Report a Lost Pet and Other Lost Pet Resources

Lost a pet?

Realizing your pet is missing can be scary! One of our main priorities is helping lost pets get back home. Follow the steps below to increase your chances of being reunited with your pet.

What to do if your pet is missing

• Report your lost pet online, in person at our shelter or by calling us at 503-846-7039(Link opens phone app).
  • Lost Dog Form(Link is external)
  • Lost Cat Form(Link is external)
  • Lost Other Pet Form(Link is external)
    
• If your dog is licensed in Washington County, call us at 503-846-7039(Link opens phone app) to make sure we have your most current contact information on file.
• If your missing pet has a microchip, make sure your information is up to date with the microchip company.
  • If you need your pet’s microchip number:
    • Check your pet’s medical records or adoption paperwork.
    • Try calling your veterinarian, the rescue or shelter you adopted from, or the animal’s breeder to see if they have the microchip information in their records.
  • Once you have the microchip number:
    • Go to PetMicrochipLookup.org(Link is external) and enter the number. This database from the American Animal Hospital Association will tell you which company manufactured the chip.
    • From there, contact the company that made the microchip directly to verify or update your contact information. Additionally, you may want to create a secondary registration for the chip on a website like 24PetWatch(Link is external), (formerly Found Animals microchip registry).
    • Call us at 503-846-7039(Link opens phone app) to add your pet’s microchip information to our records here at Animal Services.
• Contact other area shelters to see if your lost pet is there. It’s possible for your pet to end up at a shelter far from your home!

• Check with veterinary clinics. DoveLewis(Link is external) also has a lost and found section on their website.

  Here is the list of veterinary clinics in Washington County (PDF 168.7 KB)(Link downloads document)
• Check local found pet reports via 24HourPetWatch.(Link is external) To check for found pets in your area, you will need to enter your zip code and then click on "Lost my pet."
• Talk to your neighbors. Let them know your pet is missing and ask if they can check their property. Cats and small dogs may hide in unexpected places!
• Use Social Media. Local lost and found Facebook groups, Craigslist, PawBoost, NextDoor and other online networks can be very helpful. Post about your missing pet AND read posts from others about found animals.
• Make posters and display them in your neighborhood. Brightly colored flyers with your pet’s photo on them can be very useful. Check with groomers, veterinary clinics, pet stores and other neighborhood businesses to see if they post lost & found pet flyers.
• Check the newspaper. By law, finders who do not bring the pet to the shelter are supposed to publish a notice in the classified section of a local paper.

And finally... Don’t give up too soon! We have seen pets reunited with their owners even after years of being lost. Shy pets may hide for a week or two after being displaced. Keep checking shelters, lost & found reports, social media, and the newspaper.