Lost or Found a Dog in the UK.

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Border Collie Rescue - On Line - What to do if you have lost or found a dog

Quick jumps to - If a dog is lost - If a dog is Found - The Law - Links.

Introduction.

Every year in the UK, thousands of dogs are lost, stray or are stolen.

Many strays are picked up and will end up in a local dog pound where they will stay for a period of time before being re-homed or PTS.

Owners have a limited amount of time to re-claim their dog from a pound before they loose their right of ownership.

It is important to act quickly if your dog disappears and inform the appropriate authorities.

If your dog is found and you have already registered its loss, you may save it from being placed in a pound and also save yourself a fee getting the dog returned to you.

By law every dog has to wear a collar with the owners name, address and telephone number on a tag attached to it at all times.

This simple precaution may speed up the dogs safe return to you.

Microchipping or Tattooing your dog is another form or safeguarding it against loss and is particularly effective if a dog is stolen or strays outside of your local Dog Warden's area.

There are National registers of all microchipped. and tattooed dogs to which finders can refer to help get your dog back to you.

These forms of marking are difficult to spot and obliterate and can greatly increase your chances of getting the dog back if it has been stolen.

Many people who lose their dog are, naturally, very upset and interviews indicate that these feelings are made worse by a burden of guilt if they feel that they could have done more in retrospect.

Don't wait until it happens to you - get your dog microchipped. As soon as possible.

So - in a nutshell !

The definition of a stray dog is a dog unsupervised in a public place regardless of whether it is wearing a collar and tag.

Animal Welfare officers will endeavor to return a dog to its owner if it has been caught straying for the first time (if contact can be made with the owners in time). In the majority of cases stray dogs will be transported to an approved holding kennels where they are kept by law for seven days, enabling the owner to claim the dog. The dog will only be released upon payment of a fine and any other costs incurred during its detention. All stray dogs are scanned to see if they have been implanted with a microchip.

After seven days the dog is legally no longer the property of its owner and is able to be re-homed.

The Environmental Protection Act 1990 section 150 requires the finder of a stray dog to:

Return the dog to its owner; or
Contact the Local Authority for the area in which the dog was found; or
Take the dog to the Police Station nearest to where the dog was found.

If the finder fails to take one of these courses of action, he will have committed an offence and would be liable, upon conviction, to a fine.

If the finder requests to keep the dog, he must supply the officer with his contact details and details of the dog. The officer is required to keep a record of these details.

Regulations require that the Animal Welfare Officer makes appropriate enquiries to ascertain that the finder is a suitable person to keep the dog.

The finder must then be informed verbally and in writing that he is obliged to keep the dog (if unclaimed by the owner) for not less than one month and failure to comply with that obligation is an offence. The finder has an obligation to keep the dog in good condition whilst in his care which includes any emergency veterinary treatment.

The above - Courtesy of Coventry City Council

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What to do if you have lost your dog.

First - Contact your local authority Dog Warden, give them a description and inform them of the full details of the loss so that they can let you know if the dog is found. If you suspect the dog may have been stolen, make a full report to the Police and get an incident reference number to identify your case.

Second - Contact the Dog Wardens services in neighbouring areas and advise them of the incident, providing a full description of the dog. Often there is poor communication between adjoining areas with different Dog Wardens so it is wise to inform as many as possible in your vicinity, in case your dog has strayed or been handed into a neighbouring dog wardens area.

Third - Let local Vets, Pet shops and Animal rescue organisations know. One of their clients may find your dog and contact them for assistance.

Fourth - Compile a poster and put copies up in the surrounding area in shops, on notice boards, but bear in mind that fly posters - even in a good cause - are still illegal, so get permission before putting them up.

Fifth - Contact organisation that are dedicated to advertising and finding lost dogs or those who run Internet website pages for the same purpose. There are some links below to get you started. If it is a BC, you can contact BCR and we may be able to put the dog on the lost and found section of our website.

As a precaution - keep some recent photo's of your dog handy. Face view and side view at least. Update them as necessary. Make sure you have a note of any distinguishing or unique features or markings on our dog. Make notes of time, place and other details as soon as you notice the dog has gone.

Be aware - dogs that go missing are often stolen. Sometimes to order by organised gangs - sometimes just because there is an opportunity. Make sure your dog is wearing a collar with an ID disc - as the law requires. Don't put your dogs name on the tag - it may help people who find the dog to be able to claim that it is their dog or fool your dog into thinking that a thief is a friend and should be obeyed. For extra insurance have your dog microchipped. This is the method BCR recommends.

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What to do if you have found a stray or lost dog in England or Wales.

It is imperative that you contact your local council Dog Warden department and notify them that you have found the dog. They will arrange to have the dog collected from you and taken into their care. You must notify the Dog Warden, this is the law. It is their job to deal with stray dogs.

You may also wish to notify the police. If it is outside office hours and the Dog Warden is not available, you must notify them instead. They have a legal obligation to hold the dog until the Dog Warden is available and can take the dog from them, but you will be required to take the dog to the nearest Police station to the place where you found it unless you are prepared to keep hold of the dog yourself.

