Hello all,

Thought some of you may have some good advice.  My friend found a Labrador on her way to work, given where we work, it is not unusual for dogs to be wandering alone, but this was quite clearly not a street dog - he had no road sense, and just wanted to follow someone.  So, she waited for ages, assuming an owner would appear... no one came, so she rang me - the crazy Labrador lady! 

We took him to the vet and he is chipped, and registered to a lady about 40 min drive from where he was found.  However, none of her contact details are up to date, and we can't get in touch.  Furthermore, the vets that he was registered with haven't seen him in two years.

This dog is just wonderful.  He's quite old, has a few lumps and bumps, but generally seems in good health.  He is by far the most obedient and steady Labrador I have ever met!  Anyway, he's here with me because I was set up for dogs, but he can't stay indefinitely because my 3 are just settling in to being 3, not 2, so it is the wrong time to be introducing another adult male.  My friend that found him would like to offer him a home, and I have several other offers (really, if you meet him, you just know he'd make the greatest companion). 

My question is, where do we go from here?  He's got some lumps and bumps that could do with checking, and probably removing, but not sure what the legality of this is, if he's not my dog.  If my friend is to keep him, she wants to do it above board, and needs to know when she can actually 'own' him. The vet has reported it to the council, I've looked for lost adverts online, where he was found and where his owner was living.  I have to say, the fact that the owners obviously haven't made an effort to find him yet would make me reluctant to give him back to them.  Do we need to make more of an effort to find them?  I wouldn't know where to begin. 

I'm so thankful he's here, in the warm with me, and not wondering the streets of Harehills in the snow :-(

Any advice/experience would be greatly appreciated.

Clare

You (as well as the vet) must tell the dog warden that you have the dog; it's illegal not to. The KC webpage says

" The finder of a stray dog must return it to its owner (if known), or take it to the local authority or police (although from April 2008, only the local authority will receive stray dogs). It is illegal to take a found dog into your home without reporting it to the police first. If you want to retain the dog, this might be allowed, provided you are capable of looking after the dog and agree to keep it for at least 28 days. However, the original owner could still have a claim for the dog's return."

Trevor Cooper's DogLaw page has useful information too.

Thank you :-)

Didn't realise I would have to do that, thought the vet would be enough.  I'll see to it tomorrow.

When was he found?
I bet somebody is looking for him and dead worried!
What makes you think his owners are not looking for him?
If he is older dog in good health,steady temperament  etc I'm sure there is somebody somewhere who loves him and is missing him!
Unless of course he was "dumbed" :(...

Not everybody uses internet so might not realise to put lost notices up there, have up put up found posters in the area he was found?
Maybe call vets in the area he was found and area he was registered in to let them know you have him...

Few years ago we lost a dog, she was gone for 12 hours in which we were looking for her, reported her missing etc...
She had been taken in by people just down the road(15 minutes after she went "missing"!) and they had reported her found but were told nobody has reported a lost dog and this was definately after we had already reported her missing!

have you looked at lost dogs? there is a lost lab on that site.

Found on friday.  All the vets around Leeds and around where his owner is supposed to live have been contacted.  I didn't know what else I could do, except take him in.  He was at the vets all day friday when they phoned around, but from there he would have to go with the dog warden.  At this time of year, and given the possibility of him being dumped, I couldn't send him to the pound!

The thing that makes me suspicious is that he is chipped, yet the owner hasn't reported him missing, and we can't make contact using the details on his chip.  We have scoured the area where he was found for posters, and the area where he was supposed to be living.  If my dog was missing, I would ring every vet in area as a matter of priority.  I haven't put up posters, is that really the norm?  Never seen a poster for a 'found' dog.

Do you mean doglost?  If so, the Lab on there isn't him :-(

Supposing the poor old boy was booked into kennels whilst his owners were on holiday ....have boarding kennels etc been checked out for "escapees"?

I know that responsible kennel owners would automatically report any missing dogs - but just a thought!

Poor old fellow!

It's quite common for people to forget to update the chip details when they move - we've had a couple of dogs brought in where that's been the case.

Perhaps the owners have gone on holiday and he's got away from boarding kennels (it happens more often than they let on) or wherever he's been staying.

>I haven't put up posters, is that really the norm?  Never seen a poster for a 'found' dog.

Yes, pretty much standard procedure - put them up in all the local vets as well as around the area you found him. You could also leaflet-drop the neighbours around his 'chip' address - if the owners have moved they might be able to give you a forwarding address.

Even if the lab on doglost isn't him, have you requested that he be recorded under the Found section of the site. To me it sounds as though he is someone's pet and there are many reasons why they may not 'appear' to be searching for him. I don't wish to cause offense, but I am sure if one of your dogs went missing, you would not want people to prejudge your efforts to find them.

I would write to the address recorded delivery, phone numbers could have changed.

