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First Thing You Do When Your Pet Runs Away

2K views 18 replies 17 participants last post by  JackandMattie 
#1 ·
What do you do???
 
#3 ·
If that ends with his ( are we talking about males?) happy return after several hours - call the vet and sterilize him. It means that that dog is sexually very potent and may end under car wheels. But, again, what dog, what his owner like? If somebody has decided that young GSD can walk on leash only, his dog may like to have a day on his own, and it would be better to rehome. He would love his new owner, if that one understands his needs, and will never leave him.
 
#16 ·
please, just say no and send me some.

>>>> If that ends with his ( are we talking about males?) happy return after several hours - call the vet and sterilize him. It means that that dog is sexually very potent and may end under car wheels. But, again, what dog, what his owner like?

>>>> If somebody has decided that young GSD can walk on leash only, his dog may like to have a day on his own, and it would be better to rehome.

>>>> He would love his new owner, if that one understands his needs, and will never leave him.
 
#4 ·
contact the microchip alert service (it contacts vets, shelters, and mass e-mails people who participate in the program) then grab my cell phone and a leash and hit the bricks

it has happened once, when a neighbor kid left the gate open, now I lock the gates!
 
#5 ·
If you can still see the dog, and it is actively running away from you, then whoop out his name and run in the opposite direction. Keep whooping and running, and generally your dog will turn and chase you down.

If you came out to find that your dog is out of the yard, gone, no where in sight. Call whatever animal control you can and give a description. Find a good picture of him and make flyers, go to supermarkets, stores, vets and ask to pin up your picture. Put an ad in your local paper. List Reward in your ad and on your flyer but do not say how much. Check the animal shelter where strays are brought every day or every other day. Go looking for him, but make sure you have a phone and access to whatever phone number you put on your flyers/ad.

I hope you find your dog. It sucks to lose one, but don't give up hope.
 
#6 ·
Years ago, after one of my collies went missing from our backyard while I was at work, I went to all area vet clinics and put up a notice. He was a "heart" dog. I did other stuff too, but it was the notice that brought him home within 3 days. He'd wandered a ways from home, but still in the area. Someone who found him took him into one of the clinics and saw my notice. We are still not sure how he got out. Wasn't a jumper and no hole dug, and a locked, wooden fence and gate.

No dog of mine has ever stayed in the yard again. If they are out, so am I.
 
#8 ·
My year old GSD got out for the first time a few weeks ago. First thing I did was holler his name in every direction. Next thing I did was listen. I heard him barking about a half mile away. I hollered loud in that direction and later learned from a neighbor that when he heard me calling, he left the deer he was chasing and headed for home.

Next step would have been to hop on the dirt bike and start searching. He knows the sound of the bike and would likely come if he was lost. And I can cover a logos ground fast on it.
 
#9 ·
you put it on take a poll with no poll, that's why it's been moved
 
#10 ·
A storm knocked down a neighbors tree and crushed or fence in a far corner of the yard which we did not see. I let three dogs out, turned to get my tea and went out to find only 2 dogs in the yard! I called the ladies in, grabbed a leash and shouted to the husband to get the car. I went out in the neighborhood on foot shouting his name, and the commands for down, stay and bark (in german in which he had been trained). I did not want him to run back to me as there are roads. Since it was morning I was not yet dressed- I was wearing a bright yellow t shirt,no bra, hunter green sweat pants and a pair of slippers, hair all a mess running the streets yelling in German. I am lucky my neighbors did not call for police help for the lunatic. Clearly my first step is to channel my inner insane woman....
 
#12 ·
Since it was morning I was not yet dressed- I was wearing a bright yellow t shirt,no bra, hunter green sweat pants and a pair of slippers, hair all a mess running the streets yelling in German. I am lucky my neighbors did not call for police help for the lunatic. Clearly my first step is to channel my inner insane woman....
THAT is always a good first step! :rofl:
 
#11 ·
I have never had a dog run away or disappear. Now cats are a different story. You can call and look for them and not find them but they will be at your door usually within a day.
 
