Annette D.
2 years ago
Some tips below for lost pets and also where to post if you find one:
Alert microchip company if pet is chipped. Post colored flyers everywhere within 2-3 miles of where s/he got out or where you found. Make them waterproof by covering them completely, both sides, in clear shipping tape, or put them in clear plastic sleeves with the opening at the bottom. Seal the bottom with clear shipping tape. Put flyers or a message in your car windows and a large sign in your front yard. Give a flyer to your mailman, FedEx, UPS and Amazon drivers. Take to any vet or shelter to be scanned for a chip if you found a pet. If you have found a pet, make anyone claiming to be the owner show proof of ownership through photos and/or vet records.
Call vets and groomers in your area and provide them with a flyer. Hand out flyers to your neighbors and post the same flyers at gas stations, post office, grocery stores, cvs, Walgreens, pet supply stores, and anywhere else you think people may frequent. I (Annette Davis for others who share this) found a cat once less than 24 hours after it went missing. It was 20 miles away from home. Cats can get in truck beds and car engines so consider ANY cat (or dog) that looks like your lost fur baby.
Post online as lost (if you are missing a pet) or as found (if you found a pet) to all rescues, lost/found groups, craigslist, nextdoor, etc. Make sure any post includes descriptive words (cat or dog, sex, color, short or long hair, etc.) so someone can search for and find your post if they find your missing pet and vice versa. Always use a cell phone on your posts/flyers so that people can text. Very often someone will not call but just text. You want to make it as easy as possible for them to reach you. Put a “sighting” as also “found”. A lot of owners don’t think to look for the word “sighting” versus “found”. Search these for lost/found pets after posting.
Petharbor.com, FindingRover.com, https://lost.petcolove.org/ Nextdoor.com, pawboost.com, lostmykitty.com, helpinglostpets.com, lostmydoggie.com (has lots of missing cats too), also post to these for cats: tabbytracker.com, wbcats.org, maxfund.org, happycatshaven.org, tumbleweed country kennels. When you search hsppr online, search found pets as well as shelter pets in both Pueblo and Colorado Springs.
- Facebook groups/pages for missing/found pets (If you aren’t in Colorado Springs, check for similar groups/pages in your area): 719 Lost and Found Pets of Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs Lost Pets, Colorado Springs Lost Pet Alert, Colorado Lost or Found Pets, Lost and Found dogs of Colorado, Lost and Found Cats of Colorado, HSPPR, DDFL, Lost and found pets of manitou springs and old Colorado city, Lost & Found Pets (Castle Rock, CO), pikes peak community cats, the 411 for 719 and all local pawboost pages. Don’t assume HSPPR will scan for a chip as they don’t always scan scared pets that are unfixed until they fix them. Also when posting to HSPPR, they fall off the website after a few months. I think it’s about two months but I’m not certain. So regularly go and update it or re-post.
Set up a scent station with strips of dirty sheets/towels or worn socks. Use worn clothing or dirty laundry so that your scent is present. Put out in a radius leading back to where the animal was lost from and leave fresh food and water. Refresh everything daily.
Put food and water out and refresh them when you would normally feed your pet. You want to keep them in the area and not roaming for food. Also put out their favorite bed/blanket and instead of calling them, try shaking a bag of their favorite treats or food and leave a trail back to your house.
If you found a dog, put a proper harness and leash on her/him, and make sure you’re not just putting a collar s/he can slip out of, and walk around wherever you found and see if the dog leads you back to a house.
You can make free flyers and/or post this pet at https://petfbi.org/#/. You can print these flyers and/or share them online. Please also check the HeLP map frequently to see if this lost pet has been listed with them. These flyers are available in English or Spanish. All of their services are 100% free!
Open your garage door a bit and leave fresh water and something that smells like you inside so that your pet has shelter if it’s nearby. Also take dirty laundry and cut up small strips and leave them on a radius trail of your house leading back to your house.
More tips: https://www.missinganimalresponse.com/neon-posters/
