If Only Pets Could Talk!

Your dog (or cat) may have a wide repertoire of tricks, but no matter how smart you think she is, she will never be able to tell a stranger your address and phone number! Ensuring our companion animals have traceable pet identification (I.D.) is one way that we can guarantee that they can "speak" for themselves should they become lost.

However, the most important thing to remember about any kind of pet I.D. is that it is completely useless if you fail to update your personal information when you move or change phone numbers.

Whenever you change any of your contact information, be sure to alert all organizations and agencies with your new details. Ensure your dog or cat has a "ticket home" by registering with PetLynx, too! Even in the absence of any form of traceable identification. the PetLynx Automatch system can help you recover your lost pet based on a physical description alone!

More HomeSafe Success Stories

Chopsticks, our ten month old Manx cat, was "missing in action" for 13 hours. (I know that's not very long but it was a very cold night and it seemed like forever to us!)  Even though Chopsticks was not missing for long, being able to contact PetLynx was a big comfort to us.  It gave us hope and was something productive to do while we anxiously awaited his return. Thanks again for your great website! I've told everyone about you!

Sue J.

Chilliwack, B.C.

Max is an 18-month old domestic short hair cat. He went missing December 14-28th, after we had let him out. At first, we didn't worry too much, considering that Max is very friendly and has done the occasional sleep over at our neighbors. 

Someone eventually picked him up and took him to their local veterinary clinic and they called the Humane Society. About the same time, I heard about PetLyx and, as soon as I registered him on line, I discovered he was at the shelter. Max is now HomeSafe... and is now has a microchip and always wears a collar with ID!
Bonnie H.

Calgary, AB

PetLynx HomeSafe Stories

PetLynx plays an important role in helping companion animals across Canada get HomeSafe! But whether PetLynx is the piece of the puzzle that helps a lost pet get HomeSafe or not, we are happy to share success stories!

Here are some comments from grateful people who wanted to share their pet recover experiences:

I did everything I could to find my cat... I had posters everywhere, went driving and walked in the neighborhood calling her name. On her 4th night missing, I decided to stay up and wait for her to come home. I wandered outside at 1:20 am and went to the back of the house. She came through the bushes, like an angel from heaven. She meowed with happiness and wouldn't stop purring. She is not normally is not a cuddly cat, but was so happy to be home. If you have lost your pet.... don't give up hope, they will come back!

Anonymous

SKY is ALIVE! She was hit by a car several kilometres from our home and has a badly broken back leg, cuts, bruises but most importantly non-life threatening injuries. We are ever so thankful for those loving friends that supported us in so many ways during the 48 hours of worry when she was lost. We are blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!

      Sky's Mom

I am very thankful that the PetLynx website is available for anyone who loses or finds an animal. Just a reminder to anyone who see’s an animal wandering around their home.... remember that there is [very likely] a worried family somewhere. The pet just might need your help in finding its way home!

    Aileen,

    Hamilton, Ontario

Lost your pet? Don't give up hope!

We adopted "Haley" from the Arizona Humane Society last November. She soon became our much-loved little princess. Although she has been kept as an indoor cat, she managed to sneak outside one day and was missing for almost two weeks.

I never gave up hope that I would find my beloved little cat. I went to the Dog Pound and the Humane Society to check for her every day. I also continued to walk through our neighborhood, calling her name every night -- sometimes until 1:00 in the morning. (My friends and family thought I was crazy but I didn't care!) I also left my arcade door open a crack, just in case she came back on her own. Guess what?! She did come back!

One morning I woke up to a familiar meow. It was Haley! My family and I were thrilled that she had returned on her own! Although it was not a factor in her recovery, we were certain we would eventually get Haley back because she has a pet identification microchip that was implanted by the Humane Society. Please ,if you every adopt a pet, make sure you get the chip put in or, if they don't offer it to you, ask for one. This chip provided us some peace of mind.

If you have lost your pet.... I hope that our story helps give you hope!

Thank you,

Cammie Lynn H.

