Losing your pet can be a scary and heartbreaking experience. By following the steps below right away, you’ll have the best possible chance of being reunited with your beloved pet. However, if you don’t find your pet quickly, do not give up! Pets are often found weeks or even months after they go missing.
For additional questions regarding lost and found pets, please email lostandfound@dekalbanimalservices.com.
- Immediately alert your neighbors about your lost pet via Nextdoor, a neighborhood email list or a Facebook group. Be sure to include a description of your pet (color, size, male/female), last known location or closest intersection and a photo.
- If your pet has a microchip, contact the microchip company right away to report them lost, and update your contact information if needed.
- Text “LOST” to 1.833.ATLPETS (1.833.285.7387) to opt-in to receive tips on finding your lost pet. (You may receive up to 10 msgs/month. Message and data rates may apply. View our Privacy Policy.)
- Start searching Petco Love Lost now. Upload your lost pet’s photo to Petco Love Lost, a LifeLine partner, that provides free facial recognition software to reunite lost pets with their owners. Your pet’s uploaded photo will be scanned against photos of found animals at shelters and those reported by the community.
- Make a flyer (tips below). Then walk the neighborhood, speak with neighbors, postal carriers, UPS/Amazon drivers, landscapers, and tell them about your missing pet.
- Set up a Pawboost alert.
- Visit your county animal shelter to look for your pet. At DeKalb County Animal Services, you may ask staff to assist you in walking through the shelter since they can access staff-only areas. Please have a photo of your pet ready, and give a flyer to the front desk staff if you have one. We may not recognize your pet from the flyer if they come in at a later date, so be sure to visit the shelter as frequently as you can.
- Hang lost pet posters. Check out our poster creation tips below. Then hang the poster with duct tape at major intersections within a 3-mile radius of where your dog was lost or 1-mile radius of where your cat was lost. Once you find your pet, retrieve your lost pet posters from wherever you hung them.
- Look for your pet frequently on our websites. If you see your pet’s photo, please visit us immediately. Keep in mind that the we will list your pet under a different name.
4. Home Free: If you find your lost pet below, please don’t wait to visit the shelter to reclaim them. Our Home Free Program will help more pets get back home for FREE! We will waive reclaim fees and any dog-at-large citation so you can quickly reclaim them at no cost the first time they are brought to the shelter.
To qualify for Home Free, your pet must be in good standing with regard to their health and care. Free rabies vaccination and pet registration will be provided at the time of pick up, too!
View Found Pets in DeKalb County, in shelter custody
These pets are in custody with DeKalb County Animal Services.
View Found Pets in DeKalb County, in community custody
These found pets are residing in community care.
Lost Cats
Lost Cat Finder includes many useful tips and free lost cat flyer templates.
If you decide to trap your cat, you can borrow a trap from LifeLine Animal Project’s clinics, if available, free of charge, with a refundable deposit. You may also borrow a trap from Planned Pethood. If all traps are loaned out, consider purchasing a 30LTD – Light Duty Animal Trap at your local home improvement store and donating it to LifeLine afterward. This donation is tax-deductible.
- Lost and Found Pets of Fulton and DeKalb County
- Lost Pets, Decatur, GA
- Lost & Found Bullies of Georgia
- Lost Dogs Georgia
- Lost Cats Georgia
- Lost and Found Dogs of Paulding & Cobb County Georgia
- Tucker/Smoke Rise Pets Lost and Found
- Hall County Georgia Lost Dogs
- Lost and Found Pets of Douglas County
- Atlanta Area Lost and Found Pets
- Lost and Found Pets of Clayton County
- Lost and Found Pets of Gwinnett County GA
- All Georgia Lost Pets
- Fido Finder
- PetFBI
Flyer & Poster Creation Tips
PetFBI has an easy online lost pet flyer template that you can print from home! If you need help creating and printing a flyer, a LifeLine Community Support Coordinator can assist you at our shelter.
When creating a poster, use a half-page, brightly-colored poster board and include a clear photo of your pet. Use huge lettering with concise information, such as, “LOST SMALL, WHITE, MALE DOG, Call 404-xxx-xxxx.”
Missing Animal Response Network
Missing Animal Response Network has more tips for finding your dog or cat, including examples of lost pet signs, lost dog and cat behavior, and when to use a trap.
Don't Give Up!
Finding a lost pet can take time. So start searching immediately and often. Animals that are lost may still be close to home.
Unfortunately, there are scams that target the heartbroken owners of missing pets. When searching for your pet, please be hyper aware of potential scams. A few tips and common red flags are below. Find even more detailed information here from Petco Love.
- Never send money to someone you do not know.
Whether under the guise of a pet recovery service or person who claims to know where your pet is, scammers will request money in order to help. Any requests for money up front are big red flags for a scam. If someone claims to have your pet and is requesting money, whether as a threat, fee, or even if they claim to need to pay for vet care, request a photo of your pet. If they refuse, this is a red flag. They do not have your pet and are simply trying to get you to send them money. - Never send a confirmation code.
Some scammers may attempt to gain access to your personal accounts this way. If someone texts you about your lost pet and asks for a confirmation code that you received in another text, do not send the code to them. - Be wary of those offering or recommending pet recovery services in social media messages or comments.
Check their references and verify their training. Search the Missing Animal Response network directory to find trained individuals or verify contact information.
Surrounding Shelters to Visit
Once You Find Your Pet
Keep your pet indoors or safely confined to a fenced area.
MICROCHIP
Having your pet microchipped is a quick, painless and easy way to ensure that if your pet gets loose, you will be contacted if they come into a shelter. You can have your pet microchipped at LifeLine’s clinics or at any veterinarian’s office. Keep your microchip information updated if you move.
ID TAG
Inexpensive tags can be purchased from local pet stores. Include your phone number and address. Get a new tag each time you move or change phone numbers.
SPAY/NEUTER
Unaltered pets have hormonal instincts to seek out a mate when in heat. In order to prevent this, have your pet spayed or neutered. LifeLine provides low-cost spay and neuter services.
