Last week my friends’ miniature schnauzers, Caesar and Cleopatra, got lost. About a year ago, Cleo lost her eyesight and now she relies on Caesar to help her navigate. They were in the backyard and he found a small hole in the fence, which he took advantage of, slipped through… and took off, with Cleo following behind. A couple hours later, a neighbor found Caesar, but Cleo wasn’t with him. My friends did all the things you do when your dog is lost… they cried, visited the shelters, cried, put adds on Craigslist, cried, put fliers all over the neighborhood, cried, went back to the shelters, cried, contacted nearby vets, cried, checked with the shelters again, cried, etc. They were beside themselves with worry, grief, and fear for their little blind dog, especially after a few days.
Luckily, this story has a happy ending… On the first day, a man found Cleo and took her home with him. Since she wasn’t wearing a collar, with an ID tag and her dog license, he didn’t know whom to call. On the forth day, he happened to see my friends’ lost dog post on Craigslist and called them. Cleo came home safe and sound.
You might be thinking, “Sweet story, but so what?” I just wanted to point out that if a couple of simple things had been done, my friends would have been spared four long days of hell. I’m not trying to be critical of them, they love their dogs, but they made a couple of fairly common mistakes and paid for them with a lot of worry. I think Cleo’s story could be a lesson for all of us.
Fences only work if they keep your dog inside them. In this case, a board in the wooden fence had been damaged, which my friends knew about, but hadn’t gotten around to fixing. They thought it was too small for the dogs to get through, so they put it on the ‘to do’ list. However, dogs can be very determined and resourceful when it comes to getting things they want, like out of backyards. A bored dog, with enough of time on his paws, can make a very small hole really big. So, check for and fix broken boards or gaps in your fence. Make sure your fence is high enough that your dog can’t climb or jump over it. Some dogs will take advantage of furniture and other objects to use as a springboard to get over a fence. Most important, if you provide your dog with positive training and other things to keep him from getting bored, he might not want to get out of the yard.
Microchips are great, but where are your tags? I think microchips are great, my dog and four cats have them. But, microchips only work if you remember to update your information when you move or change your phone number. Cleo also has a microchip; but, like the nice man who found her, not all good people are “animal people.” He didn’t know to take her to a vet or shelter to have her scanned.
If Cleo had been wearing a well fitting collar with current ID tags, she would have been returned the first day. Many people think their dogs don’t need to wear their tags at home, but stuff happens… fences get broken, doors and gates get left open, etc., and dogs get loose. If your dog, or cat, always has on current ID tags, anyone who finds your pet can contact you right away. These tags are inexpensive and available at many pet stores. Just make sure to replace them if you change your phone number, or if they become too damaged to read.
A flat or rolled collar with a buckle or plastic snap is a good choice for everyday use. They come in leather, nylon and many other materials. There are a huge variety of colors, patterns, widths, etc. They can range in price from about $8 and up. The most important thing is to make sure the collar is the right size for your dog. Measure your dog’s neck and then add one inch to get the right size. Never attach tags to a choke collar; and do not continuously keep a choke collar on a dog. They’re called choke collars for a reason! Every year thousands of dogs are strangled to death by them. The ‘live’ ring gets caught on something, the dog struggles to get away, which is a dog’s natural reaction, and the collar just gets tighter and tighter. My strongest advice is: DON’T USE CHOKE OR PRONG COLLARS, PERIOD!
If you find a lost pet: If the dog has on a license tag, call Animal Control, and they can give you the owner’s phone number over the phone. Many people are reluctant to take a pet they’ve found to Animal Control. They’re afraid the owner won’t look for him there, and the dog, or cat, will be euthanized. So, they keep the animal with them and search for the owner on their own. My friends were very lucky that the man who found Cleo actually saw their post on Craigslist, but that doesn’t always happen. When they escape, some dogs can run for miles. So putting posters up where the dog was lost, or found, might not help; chances are the parties involved won’t see them. Do put up posters and place posts on the Internet, sometimes those things work. But you should also take the pet to the closest shelter, where they can scan him for a microchip and put him on public display for the owners to find. Most people search the shelters for their lost pets.
FYI, if you take a found pet to a shelter, you can put a Finders Hold on the animal, and if the owners don’t claim him, you will be first in line to adopt him. Here’s a link to San Diego Animal Control with more info about what to do if you find a lost pet: http://www.sddac.com/lostandfound/ifoundpet.asp
No comments:
Post a Comment