Lost Your Cat? Search From a Cat's Point of View

The Davies family were concerned when Boots, their eight-month old kitten, was recovering from spay surgery because she seemed to be experiencing some discomfort. Needless to say, they were frantic when they couldn't find her a few hours after they had brought her home from the vet!
After a quick search of the house, they registered Boots as “lost” on PetLynx™.


Thankfully, Boots was not really missing, she had just decided to curl up in a little ball and sleep for a few hours! The kitten reappeared when she was hungry.


“Although we know she likes warm and hidden away places, we failed to check a little crawl space under the stairwell!” explained Mr. Davies. “We had turned the house upside down looking for her, but didn't look there.”

The Davies’ say they learned a valuable lesson; one that they’ll be sure to use the next time kitty pulls a disappearing act! They suggest you look through your home from a cat’s point-of-view. Even get down on your hands and knees to search!

“Be sure you check hidden away places,” said Mr. Davies. “Look through the whole house room by room, closing each door behind you as you go.”

AutoMatch Methodology Explained

After placing a lost cat report on PetLynx, one confused cat owner emailed to ask why she was getting potential 'matches' for cats that were tabby or black and white... when the photo of her cat clearly showed it was a Siamese.

Here is why:
Potential matches that may appear to be 'mistakes' are provided because the PetLynx AutoMatch™ system takes into account the fact that not all members of the public describe a lost/found animal the same way.

We don't want to miss a chance at getting a lost pet HomeSafe™ simply because the 'finder' can't tell a tabby from a Siamese! So, all potential matches are provided, taking into account a variety of factors, such as sex, coat length, etc.

AutoMatch™ is a service exclusive to the PetLynx system that can search for matches for a pet using either an identifier such as a tattoo, microchip or PetLynx visual tag, and/or based on only a physical description of the animal using a PetLynx technology called DataSketch™. The AutoMatch™ system then serves up all potential matches and notifies both parties involved. The parties can then retrieve the matches and physically follow up to see if it is the correct pet.

AutoMatch™ is unique because:

1. The system makes matches based on identifiers such as microchip and tattoos. Our system is not proprietary to any microchip manufacturer, so all microchip types are accepted.
2. AutoMatch can also make matches on a pet based on only a physical description, using our unique DataSketch™ technology.
3. Unlike other systems, AutoMatch™ is an automatic system so there is no need to manually search through reports.
4. AutoMatch™ sends out possible matches to other animals that are similar to your description -- no other pet lost and found search engine does this!

The pet family is ultimately responsible for managing their information, however, the system allows for the finder to engage themselves as well if they choose to.

Stray Mittens

Mittens, a 16-year-old brown tabby, has always been an outdoor cat. She is much-loved by the neighbours on our quiet court in Hamilton, Ontario.

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

Helpful Hint for Missing Cats

When Goliath went missing, his guardian went to her local SPCA to search for her lost cat. One of the employees suggested something different that she could do, in addition to registering with PetLynx and all of the other steps she was taking to find him.

She suggested putting something familiar to the cat outside to help lure him home -- such as his scratching post, litter tray or favorite cat bed. This can be especially helpful for indoor cats, not familiar with the sights and smells of the great outdoors.

"I put Goliath's scratching post outside as soon as I got home from the SPCA," explained Peggy. "Twenty minutes later I went outside to call Goliath and shake his bag of treats and I heard a faint meow... and there he was! He was in the backyard, hiding on the lower apartment's porch. I was ECSTATIC to see my baby boy back home."

"Thank you to PetLynx, the SPCA and everyone else who was concerned and helping me find my cat"

Peggy

Newspaper Carrier Delivers Really Good News!

Merlin is a seven-year-old Siamese/tabby cat who, his owners say, "is quite a character!"

"We all swear he can talk!" exclaims his guardian, Nella.

But when Merlin snuck into the garage late one Sunday evening, then ran out when the door was opened, he didn't stop to say where he was going!

