Have you ever thought about what you would do if your dog ran away from home? What’s the first thing you would do to try and find your lost companion? Often, when dogs run away from home, families first responses are those of panic. Generally speaking, most pet owners take precautions to ensure that their dog doesn’t run away, or if he/she does, can be returned home quickly and safely.
First things first. Check the fence line for weaknesses and places where he/she might escape and fix them immediately. Make sure your dog wears tags with your name and phone number, so that when found, the rescuer can contact you easily. If your currently searching for your lost dog, here are a few tips, bits of information and lost dog help that’ll help you get him/her back.
1. Think Like a Dog
Dogs run away for many reasons including fear, anxiety, boredom and curiosity of unfamiliar surroundings. Small dogs on average will travel up to 1/2 a mile, large dogs will travel up to 5 miles at most. Most cases of runaway dogs end up being found within a 2 mile radius of home.
2. Think Like a Rescuer
Usually, when people find unaccompanied animals, they take them to the nearest animal shelter, local veterinarian, kennels and pet stores. Or, they look for a local listing online for missing dogs. As soon as you realize your dog is lost, put out a listing on the humane society website, Facebook, Twitter, Google +. Put a post up on Facebook with your dog’s picture and promote it to people in your area. A $5.00 boost on Facebook will typically reach between 500-1500 people.
3. Smart Detective Work!
Recently, a Colorado man used a very clever strategy to help find his lost Beagle, who ran away from home while he was on vacation. Dave put up a craigslist ad about his missing dog T.J and received several calls from people who had sighted T.J.
Every time Dave received a call, he logged the location of the sighting on Google maps and the specifics of the sighting. Smart detective work! Eventually animal control in Fort Collin’s found T.J hiding under a bush apparently after being hit by a car. T.J was in critical condition at the Vet’s office for a while, but recovered just fine from the unfortunate accident.
Watch the full video on abcnews.go.com.
If you’re searching for your pal right at this moment, use the internet now! There are many powerful tools that you can use to help track him/her down!
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