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Lost or Stolen Dogs
How to Prevent Your Dog from Becoming Lost or Stolen—
And What to Do When the Worst Happens
Did you know that dog, especially purebreds, are stolen every day? Many dog breeds are very popular and expensive these days. And that just makes the thieves salivate. A stolen dog can fetch a quick hundred dollars or so.
No one likes to think about their beloved animal companion becoming lost, or worse, stolen. But ignoring this painful topic does your dog a disservice. With careful pre-planning you can lower your chances of losing your dog, and substantially raise the possibility of recovering him. This guide will show you how.
An Ounce of Prevention Can Save a Lifetime of Heartache
Sadly, 95% of all companion losses could have been prevented—and weren’t. Safeguard your pet from the very beginning. Take your dog to obedience school—a dog trained to come immediately when called is a safe dog. Make sure you have a recent, clear picture of your companion next to your phone and in your wallet. Write up a description that includes color, markings, breed, and any other identifying characteristics. If you have a puppy, you will want to update this picture/description more regularly.
Always have your dog microchipped. This simple procedure can be done in your vet's office and can always be used to identify your dog. Be sure he also always has his tags. And a tatoo identification can be placed in the dog's ear.
If your fence is open and low, so a thief could reach over and snatch your beloved dog, you must never let the dog out of your sight. Better yet, get a high privacy fence. Thieves can follow you to see where you live and take advantage of any easy snatching opportunity.
Check your yard and fence for holes and repair them. Do this regularly. Teach every member of the family to carefully close the gate and keep it shut and latched. Securing your yard will do you no good if someone leaves the front door open to the wide world.
Never leave your dog in the yard when you leave. You should never do this anyway. But a dog in the yard of a house where people are away is just screaming “steal me”.
Tell your neighbors to keep an eye out for suspicious activity around your house or in your yard. Thieves have been known to break into houses to steal dogs, especially puppies. Have your neighbors call the police if they see someone suspicious lurking around. This is just a matter of extending the normal Neighborhood Watch activities to include your valuable dog.
If you are out and about with your dog, keep him on a leash. A well-trained dog can still become distracted. Use a harness on escape artists. The only exception to this may be dog parks, and other places equipped to keep our dog friends in.
Never leave your dog unattended, even for a minute to go to get a coffee or run into the post office, or pick up something. It only takes a thief a moment of opportunity to grab your dog and be gone. This happens more often than you would expect!
How to Make Your Dog Hard to Steal
Dogs—especially puppies—are at the highest risk of being stolen. This doesn’t mean you should relax your guard if your companion is an adult mixed-breed. Treat your animal companions the way you would a young human child. Do not leave them unattended in public places—including your car. Be wary of any strangers who show excessive interest. If you have workmen coming into your house or yard, move your dog into a secure (and separate) location.
When out walking your dog, keep your companion on the side furthest from the street. Thieves have been known to drive up and snatch pets from unsuspecting owners. In areas where dog theft is a problem, vary your routine and route. Above all, keep alert.
What to Do If These Strategies Fail
The key to recovering your companion is quick action. That is where your preparation comes in. If you have a picture of your animal companion in your wallet, you can immediately canvas the area where he was last seen and show your picture to neighbors, children, delivery people, and post office workers.
Make a flier using that same picture, and include your contact information, plus the word ‘Reward’ in large letters on top. Put this flier on telephone posts, inside grocery stores, and any public building that will allow it. Take it to every pet store in your town and be sure to ask the employees of the pet store to be on the lookout for someone trying to sell them the dog. Often thieves looking for a quick sale will try to sell your dog to someone in the pet store parking lot.
Take your flier to all local animal shelters and your animal control agency and ask to post it where the workers can see it. Call the shelters and animal control agency every day and ask if a dog matching your description has shown up. Do this even if they tell you that they will call you—shelter workers are generally overworked, and your dog can get lost in the shuffle. Make periodic visits for the same reason. Your dog may have come in before the present worker’s shift and not have been logged in.
Call the police. Often Dogs are stolen by organized gangs who also sell drugs and other stolen goods. The police often know who the culprits might be. Also send your information to all dog groups such as The American Kennel Club and the local chapter for your breed, Yahoo Groups message boards, and send an email blast to all your friends.
Notify the radio, tv stations, and newspapers. Dogs make great human interest stories and are more apt to get mentioned by the media, especially if your story can be instructional to other dog owners. Sometimes the “heat” that a news story generates is enough to get your dog returned.
Place an ad in your local paper—and check the ‘Dogs for Sale’ section to see if a description matching your dog shows up. Use your best judgment about posing as a potential customer. If the dog proves to be yours, don’t confront the thieves yourself. Buy your dog if you must. Then call the police.
Most of all, don’t give up hope. Many companions have been reunited with their owners even after long periods of time. The key is persistence. If you follow the suggestions on animal-loss prevention, your chances of recovering your dog are even higher.
No one likes to think of a beloved companion becoming lost or stolen. But a little pre-planning can go a long way toward ensuring your dog’s safety for years to come. Click here to read more about lost dogs.