Found A Lost Pet
When you find a pet alone, it can feel hard to know what the best action to take is. Here's the next steps when you've found a lost dog or cat.
If you think you’ve found a lost dog, here are the next steps you should take:
- If they are calm, check to see if they are wearing a collar with their owner’s information and try to contact them directly.
- If the dog is sick or injured, contact a local vet for further advice and if the dog is in immediate danger please contact emergency services.
- If the dog is displaying aggressive behaviour, do not approach them. Instead contact your local dog warden by calling the police on 101 or via the following numbers.
Edinburgh: 0131 608 1100
East Lothian: 01875 824 305
Midlothian: 0131 561 5284
West Lothian: 01506 280 000
- If you are able to safely approach and contain the dog, take them to a local vet to have their microchip scanned.
- Contact local animal shelters such as Edinburgh Dog and Cat Home to report the found dog, they may be able to help match them with their owner.
- Try to capture pictures and videos of the stray dog and share these on local social media groups to help spread the word locally and reconnect the animal with their loved ones.
Reporting Stray Dogs
If you can’t find the dog’s owner, and local animal shelters can’t take them in, you must report the dog to your local council dog warden.
It’s an offense to keep a stray dog without reporting them to the authorities. If you would like to rehome the dog yourself, let the dog warden or animal shelter that takes them know and it’s possible they will return the dog to you if they do not find their owner.
Have You Found a Stray Cat?
It’s not always easy to tell if a cat is stray, feral, or simply an outdoor pet. Here’s what you should do if you find a cat that you suspect is stray or lost.
- If the cat seems friendly and well groomed, it might be a lost pet. Check on local social media pages to see if anyone is looking for a lost pet and share their picture in case anyone recognises them.
- If the cat is happy for you to approach them, try and see if they have a collar with their owner’s contact details to reach out to.
- If you can get the cat safely into a cat carrier, you can take them to a local vet practice to scan their chip.
- Contact local animal shelters such as Edinburgh Dog and Cat Home to report the cat as they may be able to help reconnect them with their owner or provide further advice.
- If you’re worried about their health or unable to contain them yourself, you can contact the Scottish SPCA emergency line at 03000 999 999
Reporting Stray Cats
Once you have established that the cat is a stray and not someone’s missing pet, it’s not an offense to keep them yourself. You should make sure they have had the appropriate veterinary treatments and update their chip.
If you are unable to keep the cat yourself, give us a call on 0131 669 5331 and we may be able to help you.