At the end of the year we have over 400 cat reports and over 30 dog reports.
To help prevent these statistics from growing, here are some tips you can use to make sure your pet doesn’t stray.
Prevention is best!
- Don’t let your cat go outside! If your cat goes outside, bring her back in right away.
- If you have a cat who always escapes, you need to recondition her. She needs to learn that the front door and the outdoors in general are not places she wants to be. You can teach her this by making the door a scary place for her – every time you go to the door, shake a can with pennies in it to scare your cat away. You can also purchase a “Pet Corrector,” (available in our gift shop!) which is a can of compressed air that gives out a loud hissing sound that will scare your cat.
- Cats and dogs who are not spayed and neutered will want to “roam." Sterilizing animals is not only healthy for them, but makes them prefer staying at home. The WHS offers a spay and neuter assistance program (SNAP) for individuals on low income – call 204-888-SNAP or visit our the SNAP page for more information.
What to do if your cat or dog gets lost:
- Call the WHS at 204-982-2025 to make a lost report and visit the shelter for a walk-through. You can also email us a photo of your pet to reception@winnipeghumanesociety.ca.
- If it’s a dog, call Animal Services at 311 to make a report and arrange a walk-through.
- Call Winnipeg shelters (a listing can be found here) and visit appropriate websites and social media pages to see if any have reported a sighting.
- Talk to your neighbours and put up flyers in allowed areas.
5 Things That Will Help You Protect Your Pets
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1. Identify your pets. This is probably the most important thing you can do to prevent your pet from being permanently lost. Your pet should be micro-chipped, tattooed and be wearing a collar. It is not enough just to have one or two of the above list, all three are vital. With a collar, someone could pick up your pet on the street and bring it right back to your house. With a tattoo, a small vet clinic without microchip readers can check the registry based on the tattoo. With a microchip, places like The WHS can immediately identify your pet and call you, even if the collar has been lost and the tattoo illegible.
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2. Have pictures available. Sometimes we forget to keep taking pictures when our pet is no longer a puppy or a kitten, but a recent photo can make all the difference when an animal is lost. Keep some updated colour photos available just in case.
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3. Watch the front door. When expecting people, lock up animals who are likely to bolt. They may be cranky, but they will thank you for it when they are safe at home.
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4. Don’t let cats wander. If you let your cats outside, chances are they will get lost. Even if they have been coming and going for ten years, it doesn’t mean that they will always find their way home, or that someone might assume they are lost and pick them up. Do not let cats outside the house unless you have an enclosed back yard, or you are walking them on a leash.
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5. Know your pets. OK, so you’ve lost a black Lab cross. What else? Does he know any tricks that make him stand out? Does he have any scars or birth marks? What makes him different from all the other black labs we might receive? These details might make it easier for us to identify your pet.
Don't give up! Sometimes animals are found months later.
We will hold adult dogs for three days, and puppies under the age of six months for 24 hours. Adult cats are held for four days, while kittens under six months are only held for 24 hours before they are assessed for adoption.
Critters (rabbits, guinea pigs, birds and reptiles) are held for 24 hours.
Remember to let us know if your pet has been found.
For more information on lost pet prevention, visit this link or call us at 204-982-2025.