Heaven forbid your dog runs off. As careful as we all are being mindful of our dog's location, things happen. Unfortunately for some owners, their dog take off without the slightest provocation. Lucy was like that. Any opportunity was golden. Luckily, the majority of the times she "left," she went to one of two neighbors who would bring her in and call us. How could we be so careless with her?
For the first five years of her life, she made no attempt to leave our fenced yard. Then, one summer a new family moved in with a passel of kids. It was late June and the kids had gotten a hold of "squealer" fire crackers and were lighting them off in the alley behind our house. Lucy panicked and jumped the fence in fear. Luckily, we saw it happen and were able to race after her. Long story short, once she discovered this access to the world, she made the most of it until we could eventually build a taller fence. She learned to open the gate latches with her nose, so we installed locking handles.
Bella stays close by, but she is a normal dog and an open door is...well...so beckoning. If my husband doesn't pay attention and the garage door to the alley is open, she trots out. Luckily she only goes across the alley to our neighbor's garbage. (Not so good for her tummy and our carpet, but usually we catch her before she devours the pile.)
All our dogs have been licensed. All have had tags. (My favorite tags are Boomerang.
They slide over the collar, don't clink and more importantly, don't get
stuck on things. Bella once caught her tags in the slit between deck
boards. I've used Boomerang since then.) All dogs have been microchipped. Every year when we go for Bella's annual checkup, I have the vet scan her to make sure the chip is still reading. When we travel, which we do a lot, I carry recent pictures of her and her medical records.
But what to do if your pup bolts and isn't found? I came across this article today in the Huffington Post, How to Find a Lost Dog: Things You Haven't Considered, by Nicole Wilde. It covers the basics (posting flyers, walking your neighborhood, eliciting help from neighbors, checking at local shelters), but also covers some ideas I hadn't considered. It hadn't occurred to me to give a poster with my dog's picture and our phone number to the mailman and UPS/Fed Ex guys that regularly drive the area. Wilde also recommends posting the flyer at local vet offices and stores. Again, a great idea. If your dog is hurt, perhaps a good Samaritan took your pup to a vet. Perhaps a shopper at a store you don't frequent, has seen your pup.Not only should you post with local groomers and pet stores, but at any local shop. Take your search on-line. A local dog, Harley, was eventually found after four months, because his owner took every avenue to search for his beloved dog. Don't give up on your pup!
