Lost Pets? What You Should Do

What to Do When a Pet Goes

Missing By DAN KROSSE

FINDING FIDO

IT’S A STARTLING STATISTIC, BUT ONE OUT OF THREE PETS WILL GO MISSING IN THEIR LIFETIME! THAT’S 10-MILLION ANIMALS EACH YEAR. SO, WHAT SHOULD YOU DO IF YOUR PET GOES MISSING, OR IF YOU RUN ACROSS A MISSING PET? LET’S TAKE A CLOSER LOOK.

BEFORE YOUR PET GOES MISSING

Doing a little work now, before any pet goes missing, will save you a lot of worry and heartache in the future.

Don’t forget the basics. Every pet should have a microchip, wear a collar and have an easily readable tag with their name, phone number and address. These are MUSTS!

As importantly, upload a photo today to lost.petcolove. org. Five minutes on this website and you can upload your pet’s information and have the peace of mind knowing that your uploaded photo will be shared in a national database.

What’s special is that this database will use facial recognition technology to determine whether your lost pet is being housed at a nearby shelter or with a neighbor in the community. And it’s completely free! “Our goal is to keep pets where they belong – at home, with you,” said Petco Love President Susanne Kogut.

IF YOUR PET GOES MISSING

As traumatic as it can be to lose a pet, taking immediate action could help bring your pet home faster. First, search the neighborhood. One out of 10 cats are found with a neighbor. So don’t hesitate to knock on doors – and be sure to bring a photo to show. Get the mail carrier involved!

Make flyers and put them up around your neighborhood. One thing to keep in mind when searching, is your pet’s personality.

According to the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), “A confident, outgoing pet may have made new friends, while a shy or easily scared pet is more likely to be hiding somewhere or staying clear of strangers.” You may need to walk and scan your neighborhood several times to finally find your lost pet.

If you haven’t already uploaded your photo to lost.petcolove. org – do it now. As soon as it’s uploaded, the database can scan area shelters and a neighbor who may have uploaded a lost pet – to see if there’s a match.

Don’t forget to post your pet’s photo on social media, including

Facebook, Instagram and Nextdoor. The posts are shared, and the reach can grow exponentially.

WHAT IF YOU FIND A LOST PET?

SHORT TERM (24 – 48 HOURS)

• If safe to do so, transport the animal to a local vet clinic to scan for a microchip. Because some organizations may not have a universal scanner, your best bet is to take it to the local designated shelter, in Charleston County, that’s Charleston

Animal Society.

• Upload a photo of the animal to social media and to lost.petcolove.org. • If safe to do so, and with the appropriate environment, bring the animal home to hold temporarily to wait for response to your online and social media pleas (after you have filed a report with your local designated shelter). • Put up a flyer in the neighborhood. • Due to the absence of a centralized lost/found system, taking a stray animal to the designated shelter in your area is always the best option.

LONG TERM (48 HOURS +)

• Bring the pet to the local county shelter where the animal was found.

• Update your social media posts to state that the animal is now at the shelter.

• City of Charleston residents are required to turn in stray animals to the animal control department.

WARNING: Never give a lost animal to someone to adopt. South Carolina law states “Any person stealing any positively identifiable dog is guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction must be fined not less than five hundred dollars nor more than one thousand dollars.”

LEFT: Nate Patterson was all smiles as he reunited with his family’s dog Snarls Barkley last Spring at Charleston Animal Society. RIGHT: Petey was lost in Charleston County and somehow wound up in Asheville! Thankfully, he was microchipped and the Asheville Humane Society scanned him and safely returned him to Charleston Animal Society for a reunion with his owner.

ANOTHER TIP FROM THE HUMANE SOCIETY OF THE US

If your pet is microchipped, be sure to notify the microchip company so your pet can be flagged as lost. The next step is to contact your area animal shelters. Remember that your dog or cat doesn’t know where the county line is – so the HSUS recommends filing a lost pet report with every shelter within your county and even neighboring counties. Many times, people will take a pet to a shelter in another county, simply because it’s where they’re staying on their visit. It’s important you make time to visit shelters in-person. Unfortunately, there is no centralized system, so you will have to be diligent in your shelter search. “In the Tricounty area alone, we have five animal shelters, 21 rescue groups, 34 lost & found Facebook pages and groups, 80 vet clinics, 34 pet stores and feed stores, and the list goes on,” said No Kill South Carolina Chief Project Director Abigail Appleton, PMP, CAWA. “In-person searches, combined with online outreach is really the best recipe for success.” Never give up hope. Animals lost for weeks, even years are found every day.

KAY HYMAN