This is sadly the downside of any identity/registration scheme, people forget to update details.

Truthfully now, how many of you have moved and not told the DVLC, or Passport Office etc.  People are even less likely to remember about their Pets registrations.

I will do, you're right.  I guess I am being harsh on the owners.  I'm just surprised they can't be traced through his chip, for me, that would be the first thing I'd update on moving!  He does seem to have had a loving family once.  Really thought if they had wanted to find him, they would have by now.  Perhaps I was given dodgy advice from the vets, who didn't seem to hold out much hope.

So, you think posters and posting his details on websites.  I'm worried about the posters/leaflets though, how can I be sure anyone coming forward is actually the owner?

Hope I haven't done the wrong thing in taking him in, didn't know what else to do...

I will ring around boarding kennels tomorrow too, good idea. You're right, not all may report them.  Although, there aren't any close to where he was found, and he had no traffic sense whatsoever, but I suppose stranger things have happened!

> Furthermore, the vets that he was registered with haven't seen him in two years.

Not everyone has their dog boostered every year  (there is plenty of info on the net as to why not ;) ) and if the dog has been healthy, then that could be expected, do you take your dogs to the vets because they're perfectly healthy?   I certainly don't ;) 

You've said it yourself, he's an older dog and he's obviously well cared for, it's very likely, that this dog has owners who are desperately trying to find him, try putting yourself in their place, what would YOU want the finders to do?

Possibilities,
If you lost your dog or it was stolen, would you be looking for it 40 mins drive away? How would you know where to look?

They could recently have moved and not have had time to update their details, or they could be staying in the area/nearby with family/friends for Christmas and not know where the vets are etc ;)

Personally, I'd be trying everything to find his owners, knowing how much I'd want my own dog back ;)

As he has a few lumps his real owners would know where on his body they were ;)

http://www.lostlabs.com/

Try here and also contact your local Lab rescue as they may have tried them as well.

I know the vet thing doesn't make them bad owners, it just makes it more difficult to trace them if they've not been in touch for 2 years.  All the vets around where they live have been notified.  But yes, you are right, I'm not being fair.... he can't tell me what's happened.  I am just assuming the worst! 

If I lost my dogs, and someone had taken them in, I would hope they would be trying to contact me... I was just at a bit of a loss how much further I could go.

Thanks everyone, you have put it in perspective, I've perhaps not done everything I can.  I've registered his details with doglost (they're not showing yet, but assuming someone approves them first?).  We'll get onto the posters tomorrow.

A lost dog we looked after for a night was much the same situation.  In the end with the help of dog lost we managed too find out the dog had been re-homed and the new owner had not updated their details.  They were reunited a few days later, with a lot of help from a rescue co-ordinator who lives  near me and as I said previously the help of dog lost.

Might be the case here.

The thing that makes me suspicious is that he is chipped, yet the owner hasn't reported him missing, and we can't make contact using the details on his chip.  We have scoured the area where he was found for posters, and the area where he was supposed to be living.  If my dog was missing, I would ring every vet in area as a matter of priority.  I haven't put up posters, is that really the norm?  Never seen a poster for a 'found' dog.

i am a part time dog warden.

you need to contact the dog warden in the environmental health dept of your local council

re above, thats quite regular, sadly.

usually due to either

a) people chip their dogs then never bother updating details when they move

or

b) rehome their dog and never bother telling the new owner the dog is chipped, or do tell them, and between the old and new owners, no one bothers updating the database with new owner details.

ive delat with stray dogs on the thrid or fourth owner since the one that is still regaistered on thre database under the chip number.

I'm guilty of not updating my dogs chip!!!
If she escaped and was found her chip links to address in Finland (or more than likely links to nowhere as I would not think the databases are international)!

I keep meaning to do it but still haven't.
Must put even bigger note up...Yes, I have it up as "must do" on my notice board but it has been up for so long, I think I have got used to it!

> I would write to the address recorded delivery, phone numbers could have changed.
>
>

If they have moved the post office may well have a forwarding address. They would not give it out, but the letter may well get there!

> All the vets around where they live have been notified.

Have you contacted local police?

Last week I spotted a neihgbours dog loose on my front lawn, I knew she would never be allowed to roam so I crawled (!!) out my door to greet her (she's timid) and as she rolled over, belly up for a fus I clipped a lead on her and took her down the road to her owner. He was over the moon, she had gone missing 24hrs prior (workmen left a door open), he had been searching all over and had contacted the police in the hope that somebody may have found her and told them.
Needless to say, the man was over the moon to see his dog home safe & sound :)

I hope you find her owners.

I've been in touch with the vet today.  Although they gave me the general area he was registered to, they didn't give me an address or a phone number, they've been doing the ringing.  They said they can't give me the address or phone number because of data protection.  Anyone know if this is correct? 

