Help, I’m a lost dog!!!
Any loving and responsible pup parent has at some point thought about the feelings tied to their “little baby” going missing. The mere thought of such a horrifying situation is hard enough to take, let alone it actually happening! According to the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies, close to 16,000 dogs went missing in Canada in 2015.
Of the 16,000 stray dogs in Canada in 2015, only 11,000 were able to reconnect with their owners.
Knowing this, it’s crucial to think about how you could prevent your dog from getting lost. Here are some preventative measures you can take.
Preventative Measures
There are several preventative measures a dog owner should consider undertaking, several of which are basic elements of responsible dog ownership. One is having a tag on your dog’s collar. This will provide the person who finds your missing dog your home address, phone number and the name of your pet.
Owners should also keep their dog on a leash and minimize the amount of time they are left unattended. This will help prevent your dog from running away, should it decide to chase after an animal. Off-leash parks are your best opportunity to have your dog roam free without the restriction of a leash.
Also ensure to train your dog with basic commands such as stay, come, heel, etc. Be sure that your dog has a strong collar that is in good shape to avoid the leash or tag from breaking off.
Every precaution described should be the primary approaches used to help ensure your dog doesn’t go missing. However, in the event your dog does go missing, microchipping your dog or having a GPS tracking collar can be very helpful.
Microchipping your dog is a cost efficient way which allows your dog to be identified by a veterinarian clinic or a shelter. However, this solution requires your dog to first be found. GPS tracking collars on the other hand, are a recently available device for dog owners which take advantage of mobile and GPS technology. It provides location awareness and history, upon your request.
If you want to do whatever you can to make sure you hold onto your K9 companion, then it requires a level of ongoing awareness. Implementing the suggestions provided in this blog post will aid in that. After all, it is just a part of being a responsible dog owner.
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