PREVENTING OUR PETS FROM GETTING LOST

According to Petco Love Lost, 1 in 3 pets will go missing in their lifetime, equally about 10 million missing pets each year in the U.S. Unfortunately, many won’t make it home. In my own area on an island, the local veterinary reports a significant increase in pets being hit by cars resulting in death or devastating injuries which can be expensive and traumatic for everyone involved.

Times when dogs are at particular risk of going missing include the first days and weeks when they are in a new home, and when loud noises like thunder and fireworks frighten them. It’s important to realize that things happen and really any dog or cat can go missing which is why it’s important, at a minimum, to ensure that your pet is microchipped with an up to date registration and where feasible, to have identity info on their collar or harness.

It was shortly after bringing See Kao home from Thailand when I learned that the harness I thought was escape proof was not. Our property butts up to a state park so we were off enjoying nature when we came upon a deer. I’m pretty sure See Kao had never seen one before, got way excited and quickly slipped out of her harness. I can’t tell you what a huge sinking feeling happened at that moment as I watched her speed off up and over a bluff in hot pursuit. While she was familiar with me because I had spent time with her in Thailand over a few different trips, See Kao was not at all familiar with the woods. How would she know to come back? I can’t tell you how fortunate we were that within maybe 30 minutes as I stood panicked in the spot where she took off, See Kao came bounding back over the bluff and straight towards me with just some superficial scratches.

I’ve learned a lot since then like which harnesses are more escape proof (Ruffwear Frontline, Blue 9 Balance) and to attach the leash to both the harness and a martingale collar. See Kao was always on leash, even the 20 feet from the car to the front door. I just couldn’t risk that wildlife wasn’t going to show up and I didn’t want to repeat the nightmare.

I recently worked with Lili Chin who wrote and illustrated a couple of my favorite books, Doggie Language and Kitty Language and soon to publish Dogs of the World (whoop whoop, See Kao will be in it :-) and Bruce Dene Fleming to create an infographic on Lost Pets. In it, we list common ways pets get lost, proactive steps a pet parent can take, and what to do if it happens.

I was extremely lucky that See Kao did a big lap and managed to figure out how to come back to me. This is generally not the case and I’ll leave for another post our other horrifying tale of Takeshi our cat who took at stay-cation away from home for 10 weeks. I can’t emphasize strongly enough that pet parents need to immediately get word out that their pet has gone missing and not wait even a couple of hours to see if they will return home. A lot of scary things can happen in a short time so spread an alert on social media and put up some yard signs asap to alert neighbors who aren’t on social media to be on the look out. The more eyes out for your lost pet the better chance that someone will see them which is the first step to getting your lost pet home safe and sound.

So please take a look at the infographic and what steps you can take to keep your pet safe.

Cheers Tracy

PS - Click here for a link to a free registry for microchip and owner contact info.