Plan of Action to Find a Lost Dog


HOME OUR MISSION CONTACT US HOMELESS HOUNDS Shelter Listings Courtesy Listings Other Listings KEEPING YOUR PET Overview Spay/Neuter Food Pantries Financial Assistance Moving FINDING A NEW HOME LOST & FOUND TIPS Escape-Proof Your Hound Finding the Lost Returning the Found TRAINING Overview Basic Hound Training Shy & Neglected Dogs Shy vs. Abused Separation Anxiety SPECIAL NEEDS DOGS Senior Dogs Laboratory Beagles Puppy Mill Dogs PHOTO GALLERY ADDITIONAL RESOURCES Books & DVDs Trainers & Behaviorists	PLAN OF ACTION TO FIND A LOST DOG—Updated May 2011 You may download this plan of action to use as a checklist. Losing your dog is traumatic and overwhelming, but we have developed a plan of action to help you organize and conduct a search. Accidents happen, so do not waste time and distract from the common mission by assigning blame. Searching is a team effort. However, choose one point person for coordination. Communication is key. Keep people updated daily with e-mail, a phone tree, or free conference call. Don’t give up! Many dogs are found weeks or months after they are lost! Before starting your search... Organize all current information about the lost dog (name, color of collar, tags, current picture, breed, etc). Place a blanket that your dog has used along with a dish of canned food or tasty human food where he was last seen. Mobilize your friends and family to assist you in getting the word out and searching for your dog. Remind your search team not to shout and chase your dog if they find him/her. This may make your dog feel threatened and panic. Tell them to squat or lie down quietly, avert their eyes, and lure the dog with tasty treats, or turn away slowly and encourage the dog to follow. Create flyers and posters... Include date, where dog was lost, thorough description, contact phone, and special instructions (including "Do not approach—pet is frightened and confused and may run"). For examples visit Missing Pet Partnership. Print at least 500 flyers (depending on the size of your area). Reduce your flyers to 1/4-page size so you can fit four flyers to a page for use in residential areas. Pass out flyers door to door and post in every business/public place. Talk to everyone about your missing dog. Note: It is illegal to put flyers in mailboxes. Sticking them to the door or mailbox is an acceptable alternative. Create posters using neon-colored poster board. For examples visit Missing Pet Partnership. When handing out flyers, be sure you and your search team talk to people about your dog. People will sympathize with you and go the extra mile. Try to hit the highest concentration of people. Locate a school or church nearest to where your dog escaped or the latest sighting, and pass out flyers at departure times. If your dog is shy or timid, it is important to tell people not to approach your dog because he/she is scared and confused—just call you immediately with a sighting. Carry a leash and a quart bag of treats with you at all times. Change your voicemail announcement... Change your voicemail announcements (home and mobile) asking callers to leave a detailed message if they have sighted your dog: “If you are calling about (your dog’s name), please leave your name and phone number, along with the time and location of your sighting—including street number or intersection, as well as the direction my dog was going. Thank you for calling.” Notify by phone (include jurisdictions that surround your town/county)... Your microchip company Animal control Local shelters Police department Veterinarians Rescue groups Animal service businesses. Highway department/public works department. Automatic calling services to inform the general public (there is a charge): Find Toto Lost MyDoggie.com Post to Internet sites and check their lost-pet listings... The Center for Lost Pets Craigslist FindFido Lost and Pound Lost Dogs Illinois (Facebook) Lost Dogs of Wisconsin (Facebook) Petfinder Place print, online, and radio ads, and check found-dog ads ... Area newspapers Radio stations Maps... Call your local Chamber of Commerce to get a regional street map of the area where your dog is missing. Go to Google Maps, Google Earth, or Yahoo Maps to get an aerial view of the area. Divide your map into sections. Highlight and assign each section to a volunteer to distribute flyers. Use a two-mile radius. If there are no sightings, expand the search area. Use a separate map to record sightings of the dog. Record the date, time, and exact location of each sighting. Suggestion: Use an Excel spreadsheet or a spiral notebook to record sightings. If no sightings... Start from the beginning and expand your search area. Check Petfinder.com and Petango.com to see if your dog was surrendered to a shelter/rescue and has been put up for adoption. Trapping (if needed)... Contact your local animal control facility and/or shelter for a dog trap. Make sure the trap is large enough to fit your dog. Sites to buy traps: Heart of the Earth Animal Equipment and Tomahawk Live Trap. For search dogs... Place something that has your dog’s scent in a plastic bag, in case you need to bring in a scent-tracking dog. After the dog is recovered... Remove all flyers and posters. Take down Web postings and discontinue ads. Let all agencies you contacted know that the dog has been recovered, and thank them for their assistance. For more information... Missing Pet Partnership LostDogSearch Massachusetts Animal Coalition Lost/found Pet Resource Guide