Wanderlust Pets? What You Need to Know
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Summertime, and the livin’ is easy.
Fish are jumpin' and the cotton is high
Oh, your daddy's rich and your ma is good-lookin'
So hush, little baby, don't you cry.......
That's how the song starts, and that's what we hope for.
But what if your pet gets lost?
What are good ways to search for a cat or a dog?
Put your pet’s water bowl on your porch. If your lost pet is a cat, put the cat’s litter pan on your porch. If it is a dog, put the dog’s bed on your porch with something that smells like you and or your dog.
When looking for a lost cat, they will most likely want to stay dry and warm and will be looking for food. Indoor-only cats tend to stay within a 3-block radius of where they were lost and have been known to hide for long periods. Indoor/outdoor cats may travel farther.
Look for lost cats under bushes, in garages and sheds (cats can get locked in garages and sheds, so listen for meowing), under porches, crawlspaces, attics, under cars, under hoods of cars, or near garbage cans/dumpsters and up in trees.
You can also shake a bag of kibble or slowly open a can of cat food as you walk around searching for them. At night, take a flashlight with you and see if you can see a pair of beady eyes reflecting at you.
The same advice works for dogs, although dogs may tolerate the rain better than cats and travel much farther and faster than cats.
Search into the wind. All animals will head into the wind. This is how they detect food, water, and danger. Go to where the pet was last seen. Step outside. Turn around 360 degrees. Determine which direction the wind is coming from.
HEAD INTO THE WIND.
Leave a urine trail back home. This will keep your pet in the area and bring them home if they are just out on a walkabout—Pee in a spray bottle. Mix your urine with water.
If your animal is chipped, contact the chip company to ensure all your contact information is up to date. You can tell them your animal is lost.
Lastly, contact veterinarians in your area. Contact your local animal control agency and report your lost pet, and post updates on social networks daily.
Questions? Please reach out.
