And when to call for back-up!
It is instinctive for most animal lovers to want to rush forward to help a stray pet. Sometimes, however, catching and transporting stray pets should be left to your local humane society or animal services provider.
Whenever you see a stray dog or cat in your neighborhood, THINK SAFETY FIRST! Never put the safety of you, your family or your own pets in jeopardy.
• If the animal is showing ANY signs of aggression, leave it alone. If there is imminent danger to people -- especially children -- call '9-1-1.' In most cases, however, you should contact your municipal animal control centre.
• If you can safely transport it, a sick or injured stray should be taken to your local animal shelter or a veterinary clinic right away. (You will not have to pay for its care.)
• Leave a mother cat or dog with a litter, or an orphaned litter, alone! (Unless they are in immediate danger.) Call your humane society for advice before taking action.
• If you have been able to safely contain the animal, check for any form of identification - PetLynx tag, city license, tattoo, rabies tag, personalized identification tag, or microchip. Call these contact numbers and, if you have no luck finding the owner, register a 'Found' report on PetLynx and call area service providers right away.
• Before taking healthy strays to an animal shelter or vet clinic, do a search on PetLynx. There may already be a record of the lost pet and you may be matched with the owners right away, saving the animal a trip to the shelter.
• If someone claims to be the animal's owner, insist on identification and proof of ownership before releasing him or her.
Showing posts with label City Animal services. Show all posts
Showing posts with label City Animal services. Show all posts
Monday, November 30, 2009
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Stray Mittens
We were very surprised when she didn't come home one night, but it was not until the next morning that we began a search. We started by speaking to everyone on our court, asking them to check their garages and sheds, just in case she slipped in there out of curiosity.
On the second day, we registered Mittens with PetLynx and visited our local animal control centre. We also posted a large colour picture of Mittens throughout the neighbourhood.
On the third day, we received our first possible match on PetLynx, but it didn't have a picture, so we went to the animal shelter to check but it was not her.
On the fourth day we received two possible matches with PetLynx, this time with pictures so that we didn't have to go to the shelter. We could see that it wasn't our Mittens. We put up more posters, this time putting them up farther from our home.
On the 6th day, a local teacher came to our house and told us that the students were saying that the stray cat on the playground matched the cat in the posters. We went to the school and it was Mittens!!
We don't know what happened to her, but feel that she is too old to be wandering now. She now has supervised outside time and we have peace of mind.
Susan M.
Hamilton, Ontario
Local Service Provider: City of Hamilton Animal Control
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Safe and Found
Found a Dog?
Think Safety First!
If you see a stray dog in your neighborhood, your first concern should be for your own safety. If, for any reason, you suspect the animal may bite or it is acting aggressively, contact your local Humane Society or Animal Control Centre. They have the proper equipment and skill to get the dog safely under control without harm to man or beast.
If the pet is manageable, you may choose to put him (or her) in your fenced back yard or in a room in your home.
Safe and Found
Before you log onto the Internet or begin phoning in an effort to locate the dog’s owner, make sure it cannot escape from your home or yard. Put it in a bathroom or other small room where it can’t hurt itself or anything around it.
Creature Comforts
Provide the dog with an old towel or blanket to lie on and a bowl of water to drink. But don’t feed it right away! Give the dog an hour or so to settle down first and then feed small quantities of dog food over a period of a few hours. A ravenous dog may overeat and then become sick. Or it may have dietary restrictions that you are not aware of and certain foods could be harmful. If you don’t have any pet food, offer a bowl of plain cooked rice—or nothing at all for the time being.
Never, EVER, feed milk to a stray dog (or cat) of any age. Milk can cause severe digestive upset and diarrhea, especially in puppies and geriatric pets.
Start your search to get the lost dog HomeSafe by registering it with Petlynx.
Think Safety First!
If you see a stray dog in your neighborhood, your first concern should be for your own safety. If, for any reason, you suspect the animal may bite or it is acting aggressively, contact your local Humane Society or Animal Control Centre. They have the proper equipment and skill to get the dog safely under control without harm to man or beast.
If the pet is manageable, you may choose to put him (or her) in your fenced back yard or in a room in your home.
Safe and Found
Before you log onto the Internet or begin phoning in an effort to locate the dog’s owner, make sure it cannot escape from your home or yard. Put it in a bathroom or other small room where it can’t hurt itself or anything around it.
