Showing lost and found pets within 25 miles of Washington, DC 20019

There are dog-lovers all over the country and beyond that follow PawBoost to help reunite lost and found dogs, and that means partnerships with dog shelters across the US and Canada.

Are you a team member at a shelter not yet partnered with PawBoost?

Request Shelter Partnership

Find a Stray Dog's Owner with PawBoost

When you find a lost dog, you likely will have some questions.

How do I find the dog's owner? Should I keep the dog until we find its home, or take it to my local shelter? How can I spread the word that I found a lost dog?

PawBoost helps take the stress out of reuniting a lost dog by getting the word out to local communities that connect lost and found pets with their people.

Reunite a lost dog with its owner faster with PawBoost. To start spreading the word, report a found dog here.

For more tips on reuniting a lost dog with its owner, read our guide on what to do when you find a pet.

Frequently Asked Questions

I found a dog. What do I do?

Check the stray animal for any identification, including a microchip. Most local vets will scan a chip for free.

Notify local animal control agencies and shelters. Here is the full list of PawBoost partner shelters, but not every shelter is partnered. To find all your local shelters and humane societies, we recommend doing a Google search for 'animal shelters near Washington'.

And of course, spread local awareness for the found dog. PawBoost makes it easy to put out a found dog alert so you can instantly notify your local community. We'll send an email alert to our local members, post to the PawBoost-powered Facebook page for your area, add the found dog to our lost & found, and make a found dog flyer – all for free.

Also take advantage of posting to Nextdoor.com – a PawBoost partner – and Craigslist. Both of these sites have communities of people who help reunite found dog with their families. We highly recommend you use these resources in addition to PawBoost!

Read our full guide on what to do when you find a lost dog for more helpful advice.

Where do I report a found dog in Washington, DC?

If you've found a stray dog in Washington, we would like to help. You can put out a found dog alert PawBoost for free to help reunite the dog with its owner. Millions of pet lovers have signed up for our local lost & found pet alerts, and that includes pet lovers near Washington!

How do I find a dog's owner in Washington, DC?

You can use PawBoost to locate the dog's owner in the Washington area by putting out a found pet report.

Pet lovers all over the country use PawBoost to help reunite lost and found dogs. And thousands of lost and found pets are reported to PawBoost every day. In fact, PawBoost has the largest database of lost and found pets in the world.

When you report a found dog, you'll also get access to other free tools including a found dog flyer generator, and our potential matches page.

Do I have to pay for premium PawBoost services to find a stray dog's owner?

You don't have to pay to reunite a stray dog with their owner with PawBoost. PawBoost's free dog finder services have helped millions of people reunite with their lost dogs.

PawBoost does offer premium upgrades to help increase the reach of your found pet alert.

You can learn more about what free and premium services PawBoost offers here.