Lost pet?

Few things can be more heart rending for a pet owner than when their beloved furry companion goes missing. We've all been that person wandering disconsolately around the neighborhood, posting flyers and calling their name at all hours, in the forlorn hope that they're stuck in a tree or hiding under a bush - never wanting to give up in case they run out of hiding a minute after you've closed the door; not wanting to entertain the possibility for a minute that this time they may never come home.

Unfortunately, of the approximately 6-8 million animals a year that enter shelters in the US, the HSUS estimates that only between 30% of dogs and just 2-5% of cats are reclaimed from shelters by their owners each year. The huge discrepancy between the percentage of dogs and cats being reclaimed may have to do with the fact that more dogs wear collars and license tags.

It goes without saying that it's important to train your pet to stay in the house or yard, but things happen - doors or gates are left open, something spooks a pet outside and causes them to bolt... Even inside pets sometimes get out and these pets are even less likely to find their way home because they are less likely to be tagged, or to know their neighborhood well.

There are things every pet's family can do to reduce the chances of losing your pet, but if they do wander off or get out here are some things you can do to increase the chances of them being found.

• License them - this ensures that if the local animal control picks them up, you are registered as their family and your pet can easily be returned to you instead of being put in the pound or - worse still, euthanized. There is a fee, but you can rest assured that the small cost of licensing your pet not only helps fund the county shelters but will pay dividends if your pet ever is lost.
• Collars with ID tags and/or contact details. Your pet's name and a contact phone number might be all that's needed for someone who has found your little truant to be able to reunite you both. According to Pets911, you can even get cute collars embroidered with your phone number so if the tag comes off, you can still be contacted!
• Microchip them - This is a painless procedure where a small microchip is inserted under your pet's skin - usually between the shoulder blades, where they can't scratch it out - most vets and shelters can then simply scan found animals (a bit like at the grocery store) to retrieve important ownership and contact information. The great thing about the microchips is that your pet can never lose theirs or slip out of it, like a collar. Microchipping is actually the law in some countries, like Australia.

There are a number of great services that have been established to help distraught people find their missing pets, which greatly improve the chances of a reunion by increasing coverage. These services will post flyers, contact shelters, even cold call all your neighbors (make sure the service is exempt from no-call lists if they offer this as a service - you want to make sure that call gets through). Here are a few that we found:

• Pet Club of America - offers Petfinders, the largest non-profit lost and found service in the United States and Canada. They have a lost/found database and a 24 hour 1800 number (800) 666-5678) and their services include contacting any facility that takes in lost animals in a 60 mile radius as well as guaranteeing payment to vets if your pet is found injured and in need of care.
• Missing Pet Partnership - these guys are a national non profit and it looks like they have a national database of pet detectives to whom they will refer you to find your pet.
• Find Toto - essentially looks like a calldown service. They have various package options (with associated costs) depending on how broadly you want (or can afford) to spread the search, and they maintain a lost pets database in case someone finds your pet and contacts them.
• Finding Paws - this is a San Francisco Bay area service, but they do cover from Fresno to the Oregon border with their intensive area search service. In addition to helping you search, they offer microchipping, creation of flyers/posters and direct mailings.

Hopefully you'll never have need of one of these services though - take sensible precautions to minimise the risk of losing your pet, and make sure you've licensed, tagged and chipped them so they can be more easily identified! A few minutes now could save you time and heartache in the future.