Michelle's dogs
Lauren from L Bee and the Money Tree wrote recently about how her dog, Murray, decided to take a little jaunt around the neighbourhood at 11pm in the middle of the rain storm, leaving her a nervous wreck until she found him.
While this story ends well, it's one we'll all familiar with. I've been a victim of it myself. My dog Molly pulled the same trick on me last summer, except she was a full half mile away when she was found.
Dogs and cats disappear every day. Some estimate that 10 million are reported missing every year. If you own a pet, odds are, it's going to give you the slip at some point in its life, and go missing. Hopefully your story will have the same happy ending mine and Lauren's did, but to improve those odds, here are some ways you can keep your pet keep your pet from escaping, and help ensure it's found quickly.
Secure Your Parameter
Many, many dogs will take any opportunity to go exploring their neighbourhood, and an open backyard gate the perfect temptation. To help protect against this possibility, install an automatic closing device on your gates to ensure that if they are left open for any reason, they'll close on their own.
In addition to this, consider installing an underground electric fence, which will deter against fence digging and wandering out of an open gate. I have one installed around the parameter of my property, and my dog Molly has rarely wandered off. The cost of one of these fences can be as low as a few hundred dollars, and is money well spent. There are even options available for cats!
Register Your Pet
In most cities, dogs are required to be registered, and will receive an ID tag to attach to their collar. This ID tag will contain a ID number and toll free number to call. Anyone who finds a dog with an ID tag, will have a way of getting in contact with the owner.
One caveat to this method: Don't forget to update your pet's info when you move! Otherwise, your contact information will be out of date and the people who found your pet will have no way of getting in contact with you. Registrations are typically inexpensive, renewable yearly and often required by law.
Microchip Your Pet
This is a great option for both cats and dogs, and is widely available at your local vet's office. Instead of an ID tag, the vet will insert a small microchip underneath your pet's skin. The chip will be readable by a scanner that most vet's offices and animal shelters are equipped with. This is particularly beneficial if a pet is found by animal control.
It also has the benefit of always being with your pet, even if they slip out of their collar and have no tags on them. As I mentioned above, don't forget to update this information when you move! This isn't typically expensive, it cost me $10 to have my dog Molly microchipped at the SPCA.
Have a “Go” Plan
Sometimes, despite your best intentions, your pet ends up missing. In these situations, having a plan in place to recover your pet could mean the difference between a few hours of searching and a few weeks. Have a “Lost Pet” poster prepared and saved on your computer, so that you can easily and quickly print out several posters to put up around the neighbourhood. Become acquainted with the local lost pets Facebook groups and message boards so you can quickly and easily get the word out to the local community. Finally, don't forget to call your local shelter and vet's offices with a description of your pet, in case animal control or a concerned citizen turns him or her in. By quickly publicizing the fact that you are looking for your pet, you increase the number of people keeping an eye out, thus increasing the chances your pet will be found.
No one likes to think about the fact that some day, you might be trudging the streets of your neighbourhood, calling your pet's name. By taking these simple and inexpensive precautions you can minimize the chance of harm coming to your pet, and increase the odds of a happy ending to your pet's adventure.
Have you ever lost a pet? I want to know!
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myfijourney says
April 19, 2013 at 4:29 amMy cat managed to escape once. He figured out how to push the screens out of the windows and went for a wild night on the town. I was very worried, but he came back. Ever since, I've had to block the screens with a box fan so that he can't push them out any more.
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Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:14 amMy kitty is an escape artist as well, in particular, she's a door dasher. I can't say how many times I've chased her through the woods after she's sprinted out the door while my arms are full of groceries.
Holly@ClubThrifty says
April 19, 2013 at 5:59 amMy dog has ran away a few times before =( Luckily, he's always come back. He's blind now so I hope that he never gets away again.
Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:14 amThat's very lucky! My dog was taken to the SPCA as a stray, so I'm not sure she'd be able to find her way back if she took off.