The Police may be reluctant to take the dog in, but if it is inconvenient for you to keep it you may insist and take the dog to the nearest police station (to where it was found), report it as a stray and hand it over to their care. Alternatively you may agree to keep the dog until the Dog Warden is available to collect it from you. If you do so this will be at you own expense.

Once the Dog Warden has collected the dog or you have handed it in to the police, your part in the matter is over. You have done the right thing and acted responsibly and do not need to do any more - but many people do wish to stay involved.

You may wish to register an interest in the dog and take it back after 7 days in the pound if the owner does not turn up. If this is the case, mention it to the Dog Warden when they collect the dog and they will advise you of the process.

You may wish to keep the dog in your care under the 28 day rule and save it from going into the pound. In which case discuss this option with the Dog Warden when you report the dog as found. See paragraph 5 of the section on the Law, below.

Once the Dog Warden has been informed and whatever option you have taken, you may want to assist in helping the dog get back to its original owner. If this is the case and with the Dog Warden's permission, you can let local Vets, Pet shops and Animal rescue organisations to let them know that the dog has been found. One of their clients may have lost the dog and contact them for assistance. Contact organisation that are dedicated to advertising and finding lost dogs or those who run Internet website for the same purpose. There are some links below to get you started. If it is a BC, you can contact BCR and we may be able to put the dog on the lost and found section of our website.

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The law, the stray dog, its owner and finder.

Local Authorities (Councils), have a duty to appoint a dog warden who's job it is to seize and control stray dogs within its jurisdiction. Authority is given under two acts of parliament - the Environmental Protection act of 1990 (sections 149/150/151) and - the Environmental Protection (Stray Dogs) Regulations 1992

The law states that a dog is the property of its human owner. If you keep a stray dog and do nothing, it will be regarded that you are deliberately trying to deprive that owner of their property - stealing by finding. If found out, you may be prosecuted. By law the local authority should be informed through their Dog Warden Service which usually works through the Local Council Environmental Health Department.

It is only after a period of time - defined by law - that a dog, if unclaimed, ceases to be the property of the original owner and becomes the property of the local authority who can then deal with the dog as though it were their own.

If the dog goes to the local 'dog pound', it is kept for 7 days and then becomes the property of the council. If the owners turn up during this time they can reclaim the dog and pay a release fee. If they turn up after 7 days they will have lost their legal right to the ownership of the dog, but if the dog has not been re-homed or PTS they may still be able to get the dog back.

After 7 days in the 'dog pound' the dog is usually passed on to the ownership of the people who run the pound who will then seek to find a new home for it. Sometimes the dog is passed on to a local animal rescue group for re-homing. Sometimes a local animal rescue group is already the official licensed 'dog pound'. In a very few areas, dogs are still destroyed after 7 days - but this is rare.

If the dog stays with the finder it has to be kept for at least 28 days. If during this time, the owners turn up they can claim the dog back. They may or may not have to pay a release fee or fine to the council, but you will not be legally entitled to demand any payment towards food, keep or veterinary costs you may have incurred and you will have to give them the dog back. If they do not turn up within 28 days, the Dog Wardens will pass ownership of the dog to you, as the finder, and the dog will legally become your property. If the original owners turn up after this time you will not be obliged to pass the dog back to them and there is nothing in law they can do to force you.

The only persons legally entitled to hold a stray dog are the appointed and licensed 'dog pound' or a person appointed by the Dog Warden to be the legally defined 'finder'. You will not be able to pass a stray on to an animal rescue organisation and they will not legally be able to take it from you without the prior agreement and authorisation of the Dog Warden who are unlikely to be able to give consent as their local authority will be contracted to a particular kennels as their licensed 'pound'. If a rescue organisation is not a licensed dog pound, but do agree to take a dog with consent from a Dog Warden, they will have to keep the dog for 28 days, as they will be treated as the 'finder'. After that period, and with the consent of the Dog Warden, they will legally own the dog and be able to re-home the it.

If you do not notify the Dog Warden that you have found a stray within a certain period of time - usually 48 hrs - the Dog Warden may refuse to take the dog into their care. You will not be able to pass the dog onto an animal rescue organisation because you are not the legal owner of the dog and rescue groups are only allowed to take in dogs from their legal owners who sign ownership over to them. You will be legally responsible for the care of the dog and will not be able to abandon the dog as this is an offence. You may be obliged to keep the dog under the 28 day rule - after which it will then become your property and you can then keep or re-home it. If the owner turns up during the 28 days you will have to give the dog back as outlined in paragraph 5 above.

If the dog turns out to be unfriendly , unsuitable or inconvenient, you may find that you are stuck with it because you have not followed the legal process. it is therefore best to notify the appropriate authorities as soon as you have found a stray dog.

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Links

Lost or Found Dogs

Doglost.co.uk is a National website where you can register lost or found dogs from anywhere in the UK

Petsearch UK - an organisation dedicated to helping owners find lost dogs. Branches all over the UK.

Battersea Dogs Home lost and found - If you have lost or found a dog in London or within the M25 boundary.

BCR Lost and Stolen page - A page on this website to help advertise lost / stolen or found dogs.

If your dog has been stolen

Read this page and use the link on the bottom of it to find out more.

Yellow pages is a good start to find local rescue groups , vets, pets shops and your local council and police numbers.

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