Ask the vet to forward a letter to the address they have. It could be the people still live there and have changed their phone number, or are out looking for the dog! A lot of people don't use the net, or know to contact vets when their dog is missing. Most people would contact the police though, have you spoken to their local station?

>They said they can't give me the address or phone number because of data protection.  Anyone know if this is correct? 

Yes, I'm afraid so.

Yes, spoke to the police on Friday will try again today though.

The plot has thickened...  someone visited the address on his chip, and they rehomed him 5 years ago, to people local to where he was found.  They're looking to see if they have contact details, but can't find them at the moment.

Hope you find his owners. When I sell puppies I chip them and they have to have my number on as an emergency number( part of the contract) so that if the owners forget to update their details the warden etc can always get in touch with me .

Well they were reunited today!!!  It's been a real muddle, we've all been horribly let down.  They reported him missing to the dog warden and the police, and when the dog warden came to take his photo and give me a 'retained by finder form' she told me there were no reports of missing labs.  It gets worse... he was at the vet's all day friday while they phoned around for his owner, the owner actually phoned this same vet (the same vet they are registered with!) to report him missing, to which she was told there were no stray labs that had been handed in!  So I thought they weren't looking, it seems they were, but the organisations were failing to keep track of any of it!

I'm truly shocked.  Glad I kept hold of him, because if people don't seem to be able to put 2 and 2 together this week, who knows what would have happened to him in the pound!  The owners were extremely grateful, and I'm so relieved it turned out for the best.

Thanks again everyone for the advice :-)

Had exactly the same thing with a Pomeranian a few years ago.  She was black (rare those days and especially in our area), had recently had a c-section.  The person who found her took her to our vets where she'd only been the week before to be told they didn't have any Pom people at that surgery etc!!! 

Does make me wonder whether they really care or notice what they are doing sometimes.

Glad there is a happy ending, well done for persuing it, such a shame that so many people appear not to care, it only takes a minute to write down a message when someone calls to report something. As a result of this story I went and checked my paperwork and found that I had not transferred one of my bitch's chip details to myself, I was horrified as I am so conscientious, thankfully she was bred by a friend and she would have passed on the message ,god forbid that she should ever go missing.

Also, not quite sure what publicity this has been given but from January dogs must be chipped or tattoed to be hipscored/eye tested, but I don't suppose when I took her for her annual eye test they would have known the chip is not registered to me, just that she is identified!

>The owners were extremely grateful, and I'm so relieved it turned out for the best.

That's really good news. :-) I hope they'll get the chip details updated into their own name and address now, so that this is less likely to happen again (and everyone on here make sure their details are all correct too!).

It's a very worrying story, though, about the failure of people (dog warden, vets etc) to make notes and pass on messages. :-(

I'm guilty of not updating my dogs chip!!!
If she escaped and was found her chip links to address in Finland (or more than likely links to nowhere as I would not think the databases are international)!

I keep meaning to do it but still haven't.
Must put even bigger note up...Yes, I have it up as "must do" on my notice board but it has been up for so long, I think I have got used to it!

This link should work http://www.europetnet.com/Home.aspx but get your chip addressed changed ASAP!!

I suggested a tag too, it is a legal requirement, but more importantly we could have had them reunited without any of the third party failures. Shame really, he had a collar... just no tag...

Glad it's made some of you check your own chip details :-)

Well done for perservering. Over 20 years ago some boys put a firework on my mum's door step and knocked the door. My dog ran and I spent twelve years looking for her and to this day have nevber stopped wondering what happened to her. There will be a happy family and dog around a fire togther tonight because you cared enough to get involved and stay involved x

So pleased to hear this, it is horror stories like this that made me post about not being too judgemental about the owner's efforts to find him. I am so glad you did the right thing, he was a lucky boy. Well done.

> Well they were reunited today!!!

Brilliant news :) Such a shame it was all a muddle, but at least things worked out well in the end, well done :)

I do love a happy ending!   Well done - and thank you CVL for all the hard work you put into reuniting this old dog with its owner - but bad cheese to all those who did not put all the links together!

I'm surprised and a bit shocked at the dog warden and the vets for failing to tie these ends up - hope that the owners put in a strongly-worded complaint.

CVL  you've made a dog and owner very happy for Christmas!   :-D

Can believe that there was a muddle, have seen it in other professions too :(     Don't know why some people bother to do the jobs they do :(

This is one of the reasons my pups were tattooed before they left me, I stay registered as the breeder, so if the owners are lost to the dog at least they'll find me - and all my own dogs are tattooed too ;)   No special readers needed - just a pair of eyes :)

> when I took her for her annual eye test they would have known the chip is not registered to me, just that she is identified!

Through out 2009 we scanned all dogs coming to one of the three eye testing sessions I run per year, all we can do is read the chip we cannot identify who is registered as the owner simply by reading the chip.