Step by Step to Help a Lost Pet

Found a pet? Here help:

Be safe! Not Sorry! If the animal is aggressive or you fear for your safety, call your local animal control centre for assistance.



If the animal is manageable, check for identification and record this information on a sheet of paper.



Once you have written down all of this information, register the animal as "Found" on PetLynx. Don't worry if you can't find any form of I.D.! PetLynx's AutoMatch system can make matches based on physical description alone! 

Look for ID on collars: If there are no visible tags, take the collar off and check for a hand-written phone on the underside o the collar

Check for tattoos: Look inside both ears, on the inside hind legs and on the abdomen. Don't worry if you can't decipher the tattoo, PetLynx can search for AutoMatches even with a partial tattoo number.

Check for a Microchip: This form of "electronic identification" is smaller than a grain of rice and is inserted under the animal's skin. You can't actually see or feel a microchip, so will have to take the animal to a veterinary clinic or animal shelter to have the animal "scanned" for a microchip.

In addition to adding the pet to the lost and found network, PetLynx enables you to easily create and print posters to distribute around your neighbourhood.

You should also:

• Contact your local SPCA and Animal Control Centre. 
• Contact local veterinary clinics, pet groomers and pet supply stores. 
• Check the "Lost and Found" column of your local paper. 
• Place an ad in your local paper -- this ad space is generally offered free of charge.  
• Ask neighbours if they recognize the animal. 
• If you have found a purebred animal, contact a breed organization. 

When you find the guardian, don't forget to contact the various groups keeping records -- including PetLynx -- and let them know the animal is HomeSafe so they can take the animal off their records.

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.

Dog gone it! What can I do?

Found a stray dog? (Or cat.)
Use common sense to determine if he or she is genuinely homeless and in need of rescue, or is a neighborhood pet... out for an unauthorized walk in the park!

Is the dog well cared for?
If the animal appears healthy, well-groomed and approachable - chances are he or she is merely lost and not abandoned. If it is friendly, you can take him or her in and help find the guardian.

If the animal is thin, with a matted and dirty coat or it appears injured -- it has very likely been lost for a long time or abandoned. (It is very unusual for a dog to become feral.) If the pet is approachable, try to catch it and take it to an animal shelter or vet clinic for medical treatment.

Check for pet identification
A collar and tags are obvious forms of pet ID. But many pets also have tattoos and/or microchips. You can take the pet to a vet clinic and they will help you check for tattoos or microchips.

Whether the dog has any identification or not, you can still register it with PetLynx!

PetLynx has a special program called AutoMatch
Normal.dotm 0 0 1 1 RTPerrin Consulting Services 1 1 1 12.0 that considers physical characteristics. It searches for lost and found matches even in the absence of any pet identification. 

Know Your Neighbours 
Remember that most animals that are lost, belong in the neighbourhood where they are wandering. Their guardians are probably frantically looking for them. Taking the animal to your local animal shelter is an option, but moving the animal from the neighbourhood reduces the chances that the pet will be reunited with its guardian. At least for a couple of days -- if you are able -- try to find the guardian yourself.

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!

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