Could You Find My Dog?
iceberg when it comes to the numbers of missing pets. There are currently 17,957 dogs listed as missing on Doglost.co.uk. For the owners of these dogs, it is likely to be a very diffi cult Christmas.
Families should be together during the festive season, so can you help spread the word about these much-loved and much-
missed pets? Being reunited would be the greatest gift imaginable for these heartbroken owners.
In 2003, DogLost founder Jayne Hayes found herself in a dog owner’s nightmare when her beloved French Bulldog, Hermes, was stolen from her home. Not knowing what to do, she started searching the
local area, calling rehoming centres, dog wardens, vets, and even dog groomers in the hope they might
have had Hermes handed into them.
Unfortunately, this was not the case, so Jayne went back to basics, printing posters and fl yers, and
posting them wherever she went.
It took six weeks to trace Hermes – over 30 miles away – and required police intervention before she was
reunited with her family. Had it not been for Jayne’s determination to bring her home, the outcome would
have been very different.
Once Hermes was home, Jayne vowed to help other families in similar situations by setting up a
lost and found database for dogs and shared what she had learnt during those highly emotional and
terrifying days with others.
signed up to the website to receive email alerts should a dog go missing in their area, plus national and
regional social media pages to help spread an appeal for help. Regardless of whether a dog is lost or has been
stolen, quick action and awareness can be key to bringing a much-loved member of the family back home.
The site is completely free to use and is paid for by donations.
Unfortunately, the number of lost and stolen dogs is on the increase, so the organisation is not
only trying to help reunite families but also educate pet owners on the dangers out there, giving practical advice that could help prevent pets becoming victims in the fi rst place.
Microchipping is now a legal requirement for dogs in the UK, but owners must ensure that all contact
details are kept up to date with the microchip supplier. Not just when there is a change of owner or an
address, but also with a change in phone number or email address.
Sadly, there are hundreds of dogs found every year with out-of-date information contained on
the microchip or, in some cases, the chip has never even been registered.
When a dog is fi rst microchipped, the owner is responsible for registering these details with the
supplier; the vet, pet store or any other chipper will not normally do this, but should provide details of
how to do so. If in doubt, check.
Dogs should also wear a collar with an ID tag, clearly detailing an address and phone number.
Although the law on microchipping has recently changed, there is still a way to go. It is not law for a vet to scan a dog
when it arrives at a surgery and DogLost is encouraging National Rail .
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