Creature Comforts
Provide the dog with an old towel or blanket to lie on and a bowl of water to drink. But don’t feed it right away! Give the dog an hour or so to settle down first and then feed small quantities of dog food over a period of a few hours. A ravenous dog may overeat and then become sick. Or it may have dietary restrictions that you are not aware of and certain foods could be harmful. If you don’t have any pet food, offer a bowl of plain cooked rice—or nothing at all for the time being.
Never, EVER, feed milk to a stray dog (or cat) of any age. Milk can cause severe digestive upset and diarrhea, especially in puppies and geriatric pets.
Start your search to get the lost dog HomeSafe by registering it with Petlynx.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Calgary Shelters at Full Capacity
Vacationing owners and the recession result in kennels being filled to capacityCALGARY, August 12, 2009 ~ A story published in today's Calgary Herald revealed that Calgary's two largest animal shelters are in crisis.
The City's shelter is getting close to capacity, with 70 cats and 44 dogs waiting to be claimed by their owners or be adopted into new homes.
Similarly, the Calgary Humane Society is overrun with 484 cats and 95 dogs.
"We always get a bit of a spike in our numbers in August," said Bill Bruce, The City's director of Animal & Bylaw Services. "But it's our return-to-owner statistics that really slump out on us because of [the fact that people are on] vacations. We have trouble reaching the owners to let them know their pet is here. At some point--after 10 to 14 days of trying to reach them and getting no response to our calls -- we have to act in the animal's best interests, which is not to keep it languishing in a shelter forever and it gets adopted."
"[Capacity] is usually high this time of year," said Calgary Humane Society spokeswoman Pamela Amos, noting it is kitten season so some owners are surrendering the mother cat and her entire litter. The shelter has also noticed an increasing number of owners turning over their pets due to the recession.
Local Service Providers: City of Calgary Animal & Bylaw Services, Calgary Humane Society
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Seifer's Big Adventure
Lost Dog FOUND
Thanks to PetLynx
Seifer, a 13-month old Golden Retriever cross gave his guardians quite a scare last week! The dog was enjoying a run in an off-leash park in Calgary when two dogs began chasing him. When one of the dogs bit Seifer on the leg, he bolted across a busy main road and into a nearby community.
"We called everyone we could [think of]," relayed his distraught guardian, "and a team of ten people searched the community for hours. We reluctantly headed home about 2 a.m., just before a hail storm hit."
Having no luck finding Siefer on foot, they logged onto the Internet, as well as checking with City of Calgary Animal Services, the Calgary Humane Society, and every vet clinic in the city. Another day passed, and they continued to check the animal shelters and "found" ads on Petlynx.
The second day after Seifer ran off, there was a listing from a family saying they had found Seifer and had taken him to a nearby pet hospital. His owners hurried down to retrieve their run-away retriever.
"The moment Seifer came around the corner we all burst out crying tears of joy," recalls his guardian. "[We were so relieved to see] it was him; safe, healthy, and so happy! You never realize how much you miss something until it's gone, and how much joy an animal can bring you. Seifer is truly one of a kind. We cannot express our gratitude enough to Petlynx or the family who took care of him and brought him to the hospital. Thank you!"
Thanks to PetLynx
Seifer, a 13-month old Golden Retriever cross gave his guardians quite a scare last week! The dog was enjoying a run in an off-leash park in Calgary when two dogs began chasing him. When one of the dogs bit Seifer on the leg, he bolted across a busy main road and into a nearby community.
"We called everyone we could [think of]," relayed his distraught guardian, "and a team of ten people searched the community for hours. We reluctantly headed home about 2 a.m., just before a hail storm hit."
Having no luck finding Siefer on foot, they logged onto the Internet, as well as checking with City of Calgary Animal Services, the Calgary Humane Society, and every vet clinic in the city. Another day passed, and they continued to check the animal shelters and "found" ads on Petlynx.
The second day after Seifer ran off, there was a listing from a family saying they had found Seifer and had taken him to a nearby pet hospital. His owners hurried down to retrieve their run-away retriever.
"The moment Seifer came around the corner we all burst out crying tears of joy," recalls his guardian. "[We were so relieved to see] it was him; safe, healthy, and so happy! You never realize how much you miss something until it's gone, and how much joy an animal can bring you. Seifer is truly one of a kind. We cannot express our gratitude enough to Petlynx or the family who took care of him and brought him to the hospital. Thank you!"
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)