Leash laws are in effect in most areas of the country, but dogs still get loose and ultimately wander away from home. If you come across a stray dog, how do you find the owner?
If the dog is wearing a collar, any tag on the collar will provide helpful information. If he doesn’t have an ID tag with name and phone number of his owner, check for a dog license or rabies tag.
The name of the veterinarian that vaccinated the dog will be on the rabies tag, and a phone call to the vet should be all it takes to get owner information. The county or city agency that issued the license tag will also be able to provide an owner name and address.
The Ross County Auditor’s office in Chillicothe is responsible for issuing county dog licenses and maintains a searchable database online that allows residents to locate information based on tag number, address, location, and even breed. If the dog is licensed, simply type in the tag number.
Even without a tag, if you think the dog lives in your neighborhood, you can type in several street names and see if it returns any information on a dog fitting the description of the stray you found. If you know what breed the dog is, you can search by breed and look through the results for owners of that breed in your area.
If the dog isn’t wearing any type of identifying tag, it’s still possible that he could be microchipped. Scanning for a chip takes just a few seconds and can be done by any veterinarian or your local shelter or dog warden.
It might be tempting to keep a stray dog that wandered into your life, but there’s probably someone out there worrying about his welfare. Take the dog in off the street to keep him safe, then do the right thing and try to locate the owner.
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