Most of my clients own pets.  Dogs, cats, pot belly pigs, fish...

I have never had a dog for a pet - or a pot belly pig for that matter!  I've had fish (low maintenance) and a few cats (relatively low maintenance).  Anyone with a pet knows that they become a member of the family and when they go missing, our hearts are broken.

When indoor cats slip outside, most of them don't make it back home. Less than 2% of all "lost" cats are reunited with their owners. That is a really scary number. Especially considering how easily this could happen. It only takes a split second.

This is why I feel that it is absolutely necessary for every indoor cat to wear an ID Tag. I really believe this is one of the most important things you can do for your cat.

Today, I'd like to provide a few quick tips to help you find a missing pet and what you can do to prevent this from ever happening to you and your precious pet. 

(The following information was provided by Dr. Jon of PetPlace.com). 

  
If your pet is lost:

• Search the area. Talk to the neighbors and passersby.
  
  
• Walk or drive through the area several times daily. Early morning and evening are the best times to look for a lost pet.
  
  
• Hand out a recent photograph of your pet and information on how you can be reached.
  
  
• Post signs in the neighborhood with your pet's description, a photo, your phone number and information about ID tags.
  
  
• Put signs in grocery stores, community centers, veterinary offices and other high traffic locations.
  
  
• Place advertisements in newspapers and with radio stations. Include your pet's sex, age, weight, breed, color and special markings.
  
  
• The Internet may be helpful in tracking down a lost pet, although its search is wide and random.  
  
  

Prevent your cat from ever getting lost!

• If you have an indoor/outdoor cat, don't leave your animal outside when you're gone for long periods of time.
  
  
• If you are gone for a long time, leave your pet with a responsible person or get a house sitter.
  
  
• Jot down the numbers from your pet's rabies tag, write your phone number on his tag, and take a good photo of your pet.
  
  
• Consider having a computer microchip implanted under your pet's skin. Shelters and veterinary hospitals use microchips to identify lost animals and reunite them with their owners.

• Every pet should have an ID tag. Even indoor cats. If your cat were to ever sneak out, an ID tag is your cat's best chance of being reunited with you. It's like an "Amber Alert" for pets. If your pet is lost, they will immediately notify humane societies and shelters within a 50-mile radius, and post a missing pet alert to websites that help find lost pets.  It has some very nice features including a toll-free hotline for owners of lost pets and the people who find them ... and the hotline is there for you 24 hours a day, 356 days a year. This is one of the best pet protection programs I've ever seen.

• One of the BEST ways to help bring a lost pet back home to you is to protect him with proper identification ... on his collar, an ID tag, or with a microchip.

I hope these suggestions will help you find your missing pet and more importantly, prevent this from ever happening in the first place.  Thanks to Dr. Jon for these wonder tips.

If you have any organizing questions or problems you would like me to address, send me an email at info@4abetterspace.com and I will be glad to help.