Lost and Found Resources

Losing a beloved pet can be overwhelming, and finding a stray animal can leave you wondering what to do next. The good news is that many lost pets are reunited with their families when the right steps are taken quickly.

Lost Your Pet?

If your pet has gone missing, time is critical. Start your search close to home and notify neighbors, local shelters, veterinary clinics, and animal services agencies. Post clear photos and descriptions on social media and community lost-and-found networks. Be sure to check shelters regularly and keep your pet’s microchip information updated so you can be contacted if your animal is found.

Remember, many lost pets are recovered within their local community. The more people who know your pet is missing, the better the chances of a happy reunion.

Recommended actions:

Report your pet on Petco Love Lost
Contact local animal shelters and municipal animal services.
File a lost pet report with shelters in your area.
Create flyers with current photos and contact information.
Post on social media, neighborhood platforms, and lost-pet websites.
Verify that your pet’s microchip registration and phone numbers are current.

Found a Pet?

Find a lost pet? Many animals found outdoors have families actively searching for them and you can help them get back home quickly and safely. There are steps that you can take to reunite them quickly.

Have the animal scanned for a microchip at a veterinary clinic, shelter, or animal services facility. Microchips often provide the fastest path to reunification. You can also report the found pet with local shelters and post details in community lost-and-found groups to help owners locate their companion.

Check for identification tags.
Have the pet scanned for a microchip.
Report the pet as found on Petco Love Lost.
Report the found pet to local shelters and animal services.
Share photos and details through community networks.
Keep records of where and when the animal was found.

Resources

One of the best ways to ensure a lost pet returns home is identification. Microchipping, current ID tags, and recent photos can significantly improve the chances of reunification. Operation Kindness offers microchipping services at our vaccination clinics in the community. Visit our Community Events calendar to see when the next event is scheduled.

Events

Lost and Found Pet FAQs

I found a lost pet, what do I do?

If the animal is friendly and responds to you, look for ID tags or a microchip tag on the animal’s collar and contact their owner to return the animal to its home.

If you can’t approach or safely contain the animal, please call your local animal services or animal control. They will gather information from you about the animal so that they can assist.

Operation Kindness Humane Society is not a stray-hold facility, so we cannot accept stray animals. All stray animals need to go the local animal services (in the city they were found) for a stray hold. This is their best chance at reunification with their family. The shelter will also scan the animal for a microchip and if one is found, the owners will be notified.

Operation Kindness Humane Society transfers weekly from local shelters, as do many other rescues. If the animal you have found is not reunited with its family or adopted by another family, it could be transferred to Operation Kindness or another rescue.

We also partner with Petco Love Lost, an online tool for reuniting lost pets. You can post that you have found a pet and also search lost pets to see if the animal you have found is reported as lost.

There is a loose pet in my neighborhood, what do I do?

For loose or stray animals, you should reach out to municipal/government animal services in the city where the animal is located. For example, if you live in Dallas, call Dallas Animal Services and they will respond to your request for the animal to be picked up.

Operation Kindness Humane Society is not a stray-hold facility and does not have the vehicles, staffing or resources to pick up loose animals.

What resources do you offer to pet owners for lost pet prevention?

Operation Kindness offers a variety of programs designed to support pets and the people who love them, including affordable veterinary services, microchip/vaccination clinics, and community assistance programs. These services help strengthen the bond between pets and families while reducing the risk of pets becoming lost or displaced.

For a full list of Lost and Found resources, including contact information local, municipal shelters, visit our Client Resource List.

Petco Love Lost

Report the Lost or Found Pet on Petco Love Lost

Petco Love Lost allows pet parents to upload a photo and search for their pet after the pet has gone missing. Pet facial recognition makes it faster and easier than ever to find possible matches for lost and found pets from people and shelters all across the country. You can create and distribute lost and found pet alerts to share to NextDoor, Facebook, email, and more.

REPORT PET