Home : Community : Pets : Lost & Found


This guide was adapted from information provided by Pet Orphans Rescue & Adoption, a local nonprofit organization dedicated to finding good homes for lost, abandoned and neglected pets. Please visit their web site for more information about this organization.

What to do:

• if your pet is missing
  
• if you have found a pet
  
• to keep your pet from getting lost

If your pet is missing:

• Immediately call your area shelters and Humane Societies to report that your pet is missing. Include surrounding counties as animals wander and people who find pets often take them to different county shelters.
  
  

  Atlanta Humane Society 404.875.5331
  DeKalb County Humane Society 770.593.1155
  DeKalb County Animal Control 404.294.2996
  Fulton County Animal Control 404.794.0358
  

  
  
• Check the shelters/humane societies in person at least every 5 days.
  
  
• Ask to check isolation areas at the shelters and ask employees if your pet is on the "dead list."
  
  
• The Atlanta Journal & Constitution will run free lost pet ads for 7 days. Contact them at 404-577-5772
  
  
• Check found ads in the papers daily.
  
  
• Place flyers around your neighborhood and the major road intersections near your home. Remember that dogs can travel 5-8 miles per day, so don't limit the signs to just your neighborhood!
  
  
• Call or visit neighbors and ask if anyone in their family has seen your pet.
  
  
• Offer a reward.
  
  
• Call nearby veterinarians and animal hospitals
  
  
• If your pet is wearing a rabies tag, make sure the vet who vaccinated your pet has your correct phone number.
  

If you have found a pet:

• If the pet has a tag, call the number on the tag.
  
  
• Keep the pet that you found either indoors or in a fenced area while you look for its owner. Feed/water the animal daily. If the animal is hurt or sick, either take it to your local vet or call a humane society or rescue group for help.
  
  
• Call shelter/humane societies and report finding the pet. Call and cancel your report if the pet's owner is found.
  
  

  Atlanta Humane Society 404.875.5331
  DeKalb County Humane Society 770.593.1155
  DeKalb County Animal Control 404.294.2996
  Fulton County Animal Control 404.794.0358
  

  
  
• Place flyers around your neighborhood and the major road intersections near where the pet was found.
  
  
• If you don't know the breed of dog/cat that you found, ask a vet or expert in help identifying the breed
  
  
• The Atlanta Journal & Constitution will run free lost/found pet ads for 7 days. Contact them at 404-577-5772
  
  
• Call nearby veterinarians and animal hospitals
  
  

How to prevent your pet from getting lost:

• Spay or neuter your pet as soon as possible. Both male and female pets that are not spayed or neutered are much more likely to go looking for companionship and to produce unwanted litters.
  
  
• Make sure that your pet has on a collar with rabies tag and a current ID tag AT ALL TIMES. Cats can wear stretch collars with flat tags that are riveted directly into the collar.
  
  
• Keep cats indoors. When dogs are let outside, they should be in a fenced yard or on a leash. Leash laws apply to cats as well as dogs.