Although humans may enjoy the festivities of July 4th, the holiday can be a very anxious and scary time for pets.
More pets go missing during the Fourth of July weekend than at any other time of the year, according to the American Kennel Club.
OC Animal Care in Tustin has been busy dealing with at least 57 stray dogs who were brought to shelters during the holiday.
During the celebrations, “the sudden noises and unfamiliar experiences can cause dogs to panic, resulting in them escaping from their homes or yards in search of safety,” explained OC Animal Care officials.
Some of the dogs have since been reunited with their owners, including Shadow, who ran away from Yorba Linda.
Other pets, however, have not been so lucky and remain separated from their loved ones. For owners still searching for their lost pets, there are several resources.
“If you’re looking for your dog, one of the best things that you could do right now is check out our website at ocpetinfo.com,” advises Jackie Tran, with OC Animal Care. “We have all of the lost dogs listed on our website with their photos and a description of them. In addition to that, you can check out local veterinarian offices or you can search Facebook groups, NextDoor or any posters hanging around.”
If your pet was lost in Los Angeles or Riverside counties, many shelters there have worked with Petco Love Lost, a website where owners can upload pictures of their lost pet.
“Petco Love Lost uses image recognition technology driven by machine learning to reunite lost pets,” explained Abbie Moore with Petco Love. “So if you’ve lost a pet, you can upload a photo of your pet and then we’ll take that photo and instantly compare it to photos of all the pets in all of the shelters and all of the pets that have been reported found in your area.”
Petco Love’s image recognition technology works with all kinds of pets, not just dogs and cats.
More information on owners searching for lost pets or those looking to adopt can be found online here or at Petco Love Lost.