"Normally, Merlin does a drop and roll in the grass and waits for you to pick him up," explains Nella. "But it was dark and by the time we got a flashlight, he was gone!"

Nella's youngest daughter made "Lost Cat" posters and put them them up in the community. Her husband suggested putting one on their own front door, with the hope that their newspaper carrier might spot the stray cat. (He's the only person around in the wee hours of the morning!)

After several nights of worry, Nella and her family were awakened by a 4:00 a.m. phone call. It was the newspaper carrier, calling to say he had their cat!

When asked where he was he replied, "At your front door. The red one."

"I went right down to get Merlin and, in my excitement, forgot to ask the man's name or give him the reward," exclaimed Nella. "No one complained when I woke the rest of the household to tell them Merlin was home!"

The newspaper carrier's identify and the reward got sorted out by calling the Hamilton Spectator office later that day. Turns out that the delivery man, Terran, had been keeping an eye out for Merlin since he saw the notice. He found Merlin quite a distance from home and carried him HomeSafe.

"We have one heck of good newspaper delivery man!" says Nella.

Local Service Providers: Hamilton/Burlington SPCA

Purr-fect Ending in Australia

A microchip helps another pet get HomeSafe

"Clyde", a Himalayan cat, was recently reunited with his owner after a mysterious three-year odyssey in which he strayed 2,400 miles (3,800 kilometres) into the Australian Outback.

Ashleigh Sullivan, 19, said she had given up hope of ever finding Clyde after he vanished from her family home near Hobart, Tasmania. A the time, he was about a year old.

"I'm positive he remembers [us]. He's not acting like he's suddenly appeared somewhere and is frantic," Sullivan said as she tearfully held her contented cat.

A nurse found Clyde wandering at a hospital in the remote Queensland state town of Cloncurry. She cared for him for four months before taking him to a local vet as she was leaving town and could not take the cat with her.

A vet traced Clyde's owner from the cat's microchip.

But no one has a clue how Clyde managed the 185-mile (300-kilometre) sea journey across the Bass Strait from Tasmania, off mainland Australia's southeast coast, and then about 2,000 miles (3,200 kilometres) overland to Cloncurry, deep in the arid interior of the Outback.

An animal transport company returned the cat to Hobart for free.

"It's pretty special to have him back." Sullivan said. "I'm overwhelmed."

Vital Stats are Vitally Important

Can you hear me now?

Your dog or cat may have a wide repertoire of tricks, but no matter how smart they are they’ll never be able to tell a stranger their address and phone number. Ensuring our companion animals have traceable pet identification (I.D.) is one way that we can guarantee that they can "speak" for themselves should they become lost.

However, the most important thing to remember about any kind of pet I.D. is that it is completely useless if you fail to update your personal information when you move or change phone numbers.

Whenever you change any of your contact information, be sure to alert all organizations and agencies with your new details. Ensure your dog or cat has a "ticket home" by registering with PetLynx, too!

CITY LICENCES & OTHER TAGS
Even if your cat or dog is already tattooed and/or micro-chipped, a City licence tag is an excellent form of traceable identification.

• A collar with tags is an instant alert that an animal is owned and is not a stray.
• It provides instant contact information if a lost pet requires emergency medical care.
• Unfortunately, tags may be lost if an animal loses its collar.

TATTOOS
There are two types of tattoos for companion animals – breeder tattoos and pet identification program tattoos. Each serves an entirely different purpose.

Purebred dogs registered with the Canadian Kennel Club (CKC) may have a registration tattoo on their belly or in an ear. This tattoo is applied when the puppy is just a few weeks old and identifies them as being a purebred from a specific breeder and litter. More recently, however, many breeders are opting for microchip I.D., so CKC tattoos are becoming less common. Purebred cats are never tattooed by the breeder.

Pet I.D. tattoos – which can be used for dogs, cats and rabbits – have been established in many communities across Canada. Ideally, the tattoo is put in an animal’s ear when it is spayed or neutered, because it has to be done under general anesthetic. The alphanumeric tattoo assigned to each animal is unique to them, identifying the year the tattoo was applied, the vet clinic that did the tattoo and the specific animal it is registered to.