Brian says
April 19, 2013 at 6:30 amMy parents had a cat that just decided to live in someone else's house for a week. She was an indoor/outdoor cat and would hang outside most of the day and the come in at night. One night she didn't come in, which was no big deal it was really nice out, Then another night and another… soon it was a week. We put up signs in the area and someone from the next neighborhood over called and said they had our cat. She just walked into their house one night and decided she was going to live there. We got her back home and she never did it again. We decided that all she really wanted was a vacation away from the dog.
Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:15 amHa! That happened to a few of my child hood cats!
John S @ Frugal Rules says
April 19, 2013 at 6:46 amWow, 10 million are reported missing each year? Our cat got out once years ago. He got himself so freaked out that he had no clue what was going on. He's always been an indoor cat and just scared him half to death by getting outside. Our biggest worry now is one of the kids trying to maul him. 😉
Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:16 amThat sounds like my sister's cat. He's such a wimp that they can leave their doors wide open and he'll never venture outside.
DC@Young Adult Money says
April 19, 2013 at 7:51 amWe plan on getting a dog this summer and one thing we absolutely have to do before then is make sure the fence is sealed completely. The corners may be an issue as they don't come together completely (most of the fences are our neighbors, not ours, hence the slight disconnect. These are some other good tips, as well. Thanks for sharing!
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Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:16 amAn underground fence around the border of your fence might be a good solution!
Alan@escapingmydebt says
April 19, 2013 at 8:22 amI have never lost a pet yet but for about 10 minutes had thought so. Our house was broken into about 18 months ago and my wife called me telling me this and said neither the cat or dog would respond to her when she called for them. The back door was wide open so I told her to go to the neighbors and the rest of the way home (10 minutes), I thought both pets, mainly the dog were gone. Once I got home I searched the house and the person locked them both in the bedroom up stairs. We were relieved.
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Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:17 amThat's a happy ending to a potentially very sad story!
Little House says
April 19, 2013 at 8:50 amDogs can travel quite a distance when they are "lost." It's how many of them end up for adoption through local shelters and rescue foundations. If your dog is Houdini and can escape almost any enclosure, make sure they are chipped and have an ID tag!
Many years ago one of our cats got locked outside of our apartment for hours. Thankfully, he hung around our front door until we realized our other cat was acting funny, sitting next to the front door for hours. Good thing we decided to open the door!
Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:18 amThat's how my dog was brought to the SPCA, she was a "stray at large" and had no ID or microchip. That's why she's not tagged and microchipped up the wazoo, in case she decides to go on an adventure any time soon!
Catherine says
April 19, 2013 at 8:53 amHere's a crazy story, sorry for blowing Michelle's comments up. We had an outdoor cat growing up and got caught outside in the winter when a storm hit. We weren't too worried since he had proven his resourcefulness before. When he didn't come home after the storm stopped we started looking for him. After almost 2 days we were worried sick. I grew up on a small street and the cats never traveled far. We started knocking on the neighbors doors no one had seen him. We called the vet to see if someone had turned him in but after a week we started losing hope. About 2 weeks after the storm I see him running up the street! I was so happy and I follow him to a little old lady's house up the street who let him in her house. When I knocked on the door and asked for my cat she said that he wanted to now live with her and that she had been feeding him (junk cat food) for a few weeks. We knocked on her door and asked her if she had seen him the day after the storm and she said no!! He was on a pretty strict diet (ie bland) with us and she was feeding him garbage and he was loving it. So essentially she stole him. We tried to get him to come home multiple times but he continued to go to her house where, to the best of my knowledge 6 years later he still lives. So make sure you add ''protect from old lady cat snatchers'' to your list!
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MakingSenseofCents says
April 19, 2013 at 8:56 amI can't believe someone would do this! I'd be pissed!
Jake Erickson says
April 19, 2013 at 11:30 amThat is a crazy story. I'd be so mad if someone did this to our dog or cat. I would take the cat back and probably never let it outside again.
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Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:19 amWow that's a crazy story! That actually happened to me as a child too. Some people a few houses down found our cat in their back yard and decided to keep him. Fortunately when we confronted them, they gave him up.
