefully, if that’s true, he’ll return her for the reward…. WISH ME LUCK
For the owner who doesn’t want to use collars. Have your dogs microchipped. It is painless, inexpensive and it has all the owners info contained in a small capsule that is injected under the animals skin, between the shoulder blades.