MICROCHIPS
A microchip is a small coded device, about the size of a grain of rice. It’s inserted using a special syringe under the skin between your pet’s shoulder blades. All animal shelters and veterinary clinics in North America have special scanners that can ‘read’ the encrypted information on the microchip. The owner can be traced using this information.... if the information on file is correct!

Cat makes a break for it, then gets HomeSafe

Our cats are never aloud outside unless on harnesses, so we were very worried when our five-year-old cat, Diesel, bolted out the door when I wasn’t looking and he would not let me catch him! We live in a town house complex in Regina that is actually "cat heaven" for any cat that is on the loose…. It is surrounded by park, trees, lawn, birds, rabbits, bugs, tall grass and even a creek nearby, so we were even more surprised when Diesel chose to run across a busy street before he disappeared from sight!

The first day he was missing we biked and walked around the neighbourhood calling and looking for him and asking neighbors if he they had seen him. The next night a neighbor who remembered us looking and asking spotted Diesel. Because Diesel was were a collar and tag the neighbour was able to call us.... even though it was close to midnight! Without that collar and tag we definitely would not have gotten our cat back so quickly and things may have been very different!

Thank you very much for this site. It is well done and very user friendly. Keep up the good work and thank you again!

Alex K.
Regina

Local Service Providers: Regina Humane Society

Kudos for Heping Reunite a Lost Cat!

"I am impressed by PetLynx! What a terrific way to reunite lost pets with their people -- thank you for this service!" wrote Demerse C. from Calgary.

"I found 'Leo' in SW Calgary one evening when returning home from walking my dog," she explained. "The cat's friendliness and desire to be around people really made me think that he wanted his family, so that was a big reason why I pursued finding his people so vigorously."

Demerese took pictures of the cat she would later learn was named 'Leo.' She made up “Found Cat” posters and put them on several of the lamp posts in the area, as well as the local grocery store. She emailed the posters to several vets, put the information on Kijiji, and filed a PetLynx report out that same evening.

Although there has been several close matches on PetLynx, the pet family was not located. Demerese then decided to take the cat to the vet to check out his tattoo and see if he had a microchip. The vet was able to identify him through the tattoo in his ear, and found his owners that way. The owners had given up hope of ever finding their beloved Leo again, since he had been missing for about six months.

"I really appreciate the PetLynx website, and will definitely use it in the future," concluded Demerese. "It’s nice to know that there’s a place to [help] reunite people with their pets."

Local Service Providers: Calgary Animal & Bylaw Services, Calgary Humane Society

Finding My Molly - A kid's book about a lost cat!

What is the worst thing that could possibly happen when your cat steps outside for the very first time? As Peggy Krause tells us in Finding My Molly, lots of things can go wrong!

Written for children age 8-12, Finding My Molly is great for young readers who are making the transition between being read to and reading for themselves.

The story follows "Soupy," a tabby cat that ventures outside one day only to be chased by dogs, get lost in the forest, and find himself as the foster father for a stray raccoon. But none of these roadblocks can keep him from searching for "his Molly," the little girl who owns him, and is "the most beautimous human-kitten in the world."

The story is broken into short, easily tackled chapters, and Krause uses a perfect blend of familiar and new words to add a little challenge for slightly older readers. The book uses the animal stars to teach little safety lessons, but the cat perspective--the drama, turns of fortune, and heartfelt concerns of this special feline--is irresistible, and the message of conscientious involvement in immediate social issues is appropriate for the upcoming generation.

Finding My Molly is even on the National Humane Education Society's recommended reading list. All this mixed with a lighthearted story and a sweet, witty style, makes it a hit.

Geriatric Cat Makes a Great Escape!

When Norma K. discovered that her 21-year-old cat, Skeezix, had escaped from the safety of her back yard she was frantic with worry.