The Norwegian Girl says
April 19, 2013 at 8:54 amwell, my first dog used to run away, but it was more like "hey I´m running this way and you can`t catch me" along the freakin`HIGHWAY.. and one time he ran into a pasture where a big bull resided, because he was running after some chickens.. And one time he decided to run of in Stockholm (Capital of Sweden), but all the times he ran of, I was always running like crazy after him. My family`s dogs have both microchips and nametags with phonenumbers on their collars, in case they run of. Luckily they`ve never done anything like my first dog used to. Thank GOD!
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Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:20 amThat's crazy! I'm surprised nothing bad happened to him, he sounded very adventurous!
MakingSenseofCents says
April 19, 2013 at 8:57 amI've never actually lost a pet. One time my dog got out but we chased her. She eventually came back but I was crying at that point already. Haha I just love my fur babies!
Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:21 amMe too! I was so upset the one time Molly decided to take off, I was sure she was going to get hit by a car or fall into the river or something!
Jenny@FrugalGuru says
April 19, 2013 at 9:48 amI microchipped and registered my dog. I had a fenced yard. The dog learned to climb and dig. (Yes, some dogs climb fences…) I added an invisible fence. The dog figured out that if she came at the fence REALLYREALLY fast, she could get over before she got zapped too much. Eventually, she had to be on a chain when she was outside in our fenced and invisible fenced back yard. It was an enormous pain, but with a Houdini dog, there weren't any other options at that point!
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Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:21 amSome dogs make it a sport to escape, it sounds like your dog was one of those!
Jacob@CashCowCouple says
April 19, 2013 at 9:50 amWe don't have any pets… I imagine losing one would be pretty tough! I think some of them are creative about finding ways to escape!
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Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:22 amDefinitely, in my experience though, dogs and cats that try really hard to escape are just bored, and wouldn't try so hard if they were given a "job".
debtroundup says
April 19, 2013 at 10:07 amI have not lost a pet, but my mother in law lost her dog the day after she got him. I was able to locate him using a website and she got him back the next day. Our dogs are chipped, but I don't think we have updated the data in a long time. I might need to go in and check that.
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Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:23 amI have a folder with all of my pet's info, including microchip info, so that it's a snap to update it when we move. Most people forget to update their pet's microchip when they move, making the chip essentially useless!
therandompath says
April 19, 2013 at 10:59 amMy cat is microchipped. I'd be devestated if anything ever happend to him 🙁
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Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:24 amGood for you for taking precautions!
Jake Erickson says
April 19, 2013 at 11:27 amThese are great tips. We have a dog and a cat. The dog has never been lost for more than a few minutes which is a blessing. The cat on the other hand has been missing, but not for longer than a few hours. Our cat is only an indoor cat, but there has been 2 times (most recently this morning) where our door has blown open because it wasn't closed all the way and she has gotten out. Because she's an indoor cat, we don't have a collar or any tags on her, so we always get worried when she gets out. Luckily she's come back within a few hours both times she's gotten out. I'd be beside myself if either of them were lost long-term.
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Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:24 amThat has happened to me! One morning I came into the kitchen and the front door was wide open. I don't know HOW my cat wasn't outside, but fortunately she wasn't.
Shannon-ReadyForZero says
April 19, 2013 at 1:09 pmI can't get over that picture of the Frenchie :). Makes me want one even more! I used to have a Beagle that jumped our fence every night. Even with a chain on. Every morning he was back on our porch but it definitely wasn't a fun situation. We had to finally give him up to family members who owned a farm since our city backyard just didn't seem to be a fair enough amount of land for him. He obviously loved to run! I was heartbroken since I was so young but it's a good lesson that you also have to buy the right type of dog for your lifestyle. (Another reason I love Frenchies – they are just a bit too lazy to mind living in a tiny city apartment like the one I have now 🙂 ).
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Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:25 amBeagles are definitely tough to have in the city, they are so instinct oriented and they just want to follow their nose! It sucks that you had to give him up, but at least you did the best thing for him!
