If your dog is missing today, you’re not alone. More dogs go missing during the week of Fourth of July celebrations than any other time of the year. Here’re some tips to help you get your dog back home safely.

10 Tips for Getting a Lost Dog Back Home

1. Publish your dog’s picture and important info on social media as soon as they go missing. Include if he or she is likely to come when called, their name, and if they are wearing a colored collar, ID tags, or have any medical conditions. Post how to contact you as well so you can follow sightings and tips. It’s likely your neighbors will be the first to spot your dog once they get away.
2. Contact your veterinarian if your dog is registered with a microchip. Your dog’s microchip information will provide your veterinarian’s phone number once scanned. Give your vet a heads up so they know to check for calls and messages during the holiday.
3. Contact your local dog pound and Humane Society in case someone turns your dog over.
4. Post flyers with your dog’s picture and your contact info in a five mile radius of where he or she was last seen. Scared dogs can run for miles, so don’t limit your search area thinking it’s too far to go. Offer a reward if found for a better chance of getting your dog back. It’s sad, but some people will try to sell a lost dog if they believe it’s a valuable breed. Offering a cash reward increases your chances of avoiding having your lost dog stolen.
5. Check the places your dog knows, like a favorite pond, a neighbor’s barn, under the porch, or a nearby friend’s house, often.
6. Enlist the help of family and friends to search on foot. Be sure to check any area a dog might visit that offers comfort and shelter from noisy fireworks and busy roadways. Drainage ditches, culverts, abandoned buildings, under porches, inside garages, under cars, and in forested areas are favorite doggie hiding places.
7. Make calls, knock on doors, and get the word out as soon as you know your dog is missing.
8. Register your dog with PawBoost to create a flyer and get the word out about your lost dog.
9. When making a flyer, include your name, pet’s name, color of collar, contact info, distinguishing characteristics, date and area last seen, and reward amount. It can also be helpful to advise searchers not to approach the dog, and call instead. Scared dogs may run away again if approached by a stranger.
10. Don’t give up. Your dog is trying to his or her way back home to you.

Infographic courtesy of PetFinder.

 

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