"There is a cat control bylaw in Edmonton, so Skeezix and my other cats are only allowed to go into the secured back yard," explains this Edmonton resident. "Somehow, he managed to dig a hole under the fence and escape. I think he was unhappy because we had just taken in a third rescue cat."

To add to Norma's distress, she lives on the edge of a ravine and says that she can hear coyotes and foxes at night. "I was afraid that Skeezix would make easy prey," she said. "He is old and doesn't move so quickly any more. I was also worried because he needs daily medication and I knew that he would get sick very quickly without it."

Norma says that she discovered PetLynx when she went to the Edmonton Animal Control website and they had a link to our site.

"It was a huge relief for me to have something to turn to so quickly," says Norma. "Petlynx helped me get information out, create posters, search my local animal shelter. As importantly, it helped me feel like I was doing something proactive, other than fretting and wandering the streets calling for him. I truly appreciate your service!

Norma added that using the Petlynx service reminded her just how important it is to have up to date, close up pictures of animal companions - just in case they get lost!
"Skeezix" Age 21. Photo by Norma K.

Local Service Providers: Edmonton Animal Control

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.

Calgary Shelters at Full Capacity

Vacationing owners and the recession result in kennels being filled to capacity

CALGARY, 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

Cat Licence Does Double Duty

A camera is lost, then found,
thanks to kitty’s new licence

The employees at The City of Calgary Animal & Bylaw Services have helped re-unite thousands of lost pets with their owners. Despite the fact that they have the highest return to owner statistics of any animal shelter in North America, every single reunion is something special. A recent very unique case, however, put a new spin on the power of a pet licence.

Excited about the new cat they had adopted from Animal & Bylaw Services, a Calgary family went snap happy, taking several digital photographs of their new fur family member. A few weeks later, before they had downloaded these and other precious memories, the camera was lost while the family was on a ski trip in Fernie, British Columbia. Naturally, they were upset, not only because the camera was expensive but also because the photographs were irreplaceable.

Here’s where the story takes a positive twist. A Good Samaritan found the camera and, after inquiring at the ski lodge if anyone had reported it missing, decides to take it home. In an effort to find any clue that would link the camera to its rightful owner, the Good Samaritan scrolled through all of the photos. The only possible lead was the photos of the cat, wearing a City of Calgary cat licence. By zooming in on the photo, our Samaritan was able to write down the tag number and call ‘3-1-1’ for assistance. A city employee then contacted the cat’s owners and provided them with the name of the individual who had found their camera. Within a few hours, the camera was safely returned to the family – all because of a cat licence!

While this is one of the most unusual lost and found cases The City of Calgary Animal & Bylaw Services has been involved in, it’s proof that a pet licence can bring about many happy endings.

Local Service Providers: City of Calgary Animal & Bylaw Services, Calgary Humane Society

Finders, Keepers?

Found a pet?
Considering keeping it? Think again!

The Calgary Humane Society warns that if you choose to keep a stray pet, rather than make every attempt to find its rightful owner, you are vulnerable to legal action if the pet family comes forward to claim the animal.

Please don't make the assumption that the pet has been abandoned. Very likely someone, somewhere is frantically looking for it!

Take the steps under "Locating the Owner" on the PetLynx website before deciding you want the animal and make sure you register the animal as "Found" on PetLynx.

Every province (and state) has legislation relating to the length of time stray animals are held before they become the property of the animal shelter and can legally be adopted. Calgary animal shelters, for example, operate according to the laws set out in the Animal Protection Act of Alberta.

If you find a stray pet -- regardless of how cute and lovable it is -- take it to your local animal services centre where it can be cared for the appropriate legal holding period. This gives the pet family a fair chance at claiming their pet. Most shelters will give the individuals who bring in a stray pet the "first right of refusal" to adopt the animal. Waiting out the obligatory holding period gives you the peace-of-mind that the animal will legally be yours.

If a pet family comes forward to claim the pet, don't be disappointed! If you really want a new animal companion there are always dozens more willing to steal your heart at your local animal shelter!