Lost Pet Tips

Losing a pet can be a traumatic experience. I know well the feeling of concern, then confusion, then near-panic when I realized my 18-year-old mostly deaf indoor cat wasn't anywhere in the house. To this day I still have no idea how he could have gotten out; he had slowed down considerably in his old age, so somebody should have seen him go through the door. To make matters worse, the weather was supposed to be unseasonably cold and rainy that night, and I had no idea if my old ex-stray boy still had the skills to keep himself safe.


While my story ends happily, many others may not because people are simply unaware of the steps they can take to increase the chances of finding their furry or feathered loved one. Being unprepared or panicked is bad enough, but being both together can make the difference between finding your pet in a day or a week and losing your best chance for recovery and not even knowing it.

You CAN make a difference in the chances of your lost pet's recovery by being prepared and persistent. Below are some tips for helping recover lost pets.

Microchip Your Pets!
Even birds, reptiles, and little fuzzy critters like hamsters can be microchipped. While having your pets microchipped will not prevent them from becoming lost, it WILL save you much grief if your pet turns up at your local animal shelter and they're able to immediately call you and let you know your pet is there.
Learn more about microchipping here.

Post Flyers
Papering the area your pet was lost in with bright, attention-grabbing flyers is a great way to increase the awareness of a lost pet. For animals that have only recently gone missing, it may be a good idea to quickly create copies of a basic flyer first, and post them in the immediate areas where you think your pet might be seen.
Create a basic printable flyer here.

For pets missing longer, you should invest some extra time and perhaps a little money into creating larger, more eye-catching flyers such as those shown here.

Things that should be included on your flyer are:

• The word "LOST CAT/DOG/BIRD" in big, bold letters.
• One to three copies of a good, clear photo of your pet. Color copies are best.
• A brief physical description of your pet: "large cat, long orange and white fur, red collar" or "thin gray and black tabby, one white paw, short hair, 4 years old".
• Important information about its personality or behavior: "will come when her name is called" or "will run if approached".
• Your contact information. Usually a phone number is the best primary point of contact, and should be displayed prominently.
• If you are willing to offer a reward, put "REWARD" in big, bold letters.*

Most people won't bother reading a whole flyer, so you should optimize your flyer for people who are just skimming the details. That means keep it simple and to the point, and make the text readable from several feet away.

*A note about offering a reward for a lost pet: Beware of people who may try and scam you out of your money by lying about finding your pet. These scummy people do exist, and it would make a bad situation worse to fall victim to this kind of scam. Hold back one or two details about your animal from the flyer to use as confirmation if somebody calls and says they have your animal. Example: if your cat has one white paw, ask what color the cat's paws are.

Places you should consider posting flyers are:

• Telephone poles or other such objects on the streets near where your pet was last seen.
• Local post offices, grocery stores, and other places where people frequent.
• Veterinary offices and hospitals, and local animal shelters or animal control offices.

You may consider creating smaller versions of your flyers to tape to peoples' mailboxes or front doors. This was a key factor for me in recovering my lost cat. People may not read flyers on the street, but it's hard for somebody to ignore paper flapping on their doors. Note that it is actually illegal to put things in a mailbox that have not gone through the US Postal Service, so the legality of taping paper to the outside of a mailbox is questionable.

You can also tag your car to display a LOST PET notice, short description, and contact information like so: http://www.missingpetpartnership.org/recovery-tagging.php

Canvass the Neighborhood
Go out and search for your pet on foot. The sooner you do this, the better. However, know that there are many possible ways an animal might react when finding themselves unexpectedly outside; they might even run away from you, a familiar person, because they're too disoriented and panicky to realise you're there to help. I highly recommend reading MissingPetPartnership.com's articles on recovering lost cats and recovering lost dogs.

Go around your neighborhood and speak to your neighbors in person about your lost pet. Give particular attention to people you know spend a lot of time outside, including neighborhood kids. Speaking to people directly gives a much more lasting impression than if they were to simply glance at a LOST PET flyer on the street. Hand out flyers in person and let them know to give you a call if they spot your buddy. Even if you're notified of a sighting but you're unable to catch your pet, you'll at least know your friend is still alive and out there nearby.

Contact Animal Control and Local Shelters
The Burlington County Animal Shelter is legally obligated to hold a stray cat or dog for 7 days before euthanasia is even allowed to be considered. In many places in the US the hold period is much shorter; in some places only 72 hours, making it CRUCIAL that you check local shelters frequently, at least in the first week or two. It is unfortunate, but lost pets are put to sleep every day in the US because their owners either show up too late, or simply never think to check at all.

It is very important that you visit your local shelters IN PERSON and let the staff know you're looking for a lost pet. Do not rely on staff to be able to correctly identify your pet by your description alone; if you're looking for your gray tabby cat with a white chest and yellow eyes, chances are there are there's at least one other cat there who looks like that from the perspective of somebody who's never seen YOUR cat before. Again: do NOT rely on describing your cat to somebody who's never seen your cat before. Check for yourself.