Lost and Found

VA:
Alexandria City - 703-838-4774
Arlington Co. - 703-931-9241
Fairfax Co. - 703-830-3310
Loudon Co. - 703-777-0406
Prince William Co. (links directly to lost report form) - 703-792-6465


MD:
Anne Arundel - 410-268-4388
Baltimore County - 410 - 833-8848

Prince Georges Co. (links directly to lost report form) - 310-499-8300
Montgomery Co. (links directly to lost report form) - 301-279-1694
Howard Co. - 410-313-2780
Frederick County - 301-694-1546

Ft. Meade Veterinary Treatment Facility 301-677-1300

DC:
District of Columbia (Shelter operated by Washington Humane Society) - 202-576-6664

There are many websites where you can list your missing pet.
We recommend the Missing Pet Network:

Missing Pet Network for VA, MD, Washington DC

Other resources that you might useful:

If you have lost an animal:

1) Take immediate action! While an animal may come home on its own, the sooner you act, the more likely you are to find your pet.

2) Do a thorough search of your house and property and then of the neighborhood. Call your pet's name and alert your neighbors. For lost cats, be certain to check roofs and trees and look again in the early morning when the streets are quiet.

3) Make up lost posters with a current photo of your pet and your day and evening phone numbers. Provide posters to your neighbors, the mail carrier garbage collectors, meter readers, and the newspaper delivery person. Place the poster in stores, gas stations and laundromats -- any place where people living within a several mile radius are likely to see it. Talk to neighborhood children and children at the closest school - children always notice a new dog face running around.

4) The first day the animal is missing call the local animal shelter or animal control agency and file a lost report. Ask the shelter how to contact the government agency that picks up animals who have been killed on the streets and highways. While it is difficult to face the possibility that your pet may have been hit by a car, it is better to know the truth than to worry for weeks about the welfare of your friend.

5) On the second day, extend your search beyond the immediate neighborhood. Send copies of the poster to all area shelters and make a personal visit to as many shelters as possible. People may describe the same animal differently, so do not rely strictly on phone contact. Ask the shelter staff to show you any sick or injured animals, not just the ones available for adoption.

6) Call all of the local veterinarians and send them copies of your poster.

7) Advertise in the newspaper for several weeks and check the found ads every day. Be certain to inquire regarding any possible matches, not just the likely ones. You can also place lost/found ads on the local radio and cable television stations.

8) If you find your pet, please inform the shelters and veterinarians and take down your signs from the neighborhood.

If you have found an animal

  1. Check its tags and collar for a phone number or other identifying information.
  2. Call your local animal shelter or animal control agency and file a found report.
  3. Bring the animal to the local shelter. It is most likely to either be reunited with its person, or to find a new home if you bring it to the shelter.
  4. Immediately place a found ad in the newspaper, both in the local newspaper and in area-wide papers like the Washington Post. Most papers provide found ads as a free service.


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