How do i prevent dogs from ending up on a "lost dog" sign?

Question

in my nieghborhood theres been a HUGE amount of lost dog signs and i don't have a dog but i love animals so i hate to see all those pets lost. today i will post up a sign to dog owners to help prevent incidents like this to happen what can i say?
*keep an eye out for your pets
*make sure you have a leash
i can't really think of anything, and i'm also trying find out why so much animals have went missing, i should also add that i live in a town where it's mostly a HUGE university college campus, so students live EVERYWHERE. so whatmight be going on?

Answer 1

Dogs are very bright animals, despite what some people say about their pets. The truth of the matter is most (and when I say most, I really mean all) dogs run away because the owner is irresponsible and lazy. In other words, there really aren't any stupid dogs, just stupid owners. Micro-chipping your dog is a good idea, but realistically it's not as good an idea as some people think, because in order for them to locate your pet, it has to be brought into a vet who can run a scan on the animal. If you're lucky enough for someone to bring your pet into a vet's office to be scanned, then yes, you stand a good chance of getting your beloved animal back.

But keep in mind that dogs won't just run away for no reason. Usually when a dog runs away it feels that it isn't loved or isn't treated with care in its current home. Think about it... a lot of dog owners work jobs all day and leave the dog all alone at home to fend for itself. They don't train it, they don't walk it, they don't even play with it. They just give it a bowl of food and some water and think the pet will raise itself. If you left your young kids at home unattended all day while you were at work, and just gave them some Cheerios and a glass of water, that would be neglectful. It's the same for a pet. They need attention, and if they're getting it at home, they won't leave, leash or no leash. My dog can be left in the backyard for hours with the gate wide open, but she won't go anywhere. Why? Because she knows that all her fun and attention is right here at home. Before my last dog died, he was the same way. So I honestly think that no dog really runs away if it has a loving home.

Answer 2

you might want to put up a sign telling people to RESEARCH THE BREED before they get one. Lots of people just get whatever they think is cute and don't ever bother buying a breed book or anything. I know lots of people who get sighthounds and then let them run free off leash then the dogs get hit by cars.

Most college students tend to not pay much attention to their dogs or bother to train them b/c they have classes, work, friends to hang out with and stuff. Most college kids just fresh out of HS and on their own for the very first time think that now would be a good time to get a pet dog but then do not realize that the dog will take up most of their time. In the end the dog gets ignored and is not trained properly so once the dog gets loose, he doesn't come back.

Answer 3

I'm not sure what you can do to help, because most of the reasons dogs get away is that they get out of their yards without their owners noticing.

It would be up to the owners of these dogs to make sure that there are no holes in their fences that a dog can fit through if they are going to keep them in an open yard or that they can't jump over the fence.

Also, I know my dogs love to try to run out the door when I bring in groceries. They might try putting them in a room when they know they are going to have a door open for any amount of time.

It is very important for dogs to be on a leash when they are outside their homes.

A dark side to maybe why there are so many missing dog signs in your neighborhood is that if they are big dogs, some horrible person might be stealing them to fight.

My best advice to give someone who wanted to keep their dogs from getting "lost" would be: know where your dog is at all times. When you let them out, get yourself some air too and step out with them. You will see immediately if they get through your fence and they will love that you are outside with them.

And also getting them microchipped would certainly help.

Answer 4

My list:
Leashes
Collars WITH tags
Making sure the fence is locked BEFORE you let the dog out.
Look into microchipping (and REGISTER the chip)
Alert vet offices and shelters as soon as a pet goes missing

Thats about all you can, occasionally a mistake is made and a dog can escape for a yard or a home, but there shouldnt be that big of a problem where you notice it like that.

Answer 5

You are legally liable for the dogs, so if they get out, and bite someone or hurt another dog, yes you are liable for the damages.....I would suggest also putting a pad lock on the inside of the gate if you can, or double lock catch,,,this way, when you lock it, there is no way without them breaking the gate they could open the gate....just be careful and try to keep the dogs close and even in the house if possible till the person or persons are caught that are doing this,,,then press charges against them for trespassing and you can do it. you get change your signs to not beware of dogs, but do what I did on my gates and walls around the house, I had signs made up, Attack dogs, enter at our own risk.. I wanted to make sure anyone coming around would be afraid to try to come over the 10 ft rock wall and the entrance gates are also 10 ft tall, and can only be opened by remote from the house or in our cars or truck.... never had a problem........yet...... the meaner the sign sounds, it will make them think twice before opening a gate again....... it may be someone trying to get your dogs also, it happens, they want them to get out so they can steal them... be careful and watch your dogs good... good luck

Answer 6

I strongly suggest micro chipping animals because if any dog catcher or animal shelter gets them, or even if a person steals or adopts the dog and takes it to the vet, eventually the microchip would show the dogs identity.

Answer 7

I would also suggest:

+ ALL dogs must have collars with a form of identification on them
+MICROCHIPPING (see your vet) will help your dog be reunited with you.

I really don't know why students on campus would be owning dogs anyway! Good luck trying to promote responsible ownership where you live!

Chalice

Chalice

Answer 8

Get them microchipped!

We did have a large number disappearing a few years back. They were being stolen by a puppymiller in KY and breeding them and selling them. When they confiscated all of the dogs you had to have proof it was your pet so be sure to microchip!!

Answer 9

Put a sign up tha tells people to keep their dogs on a leash dont be mean, make sure you feed and water it,love it, there is a lot more but i dont remeber some

Answer 10

Whenever I get a puppy, I spend lots of time in the yard training it to come to me on command, so if it ever did get loose, it would always come to me when called. It saved lots of trouble. Plus I closely watched where the dog was, and never let it out of my sight, if it was outside.