Found a lost pet? What you can do to help get them home
I think you’d be hard pressed to find someone who hasn’t come across a lost dog and wanted to help get them home safely. We see it all the time on social media sites, where posts of lost dogs/cats/birds are routinely shared, by people trying their best to reunite pets with their owners. There are so many variables as to why a pet may have wandered off or escaped. Not to mention, the pets that are stolen. I know, in Port Macquarie and surroundings areas, there have been nuisance people opening secure gates and letting pets out on purpose. There are some dogs that have an uncanny way of scaling 6 foot fences (did someone say Houdini?!), many are terrified of loud noises such as fireworks, some are being looked after while owners are away, and some just like to explore. There are countless people out there who are responsible pet owners but sadly, many who aren’t.
Found a lost pet? What you can do to help get them home
Most pet owners, when confronted with the reality of a lost pet, will call local veterinary hospitals first, followed closely by animal rescue groups/organisations in the area.
If you find a lost pet, please bring it into the hospital so we can scan them for a microchip. Please understand that you cannot take the animal with you once we have scanned them. Legally, this is classified as stealing.
We will search the national database for the scanned microchip number. This is why it’s so important your contact details are up to date. You should always provide as many details as you can such as home, work and mobile phone numbers, an email address and a secondary contact person. If any of your details change, call the council immediately and have them updated.
Based on the contact information attached to the pets microchip details, we will attempt to contact the owners so they can collect them from the hospital. We will keep them safe overnight with food and water if there is a delay in receiving our message.
If we do not hear from the owners the following day, the ranger will be called to collect them and take them to the local pound.
If the pet is not microchipped, we are by law, required to call the ranger to have them collected and taken to the pound.
The pound is another place people will call when looking for a lost pet. There can be a lot of negativity surrounding animal shelters such as the pound, but in all honesty, if you have lost a pet and they have been taken to the pound, this is your best chance of getting them back safely. So long as all of your details are up to date……
The bottom line is, there are two very simple ways to ensure your pets are returned to you. This is your responsibility as a pet owner – blame cannot be placed on anyone else if your pet gets lost and you aren’t contactable due to incorrect details. Having your pet permanently identified by a microchip, and registering them correctly under your name, means your pet is protected for life. In addition, dogs must wear a collar with a tag which shows the name of the dog and the address or telephone number of the owner of the dog. Cats must also have some form of identification which allows the owner to be contacted, and owners are encouraged to put a collar on their cat.
Pet owners now have access to the NSW Pet Registry to register your pet, update your contact details, report your pet missing and transfer ownership.
You can log into the Pet Registry here and create a profile and “claim” your pet by searching for your pets microchip number and your telephone number or email address.
www.petregistry.nsw.gov.au
If you’re not sure of your pets microchip number, we can scan your pet and provide it for you.
We all love happy endings – having your details up to date increases the odds!!!