Читать книгу Animal Behavior for Shelter Veterinarians and Staff - Группа авторов - Страница 181

In 2018, approximately 50% of all canine and feline admissions into sheltering organizations were animals identified as stray or at‐large (Shelter Animals Count n.d.). Safety net programs that aim to prevent companion animals from becoming lost or facilitate reunification of stray pets with owners are vital to reducing shelter intakes and shelter length of stay.

Safety net programs targeting the stray pet population ideally include efforts to avoid the animal entering the shelter as a stray in the first place, including escape prevention initiatives. Some such programs aid in the construction of appropriate fencing for dogs. Others provide pet owners with information about how to secure gates and doors, how to train dogs to come when called, and how to recognize behavioral factors that may lead to escape attempts.

If a free‐roaming companion animal is found, proper identification can facilitate reunification with their owner in the field by the finder or animal control officer, avoiding intake into the shelter. In one study of cats and dogs adopted with a free collar and identification, 94% of those pets were still wearing identification at follow‐up approximately eight weeks later (Weiss et al. 2011). Reunification can be further facilitated by implanting microchips, which can increase reunification rates to twice those of unmicrochipped dogs and over 20 times those of unmicrochipped cats (Lord et al. 2009).

Shelters should maintain a thorough and up‐to‐date lost‐and‐found pet database and avoid unnecessary barriers to reunification such as heavy fees. An organization’s website and social media outlets are ideal platforms to post photos and descriptions of found animals. Coordination and sharing of lost‐and‐found information with other community sheltering organizations is vital to ensure a robust reunification system.

Both preventive and reunification efforts are of clear benefit to pets and clients by helping to avoid the animal running at‐large, impoundment, and the loss of the animal from the family. These efforts can also have a measurable effect within the community by reducing public safety and nuisance concerns related to free‐roaming companion animals. In addition, stray pet safety net programs can provide the initial opportunity for connection with the client to encourage use of other services, such as accessible veterinary and behavioral care. In particular, owners reunited with a lost pet may want resources to address factors that led to the animal’s loss, such as a reproductively intact status or an incomplete understanding of normal pet behavior.

Lost‐and‐found safety net programs are critical, and often required, operational components of organizations taking in stray animals. However, initiatives to prevent escape and facilitate reunification should also be considered by organizations not mandated to admit stray animals. Programs that go above and beyond the minimum lost‐and‐found standard of care, such as public microchipping clinics, can be an ideal opportunity for collaboration between private and municipal organizations in the community.