Lost Animals

Suggestions to help you find your lost pet:

  • Make regular checks, in person, at local animal control shelters and check back every 1 to 2 days. Bring a picture of your lost pet when you visit the shelters.
  • If your pet is wearing a rabies tag, contact that Veterinarians office to ensure your information is correct and also put your veterinarian staff on alert to keep an eye out for your pet.
  • If your pet is micro-chipped or tattooed, contact the clinic or shelter that performed the procedure and the registry the identification is registered with to alert them and ensure they have your correct contact information. Make sure you have the identification number handy when you call.
  • Place an ad in local papers under lost and found. The Valdosta Daily Times, 229-244-1880, will run a free ad for 3 days on animals lost or found.
  • Contact local Veterinarians and Groomers in person and give them a description of the lost animal, its name, and your contact information.
  • Find and take a picture of your pet and start a door to door search. Talk to all of your neighbors, newspaper and mail carriers.
  • For dogs, while there is daylight, take early evening drives in ever increasing circles around your neighborhood. The finder may be walking your dog looking for you.
  • For cats, drive around after dark with a flashlight looking under parked cars, bushes, porches, etc. When you see cat eyes call your pets name and make whatever noise that brings your cat on the run at dinnertime.
  • When you go back to check on a found pet take a picture of your pet and some proof of ownership with you, such as:
    • Photos of you with the pet
    • Registration papers
    • Vet records
  • Don't go alone. Either bring an escort or arrange to meet the finder at a local police station especially if there is a reward involved.
  • Don't give up! Many pets have been found 2 and 3 months later. With today's technology, some pets are found years after and sometimes hundreds or even thousands of miles away from where they were lost.
  • Please contact those entities (vets, shelters, etc) who are looking for your pet once you have found them, so they can take down the postings.