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Compassion. Advocacy. Rescue. Education

For Our Community & Our Animals

What to Do When You Find a Stray Animal in Clermont County

  1. Contain the animal if you can do so safely.
    • Always approach stray animals slowly and cautiously while speaking in a calm, gentle voice. You can also use food to coax a frightened animal into approaching you.
    • Dog should be secured using a leash or contained in a fenced yard.
    • Cats are best confined inside a cat carrier, secure box (with air holes), small room of your house or temporarily in your car (as long as the car is well ventilated and not too hot).
  2. Check for ID if you can do so safely.
    • If the animal is wearing an ID tag with owner information, contact the owner immediately to facilitate a quick return home. If the pet is wearing ID, but you are unable to immediately make contact with the owner, you may choose to hold onto the pet for a few hours and wait for a call back from the owner. If you choose this course of action, it is still advisable to immediately file a “found” report with Clermont Animal CARE by messaging us on Facebook with a picture and the address the animal was found or by calling the shelter at (513) 732-8854 in case the owner calls or goes there to search for their pet. If you are unable to hold the pet, you can either bring it to the Clermont County Animal Shelter during normal business hours or call us at (513) 732-8854 to schedule a pick up.
  3. If the animal is not wearing any obvious identification, have the pets scanned for a microchip at our shelter or a veterinary office at no charge. A registered microchip, often implanted between the shoulder blades of an animal, has owner contact information.
  4. Bring pets with no ID to the Clermont Animal CARE Humane Society (the Clermont County Animal Shelter). If the animal has no ID tag or microchip, its best chance of being reunited with its owner is most likely at the animal shelter. The shelter is the most obvious place where owners are likely to look for lost pets.
  5. Take a picture of the lost pet and post fliers in your neighborhood and online.

Tips for creating a great flier:

    • Take a clear picture.
    • Include your contact information or the contact information where the animal is being held.
    • Include the address or cross street, plus zip code where the animal was found.
    • Include the date the animal was found.
    • Post fliers in your neighborhood, at your local pet store and local veterinary offices.
    • Post online to your personal Facebook page and community groups such as Cincinnati Tri-State Area Lost and Found Pets, Lost Pets of Clermont County, etc. Also post to your neighborhood NextDoor forum.

Note: Never put yourself in harm’s way by attempting to capture an animal that is behaving aggressively. If you cannot safely approach the animal or if it runs away, call us at (513) 732-8854 or the Clermont County Sheriff’s Department immediately. Be sure to give the dispatcher the exact street address where the animal was last seen with a good description.