Found a dog - what do I do?

[K House]

I found a stray dog on Friday. I found her in the parking lot of an auto repair shop. Skinny and infested with fleas, no collar. She looks like a Jack Russell Terrier except she is black with brown tips. She's a very sweet thing. She is eating well and is mostly house-broken. She does not know how to walk on a leash. Nala is just having the time of her life with this new friend! And she even gets along with my cats! Anyway, I am going to take her by my vet's office today and see if she is micro-chipped. I placed a "Found" ad on petfinder.com. I am also going to call my local paper and place an ad. What else should I do?

 

[Stacy W.]

Call the local SPCA and see if they have had anyone call or come in looking for a dog that meets that discription. I know my local SPCA keeps a file of dogs that people call looking for and dogs that people call that they have found.

 

[xenaprincess]

I agree...call your local SPCA or shelter. Maybe someone reported her missing, but from the sounds of her condition, I have my doubts.
I do have concerns though about having the poor stray interacting with your Nala and the cats before knowing if it is carrying any infectious diseases! I am assuming that you gave her a flea treatment? You wouldn't want your home and pets infested with fleas!!
I sure hope you find this girls owners if she has any. If not, have you thought about adopting her yourself? Sounds like she's fitting in wonderfully!! Keep us posted!

 

[FarleyBoxer]

Went through this Saturday

We also found a puppy Saturday morning at the park. I was very worried about having an unknown dog around Farley so we went straight to the Humane Society (no-kill). I just felt like my first responsibility was to my own baby, not a strange dog. Later that day we saw missing fliers posted around the neighborhood and called the girl. It was her puppy. She apparently lets her dogs out to potty off-leash, with no collars on. :(

Anyway, happy ending. We could not afford to fund a vet visit for a dog we don't know to make sure it was healthy and then keep it around until we found her owner/new home, so this was our best option. If you have determined the dog isn't microchipped and you cannot take in another, I would either call you local HS or Jack Russell rescue.

 

[K House]

I took her to my vet and she is not micro-chipped. They said she 'looks' healthy. They gave me the numbers to the Humane Society for the county I live in and the one that I'm close to. I'm also going to post her picture on their lost/found board tonight.

She and Nala get along so well! I never would've considered getting a small dog but... I will definitely consider keeping her if I don't find her owners.

This may be a dumb question but I'll ask anyway. If my dog and cats are up to date on their shots, what could they catch from this new little girl? (I bathed her and treated her with Frontline as soon as I got her home so that should take care of the fleas.)

 

[K House]

She's got an appointment with my vet on Thursday for vaccinations.

 

[xenaprincess]

Well my main concern for you was the vaccination issue! If the dog was not up to date on her shots then parvo, worms, etc. would be a concern. However, you have not mentioned anything physically wrong with the dog except for fleas (by that I mean diarreah, vomitting, mange, etc.). And now that you have had her to the vets and she has a clean bill of health, then there should be no need to worry. You are really going out of your way for this lil girl, and I think you're a GREAT person for that, BUT, have you thought about the possibility of the original owner showing up to claim her? Not only have you spent your own money for a vet check and vaccinations, but you and your family seem to really be bonding with her! I would just hate to see you get hurt after all your efforts to ensure this lil ones health and safety.

 

[K House]

Yeah, I've thought about it. Last night I actually found myself thinking that I hope nobody comes looking for her. Bad bad bad, I know. If she is someone's beloved family pet, I want her to be reunited with them. But at the same time - there are no posters, no lost ads, no fliers at any of the local vets offices, she isn't micro-chipped. And the area where I found her is a rather run-down part of town.

I think whatever is meant to happen will happen.

 

[xenaprincess]

hehehe...I'm kinda thinking she belongs to you guys now! At least I hope so anyway! Like I said earlier, with the condition she was in, I doubt very much if anyone is missing her! :( Everything happens for a reason, so maybe this was "divine intervention"...you were meant to find each other! It's nice to think so!

 

[K House]

OMG! I just did some research on Jack Russell Terriers and learned that they are small animal killers! There are tons of testimonials on the JRT Rescue Site that tell of people who tried to keep a JRT and cat(s) and sometimes it was only a matter of days and sometimes years before the JRT attacked but they warn that it is a JRT's instinct to hunt and kill! They say to keep them separated when they are not being supervised. This doesn't work for me because I have a dog door to the fenced-in backyard that all my animals use. My cats love to run around the backyard.

This changes things completely. :(