Lost and Found Animals

Have you lost your pet?

Follow these 7 steps to help find your missing pet:

ACT QUICKLY!
Begin your search as soon as you realize your pet is missing. Don't wait - time is of essence!

GET HELP!
Call Local Police and/or Animal Control Officers immediately. Most towns have their own holding facility for stray animals. New Hampshire law requires towns to hold all stray dogs and cats for seven days.

Contact the Monadnock Humane Society immediately.
E-mail us at nicoleg@humanecommunity.org or call 603-352-9011 x101. Be sure to include a detailed description of your pet including gender, color, size, collars worn, the name your pet responds to and your telephone number. We will check every description to see if your pet has been brought to the shelter, or if a citizen has found her. Send or email a photo of your missing pet - even with the best written description, correctly identifying a pet can be difficult.

Call neighboring animal shelters, police departments and local veterinary hospitals. It is not uncommon for animals to be found miles from where they were lost.

GET THE WORD OUT:
Signs and posters are very effective tools for finding lost animals. Include a clear description of your dog and a color photo. Post signs at grocery stores, schools, community centers, veterinary offices, traffic intersections, local animal shelters and neighborhood businesses. Provide your police department with a copy, too.

SEARCH THE NEIGHBORHOOD:
Walk or drive through your neighborhood several times each day. The best times to look for lost pets is in early morning and early evening. Ask letter carriers and delivery people to be on the lookout. Distribute your posters door-to-door. Ask neighbors to check garages or storage sheds where your pet might have become accidentally shut in.

ADVERTISE:
Place advertisements in newspapers and radio stations immediately. Don't forget to monitor the "Found" ads in the classified section of the local newspapers.

OFFER A REWARD:
Offer a reward on your posters and ads to offer an incentive for people to become involved. Be cautious before giving money to anyone claiming to know the whereabouts of your pet.

DON'T GIVE UP!
Even when you have little hope left, don't stop searching. Animals who have been lost for months have been reunited with their owners. Be persistent. Keep visiting your shelter and checking with area businesses where you have placed signs.

PREVENTION IS THE BEST DEFENSE! An ID Tag is your pet's ticket home! It can mean the difference between life and death for a pet. Any pet (even an indoor one) has a better chance of being reunited with her family if she always wears a collar and ID tag with current information. Make sure your pets all have ID tags, or at least write your phone number on their collars with a permanent marker. Ask your veterinarian about permanent methods of identification such as microchipping, too.

What to do if you find an animal

First be sure it is homeless and not simply lost or looking for handouts (some pets have learned that beggars can be winners). Before placing the animal in a new home do the following:

Check the lost and found ads in the paper
Call your local police and make a report
Call or visit local shelters to complete "found pet" reports.
Place posters and flyers in the vicinity where the animal was found
Post your found pet on Petfinder's Found Pets classifieds.
If you find a free roaming cat with a collar, attach a note for the owner.
If you find a dog call your local animal control and/or police department.

MHS Policies on Stray Animals

A detailed lost report in our database is completed when a stray dog or cat is brought to the Monadnock Humane Society by a resident of the community, police or animal control personnel. If the dog or cat has any form of identifcation such as a tag, microchip or tattoo, MHS staff will make every effort to locate the owner.

By State law, stray dogs must be held for 7 days. If the dog is not reclaimed or MHS staff has been unable to locate or identify an owner after 7 days the animal will then be behaviorally and medically evaluated before becoming available for adoption.