#13 ·
I've never had a dog run away, unless you count the time someone I knew who lived down the block from me was interested in adopting one of my fosters and I agreed to let her keep him overnight, and he ran away from her car when she took him with her to the gas station that night... She didn't even call and tell me, the first I knew about it was when my next door neighbor called in the morning to tell me the dog was in their yard! He'd managed to find his way home from a gas station he'd never been to, even though he'd only been my foster for a short time. I had to call the person who was supposed to have him and ask her what happened. She said she didn't want to wake me up and she was going to tell me that (next) morning!
A few times I've had a dog get out of the yard but they didn't run off. For instance with my GSD once when I was out of town for several days, someone stole something out of our yard overnight and left the gate open. My family who was home didn't notice and let my GSD out in the morning. My dog went out the gate, went to our front porch and barked at the front door to be let in. That's how they found out the gate was open.

If I was missing a dog though, first I would go around the neighborhood and look/call, maybe squeak a toy. If I had another dog I'd bring them out and see if they could locate the dog. I would probably call my friends who live nearby for help with that too.
If we didn't find the dog quickly that way I would put signs up in the neighborhood and contact local vets to have them put up signs, put Lost Dog notices on Petfinder and the classifieds, contact Lost Dogs Illinois website for them to put out a notice, call the local shelters and animal control, call the microchip company and AKC Companion Animal Recovery... I would also start to visit to look for my dog at animal control and the shelters that accept strays. I haven't had to do all that for a lost dog but I've done many of those things for stray dogs I've found.
 
#14 ·
Remain calm. get out a high value treat, that I always have on me, and kneel and try to recal very calmly. Try to keep his interest and focus on me. Once having him back always praise for comming back. Never ever yell or punish in any form.

This actaully happened to me when Cruz was about 5 months in the middle of a parking lot of Petco. It was on the corner of a very busy intersection within a stones throw of the interstate. I'll admit, when he yanked the lead off my hand, I did freak alittle, just not on the outside. I did not chase. I had a half empty watter bottle in my other hand at the time. I knelt down and started crinkeling the water bottle to keep his focus on me. He came running back right to me and I opened the bottle and poored out some water and he went for it so I grabbed the lead. end of story. Felt like beating the snot out of him, but refrained as this would not be rewarding him for comming back. I just thanked the big guy above for bringing him back. Very thankful.
 
#17 ·
i taught my dog not to door dash or gate dash. i can prop
the front door open and walk away and my dog stays in the
and that's with distractions house. same thing with the gate
and being in the car. training your not not to do these things
is somewhat a safe guard but you never know what the dog
will do.

if my dog ran away i would get my neighbors and the people
i know in the neighborhood, family and friends to form a search
team. i would call the police and the pounds. i would make fliers
and get people to help me post them all over town and neighboring
towns stores, post office, malls and wherever else. somewhere along
the line i would have a meltdown.
 
#18 ·
1. Scan the immediate/likely areas with a high value treat, split up me/my husband/whoever else I can quickly wrangle to cover more ground.
2. Put in a call to a close friend or relative to start the social media ball rolling while I search, call clinics/shelters/etc. starting with those nearest and moving out.

I'd hate to jump straight to making calls and posting things when she could just be one street over, having herself a nice jaunt and getting further every minute, but I'd also hate to be searching and wasting time not getting the word out in case someone else might be seeing her. Two birds, one stone.
 
#19 ·
I can't even go potty without my dog checking to make sure I'm okay, so I can't really say!

But I think selzer's post gives the best advice :)

And definitely, if the dog can still see/hear you, call playfully and run the opposite direction. Works with my wayward Weim every time ;) if I yell "Treats!!" And run toward the house and fridge, well, that's been my best recall training tool for her ever. With my GSD, it isn't necessary. Just a "Jack, Let's Go!" Works.

Oh, and if your dog *adores* car rides like mine does, just yell "In the truck!" That will pull mine off a squirrel or a cat... Or a different mama driving a golf cart at the beach!... in an instant, lol.


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