It was after dinner and I was home alone when I heard a scratching on my door. A little weirded out, I found there was no one at my door. What there was, was a little white dog who promptly decided to try to worm herself inside. I already have a fur baby inside who’s not fond of other animals so I went out to meet the dog but as soon as I stepped outside, the dog took off. My backdoor leads out to the courtyard, which is the unofficial dog yard. Maybe this dog’s owner was down there and let the dog wander up to my second floor apartment. It’s not unheard of.
Not too much longer, however, I saw the dog again wandering through the parking lot. That’s when I knew she was probably lost. I slipped on some shoes, grabbed my phone, and headed out to try to coax the little fluff to me.
If you’ve ever tried to approach a frightened animal, you know this isn’t the easiest thing. The little dog kept circling me, clearly torn between wanting to run away and wanting some comfort. I was able to get her to finally come to me by crouching on the ground.
I’ve never seen a little dog more frightened. She took shelter under my legs, trembling the whole time, and while I was looking for a dog tag, she took a dump at my feet. My apartment parking lot is like a wind funnel and I’m sure that didn’t help matters with the animal’s anxiety levels. Unfortunately, this little dog only had a collar but no dog tag. I had no owner contact information on hand.
I haven’t lived in Tacoma very long and don’t come across lost animals very often. It was late, and I didn’t know whom to call. While I was searching for an appropriate number and wondering if I could bring another animal into my apartment without war breaking out with my own pet, the little dog ran off. Search as I might, I couldn’t find her again. At a loss, I picked up her poop to throw away, and went back home.
I never found out whose dog that was, or whether she was found. But I was reminded the importance of pet tags, and found the numbers of who to call when encountering a lost pet. If you, too, find a wandering pet, you can call your local animal control or Humane Society. Hopefully the lost pet already has some sort of identification on it—a tag or a chip. Chips can be read at a veterinary clinic or animal shelter. And finally make sure that your own pets have identification so that if they get lost in a parking lot, a well-meaning neighbor can bring them home.
If you have lost a pet or found one please check out the Seattle Pup Magazine "I'm Lost" page. Click Here!
Register your pup with your local city or county. Seattle requires that all dogs be registered. It's EASY! Click "Rules and Regulations" for more details.
Megan Noborikawa
writer/editor
Megan is a graduate of Pacific Lutheran University. She has many interests, which include but are not limited to the environment, editing, and other peoples' dogs.
For more information about our team and how to become a part of the pack visit our "About Us" page.