7 Ways To Find Lost Pets In Detroit: Online Resources, Shelter Numbers

DETROIT, MI — Your pet is missing. Where do you turn? There are several resources across Detroit and the surrounding area to help reunite you and your furry friend.

Of course, the best strategy is to prevent the pet from getting loose in the first place. Make sure your gates and fences are secure, the Michigan Anti Cruelty Society advises. Also, spaying or neutering pets also helps keep them from straying.

Pets have a better chance of being reunited with their families if they are microchipped and wearing a collar with an ID tag. A microchip is a small device that is implanted through a quick injection between the shoulder blades and provides your pet with permanent identification to give them the best chance of coming home.

The Michigan Anti-Cruelty Society veterinary clinic offers free or low-cost spay/neuter surgery and microchipping. The clinic at 3569 Joseph Campau, Detroit, is open from 10 a.m.-2 p.m.,Tuesday-Saturday. Call the clinic at (313) 369-9863 for details.

But pets do get lost, despite the best efforts of their owners. Here are seven things you can do to find your lost pet.

1. Post a picture and description of your pet online. Some resources include:

• For the Love of Louie – Michigan Lost Pet Lookers Facebook page
• Lost and Found Pets (Detroit), sponsored by Detroit Animal Care and Control
• Lost & Found Pets of Detroit, MI, sponsored by PawBoost
• Michigan Humane Society Lost & Found
• Craigslist Detroit Metro (Lost+Found and Pets)

2. File a report with all four Detroit animal shelters and visit in person at least two or three times a week.

• Detroit Animal Care and Control, (313) 224-6356
• Detroit Dog Rescue, (313) 458-8104
• Michigan Anti-Cruelty Society, (313) 891-1088
• Michigan Humane Society, (313) 872-3400

3. Search your neighborhood. Make flyers with a recent photograph of your pet and your contact information, and then hand them out to your neighbors, letter carriers and delivery people.

4. Contact shelters, animal rescue groups and local police departments in nearby cities.

• Dearborn Animal Shelter, (313) 943-2077
• Dearborn Heights Animal Control, (313) 791-3497
• Eastpointe Animal Control, (586) 445-5100
• Grosse Pointe Animal Adoption Society, (313) 884-1551
• Harper Woods Police Department, (313) 343-2530
• Humane Society of Macomb, (586) 731-9210
• Macomb County Animal Shelter, (586) 489-5115
• Redford Township Animal Control 313-387-2698
• Warren Animal Control (586) 574-4806
• Search for shelters and rescues on Petfinder.com

5. Advertise. Post flyers at veterinary offices, pet-related businesses, grocery stores, community centers and traffic intersections surrounding your home.

6. Leave food, water and a blanket, bed or toy outside near your door. If your pet returns while you are not home, leaving provisions near your door will encourage them to stay put until you return.

7. Don’t give up. Your pet is out there somewhere. Animals that have been missing for months and even years have been reunited with their owners.

When your pet is located, be prepared to provide your own personal identification, as well as proof of ownership, such as photos, veterinary records or other documentation. At some facilities, you may be charged a boarding fee upon release of your animal.

Photo by Javier Prazak via Flickr Commons