Nov 1, 2021
GUEST: Kat Albrecht-Thiessen is a pioneer in lost pet investigations. She was a police officer, bloodhound handler, crime scene investigator, and search-and-rescue manager before beginning to apply her skills in 1997 to finding lost pets. She is founder of Missing Animal Response Network and author of the book “Pet Tracker.”
MAIN QUESTION: How can shelters and rescue groups support the public in finding lost pets?
TAKEAWAYS:
- Don’t make assumptions about found pets such as that a pet has been abused or dumped, rather than simply lost and on their own for a long time. Such assumptions can get in the way of reconnecting that animal with their people.
- Search techniques are different for dogs and cats.
- With cats, the best advice is to get permission from neighbors to do a methodical search of every conceivable hiding place in a two- to five-house radius. (That’s where most cats are found.)
- With indoor-only cats who have escaped, in addition to doing a search, put out a plate of food and set up a wildlife camera. (Then you can set a humane trap).
- With dogs, marketing is key: Dogs are often picked up by people so it’s important to get the word out widely so that the finder can learn that the dog belongs to someone who cares about and misses the pet.
- Shelters and rescues can put a link on their website to MissingAnimalResponse.com, where people can find resources on finding missing pets and connect with volunteers who can help them in their search.
- And here are a few myths about lost pets:
- It’s not true that putting a missing cat’s litterbox on your porch will bring them back.
- Calling out for your cat generally won’t help and doesn’t mean your cat is not nearby when they don’t respond. They are intentionally staying hidden and silent out of fear or injury.
- Some shelters will make a situation worse by telling people that a pet was probably eaten by a coyote. Assumptions about coyote predation kills more lost pets than coyotes actually do by inspiring people to give up their search.
LINKS:
- Missing Animal Response Network (website)
- "Pet Tracker: The Amazing Story of Rachel the K-9 Pet Detective" (book available in print, electronically and on audio)
- Leadership recommendation: "Don't Let Internal Controls Slip at Your Nonprofit Organization" by Blue Avocado (article)