Having a missing pet is a stressful and heartbreaking time for pet owners. Knowing what to do when your pet is missing not only increases your chances of reuniting with your pet, but it makes you feel better to know you are doing all that you can to find your pet.
Technology plays a large part in reuniting lost dogs with their families. Numerous popular apps can play a significant role in helping your story have a happy ending.
- Shadow—if you live in New York, New Jersey, Los Angeles, or the surrounding areas, then Shadow is a valuable app for finding your lost dog. Shadow will help you create an immediate alert that goes out to thousands of users and volunteers once created. Thousands of volunteers work tirelessly to match photos of missing pets with photos of found dogs. Shadow is more than just an app to help you find your dog; it is a community of dog lovers who are ready to offer resources and support.
- FindingRover—FindingRover is one of the first apps to use sophisticated facial recognition software to help match lost and found pets. FindingRover works with shelters and rescue groups to make sure there are as many found pet pictures as possible. You also have the option to register your pet before they go missing. In registering your pet beforehand, creating a missing alert only takes a few moments.
- Fido Finder—The people behind Fido Finder work closely with shelters across the country to help reunite as many pets as possible. Fido Finder works well for those who have lost a pet or those who have found a pet and helps facilitate reward payments.
- Pawscout—Pawscout enlists the aid of animal lovers in your local community to be on the lookout for your missing pet. Pawscout also offers, for a fee, a blue tooth enabled tag that can help anyone with the Pawscout app to find your pet if they are in the immediate vicinity.
The most crucial website to use if you have a lost pet is the humane society webpage for your state. Most states have searchable databases and online bulletin boards where you can post alerts about your missing your dog. The lost pet section will give you detailed information on steps to take to find your lost or missing pet.
It is important to remember that frightened pets can travel quite some distance, or your pet may have been rescued by someone passing through who then took them to an animal shelter some distance away. Searching your state’s humane society lost and found section will enable you to search more than just your immediate area.
Shelters are often overrun with strays and lost pets, so it is a good idea to visit every shelter within a twenty-mile radius and personally look for your lost dog. Take a flyer of your pet to each one that you visit and ask to post it in the event your dog ends up at the shelter.
Do not forget to contact rescue groups as well. A quick Google search will list the rescue groups in your area. When you contact each rescue group, ask if there are other rescue organizations you should contact. Often, rescue groups know more about other groups than just what you can find online.
The ASPCA offers a valuable list of tips for finding your lost pet, as well as information on what to do if you have found a lost pet. If you have located a lost pet and need to have them checked for a microchip, or need a low-cost veterinarian check for a found animal, the ASPCA also has resources available.
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