Don't Keep Found Dogs - Redux

I am calling your attention to Dog Rescuer's Life - yep, there to the right in the blogroll; Amy's entry titled "Don't Keep Found Dogs."  A family traveling on vacation suffered a mortal crash; two members were killed, another in ICU and their dog lost.  Someone found him but kept him; not until they were later moving was he taken to the local shelter.  An alert shelter worker (YESH) checked him for a microchip, found it wasn't registered but something told her this was not right.  She then checked the obituaries, found the crash reported, contacted the funeral home and this grieving family is now finally getting their dog back.  DON'T KEEP FOUND DOGS.  Most likely someone is looking for them.

I remember driving home on Hwy 177 one day seeing a dog at the side of the road.  This dog truly looked lost: he was standing still, scanning the horizon, thinking "Where the heck am I and how did I get here?"  I hemmed and hawed about taking him to Silverwalk and making out a found report but chose to take him to HSSEMO for the found report and to check for a microchip.  As we were there, the young men watching out for him called.  HALLELUJAH!  I waited until they came for him; he was so relieved to be back with his people.

When a dog was "found" in the country and brought to me,  I made a found report with photo with HSSEMO, listed him in the paper as "lost," checked for a microchip and put him front and center on Silverwalk's Petfinder page.  After several weeks, a woman finally called me because a relative noticed him on the Petfinder page.  I told her she would need vet records and photos to prove he was her dog.  She brought them but you know what?  They were almost inconsequential after I saw the ecstatic response of her dog to her presence.  Yes, same dog in photos; he had been doing his wandering in the country as he was wont to do (not unlike Shiloh, who is tagged up the wazoo!) when these well meaning people picked him up.

"Jack" - found dog who went home!

I hope (and I will check this out with my friends at HSSEMO) that if someone finds a dog who goes unclaimed they would have first chance to adopt her.   "Jack" (not his real name) had been given up as dead.  HIS FAMILY NEVER EVEN LOOKED FOR HIM!

Second strong point today: look for your dog, call all local shelters, rescues and sanctuaries, let us know, use FindToto.com, list him in a found report with HSSEMO & physically look for him there every other day; so many animals go through, the people at the front desk can't always keep up with the physical appearance of all the dogs and cats (among other animals).

Silverwalk, Safe Harbor and HSSEMO collaborate - we want animals to go home unless there is abuse involved.  Please, don't keep found dogs - give their families the chance to find them.  Let them go home if at all possible; many broken hearts are mended with the return of a beloved dog or cat.  Thank you!