NOTE:
This is page IV-a;

return to top to click on additional Section IV links,

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A. SEARCH BASICS

Read all info posted on this website.

See Section V when you're ready to simplify your search schedule.

1. Overwhelming Details? Important: Do not let these details overwhelm you. First, read through all info. Keep an open mind. Get a solid understanding of the wide area around where your pet was lost. If, for example, you live in a city of 300,000 people, you will likely have other cities nearby as well as suburbs. Minneapolis, Minnesota has over 300,000 people; the greater-metro area has over 3 million people in about 176 separate municipalities in our immediate 7-county metro area, all within reasonable distance for search efforts. This document will give you details on how to accomplish necessary search tasks in your own area, whether a large, complex urban area, or rural community.

2. Tough But Not Impossible. The efforts required to find a lost pet make worrying about that lost pet just that much more painful. Still, finding the lost is not impossible. There are many things you can do to find your pet, and most can be done with a modicum of effort.

3. Other Pets. In the meantime, if you have additional pets still at home, be sure to keep them lovingly confined, and provide them with proper current identification. A collar with tags, plus an implanted chip are recommended. Also keep a good, clear photo of each pet, showing the entire body, not just a face shot.

4. The impoundment system. In order to help a lost pet get back home, it is important to understand the impoundment system (animal control) in your area. The information in this document can be applied to almost any impoundment system anywhere ... both in the U.S. and to some greater or lesser extent, other countries. The reason this can be true is because most communities struggle with large numbers of strays ("large" in this context meaning numbers of stray and unwanted animals compared to the numbers of people in a given community and the budget available for animal control). This results in similar problems no matter where the strays are, and because similar things happen to strays, no matter the location.
     This report, then, will attempt to describe these details for you, so that you might make your best effort to get a lost pet back home.
     First, it is suggested that you simply and quickly read through this document, all pages, to get an idea of what you are up against. Brace yourself, since if it is your pet that is lost, this will not be a comfortable read. Once you have finished reading, sit back, decide what you are and are not capable of doing, and make a plan. The more you do, the better chance of your pet's return. Since there is no way to know exactly what you need to do to be successful, try to not neglect any area, if at all possible. Continued below ....

5. How to limit your search labor

a. Plan well. As you begin your search, you can limit much long-term labor by planning well. Things you can do that will make your search easier down the road include:

b. Keep excellent records. Keep good, controllable lists of places to contact, with their phone numbers, addresses, and email addresses, as well as names of persons you have spoken with. Also keep short notes about your discussions with them.

c. Poster supplies. From the moment you start your search, carry a goodly  supply of posters and bulletin-board cards with you so you can post them immediately whenever needed; as you see posters have been taken down or bulletin boards have been cleared, repost them. If you make a habit of carrying a card or poster or two with you when you go to a grocery store or elsewhere, you won't have to run back to your vehicle or home to get one. Continued below ....

     Poster tips:
1) There are many sites on the web for automatic poster-making. Simply search "lost pet poster" to find them.
2) Take a few minutes to search through various sites to find your best poster example and method. Text on your poster must be large enough to be seen and read from 10' away, from inside a car, in one quick glance. Use large limited wording; use a good clear photo of the entire animal, if possible.
3) Once you have your poster made up, print it on 11x17" posterboard or cardstock at your local copier center, print shop, office supply store, etc. (they should be able to enlarge it from 8-1/2 x 11" up to 11x17" for you)
4) For outdoor postings, if you cannot afford lamination to protect the poster long-term, tape clear plastic over the entire poster, front and back, with no leakage areas. 
5) Indoor posters of smaller size may be adequate.
     Bulletin Board cards. Visit your local grocery store and ask for a supply of bulletin board cards. Six or eight should do. Take the cards home and write your lost pet information on each one. Paste these up on a sheet of printer paper, two across, totaling the six or eight cards on one sheet. Then visit your copier center and make plenty of copies on cardstock. Cut them apart for bulletin board postings.

d. Email. If you use a computer (as opposed to reading this from a printed copy), first of all, email everybody you know with information about your lost pet. Set your email up in poster fashion with your complete contact info. Ask everyone to email everyone they know. Hopefully, this will set in motion a "viral" email campaign designed to get the maximum number of people looking for your lost pet (this may not work in some circumstances, depending on animal, species, area, etc).

As people email you, keep their email addresses in an email mailing list. Also keep a list of email addresses of facilities and businesses you can contact by email on a regular basis.

As you visit agencies, ask for their email address to add to your list, and ask them to add your email address to their email address book to ensure any email you send them down the road will be received.

If you have a good bulk email program available, that can be most helpful. Then once a month or so, send a reminder email to everyone on your list, and ask them to make sure your poster is still on their bulletin board, if appropriate, or simply let them know you are still looking. You may also set up an email notification, whereby you will be notified if your email is opened by the recipient. An unopened email could mean your email got caught in their spam filter.

Set your email up similar to a poster, with a photo of your pet included (keep in mind that some security program setups will not allow your photo to be received, however, so your email should be designed around that problem and should include a clear description of the lost pet).


e. Plan your visits with or without email. Once you have a good, workable email list in order, then you can determine who is not emailable. Those which you cannot send email info and reminders to are the facilities to call or visit, instead.

Section IV continued ... see "Click to continue" link below