Canadianbudgetbinder says
April 19, 2013 at 2:31 pmOur dog has taken off before and left me high and dry in the woods but always comes home. I have my dog micro-chipped which was one of the best investments I've made with him. I'd hate to think that he was lost and then found and no one knew where he lived. Those tags we get sometimes fall off and aren't always the best identification.
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Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:26 amI totally agree. Tags are the first line of defence, microchips are forever though.
Cass says
April 19, 2013 at 2:39 pmThis past summer during the Sask Summer games at the end of July our little dog ran during a thunderstorm. We live on a farm and we assume someone picked her up on the highway just south of our house. We put up signed and searched for her…went through the fields,called neighbors etc. She's gone missing before via hopping a ride in the propane truck and making her way home 2 weeks later so We held out hope for a good 3 or 4 weeks before we stopped searching and calling for her. My sister was heart broken. We've had Rosie for 8 years now.
Now for the good part. Almost three months after Rosie disappeared, just after Halloween my sister was in town (actually a "city") 45 minutes away from home. She was walking down the street with a friend from 7-11 and Rosie appeared out of nowhere. She ran up to my sister barking and jumping on her. My sister Grabbed her and ran. We know she's rosie because the first thing my mom did was take her to the vet to have her tattoo checked and her heart murmur checked as she had been missing and off her meds for 3 months. She wasn't being fed properly or brushed…she needed to be shaved she was so matted but We were SO glad to have her back. She got home she ran around the house found her bed and her friend (our other dog) and was so happy to be home too.
We don't know who had her or where she was we were just glad to have her home.
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Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:27 amWow that's a crazy story! That's amazing that your sister found her.
Mike@WeOnlyDoThisOnc says
April 19, 2013 at 9:21 pmDidn't know that microchipping was so inexpensive. Thanks for the tips!
Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:28 amI'm not sure if it's that cheap at the vet's office, but I know I was totally surprised when the SPCA told me they'd do it for $10.
kimateyesonthedollar says
April 20, 2013 at 4:10 pmOur dogs have gotten out of the yard a few times. Once the town marshall picked them up for us. Such is life in a small town, but it it is a terrible feeling when you realize they are gone.
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Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:28 amDefinitely! At least in a small town, the odds of the dog finding it's way back to you are higher!
KC @ genxfinance says
April 22, 2013 at 2:47 amWow, 10 million? That's a whole lot of numbers. We had our share of heartaches when we lost our puppy once. After much searching, we couldn't find her. After a few months, we got another one and we've been taking good care of our little ball of fur ever since.
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Jordann says
April 23, 2013 at 8:28 amAww that's so sad!
Saurav Nayak says
June 16, 2016 at 4:12 amHi Jordann ,
Actually I do not have the same happy ending as you and Lauren. Three years ago I lost my cat Sara, but was not able to found her back.
If I would have done the things you mentioned in your post, she might be with me.
Approximately 10 millions are missing every year. That is a big number!
Obviously we love our pets and don’t want them to be lost. In case they do if they adapt the things you mentioned it will be much easier to get to them.
Next time I will adapt a pet I will remember your words.
With regards,
Saurav
William Sagide says
June 29, 2016 at 8:14 amGreat article Jordann. I used to use an ID tag on my dog but my vet recommended a microchip. I have never thought about updating it when I travel though it’s usually not more than 2 weeks.
Jay says
July 20, 2016 at 2:40 amThanks for the great tips Jordan,
luckily my dog has never run away from home, he is a good dog. when we went out we used a dog leash it’s very helpful so far
Katy says
August 6, 2016 at 9:08 amgreat post, thanks for the great information !!
Karl Prescott says
October 10, 2016 at 4:22 amHey Jordann, I just wanted to say this is a really good post so thank you for sharing.
I’d just like to add a contribution to this marvellous piece of information by adding that if you plan to keep your pets in the garden at times it can be helpful to get secure fence panels because it will of course help in stopping them from running off.. And I think many of us have experienced that at one time or another! Thanks again Jordann – Karl.