Happy Tails

These are authentic stories submitted by Pet FBI users. You can learn from them and we hope they will help you take heart and not give up too soon.

Senior Dog Reunited with Family ​

When 10-year-old Atticus went missing, his family quickly entered a report on Pet FBI.

“Within an hour of posting the flyer generated through Pet FBI, we received a call from someone who saw our dog. This gave us the lead we needed to locate him and bring him home safely.”

Atticus was soon reunited with his family.

“Anyone who has lost their pet knows the sheer panic and fear that overtakes you. Do a few things right away - call your local police, your nearest animal shelter, and all your friends & neighbors. Then, fill out a report on Pet FBI and generate the flyer. Within an hour of posting on social media, we got a lead on where our dog was seen. That tip led to us finding him and bringing him home safely. Pet FBI truly made all the difference. If you are searching for your companion, take a deep breath, get the word out, and trust there are good people out in the world who will help you reunite.”

Welcome home, Atticus!

Kiki Found Cat ​

I found the cat on my porch in early March, 2013. There are many strays in the neighborhood, but they tend to be very skittish. When I made eye contact with this cat, however, she came running over to me. She was very friendly and excitedly ate the cat food I gave her. Because of this behavior, I had a feeling that the cat belonged to someone and was lost.

I went online and searched on a few websites, including Pet FBI, to see if I could find a report of a lost cat matching her description. The date on the search page of Pet FBI had been automatically set to the beginning of the year (January 1, 2013), so I searched from that date to the present date. A couple of days later, with no responses to my "found" post, I extended my search back two months into the previous year. Looking through those postings, I saw post (with picture) that matched the description of the cat frequenting my porch. In addition, the 'location' given was about one block south of my house.

I contacted the owner via the email she had provided on Pet FBI and sent her the picture I had taken of the cat as well. She quickly emailed me back, recognizing her cat immediately. The cat had been through a rough and snowy winter. I managed to get her into my own pet carrier while we waited for her owner to meet us. When the owner arrived, we attempted to get the cat out of my carrier and into the owner's carrier. As soon as I opened the gate, however, the cat ran in fear.

Her owner was immediately saddened and chased after the cat. The owner called out the cat's name and asked the cat to come back. Upon hearing her owner's voice, the cat froze, turned around, looked, and then leapt back into her owner's arms. She happily got in her carrier and was taken home, safe and sound.

I was very happy to see the cat, Kiki, return to her home. I can only hope that someone would do the same if my cat were ever to be lost

Cat reunited after eight months! ​

"Today a little black cat I found six weeks ago was returned to his owner. She had lost him eight months ago (January) due to her family letting him out when she was at work because he had stomach problems.

He was in such bad shape when I found him. He was terribly dehydrated and thin and just ate, drank and slept. After five weeks he turned the corner and started racing around and chattering. Completely different personality, so I thought he must have been lost a long time ago… so… I went all the way back to lost pets since last September and searched some more. The mistake I made at first was only searching on lost pets May thru July. I took all of your great advice you give on this site and was very careful about finding his owner. Also, he was lost on the West side and I found him on the North side of Columbus.

The kitty's owner had even loaded a video of him onto youtube so I could see his personality. At least she has him back now and some closure. I however am a little sad to see him go".

OBJECT LESSON: ​

In searching the reports for a stray you have found, be sure to go back as far as you think it is possible for the pet to have been "on the street". Dogs and especially cats can "survive" for a long time, though they may be near starvation.

Man, a Golden Retriever back home after eight months! ​

Sometime in June ,2006, Man and his female companion, Spider, ran off. Spider came back three days later with buckshot wounds. Man's family was in despair but Man's Mom never gave up hoping and kept checking the PET FBI's Found Reports for golden retrievers. It was a long shot, but when Tami Shearer, a Columbus veterinarian posted a report for a golden retriever she rescued about thirty miles from Man's home, the family contacted Dr. Shearer and went to see. After Eight months on the streets, Man was much thinner, had lost three toes, and had other injuries that had healed, but it was Man!

This amazing story was featured on Columbus' Channel 6 and on Fox TV

Midnight the Cat reunited with family five months after they move to New Jersey. ​

When a black cat turned up on Sharon's doorstep in Worthington, she did all she could to find its family. She contacted the shelters, posted notices, and put up a report on the PET FBI site. She had just about given up the search, when she received a call from a man in New Jersey. He had lost a cat in Reynoldsburg (about 20 miles distant from Worthington) five months earlier. After relocating to New Jersey, he had pretty much given up hope of recovering Midnight, but, on a whim, he checked the PET FBI database. Sharon's report seemed to describe some of Midnight's characteristics, so he sent her a photograph and they exchanged emails, and a few weeks later, he drove the 500 miles to Columbus and ID'd Midnight! It is still a mystery how Midnight ended up in Worthington after wandering away from home in Reynoldsburg. If only they could talk.....

OBJECT LESSON: ​

Do not give up too soon! Persistence pays.

Leluja, Found Dog

The dog's name is Leluja as is hallelujah. She is not my dog. I work for a fire department in Dublin, Ohio. She was found walking down a busy street near the firehouse with no tags and a civilian pulled over in their car, grabbed her, and brought her to the firehouse.

Being a dog lover, I said I'd take her and the rest of my crew was happy to take her as well. We called around to every veterinarian in the area seeing if they could identify her. We even took her to a vet to be scanned for a chip. No luck, but they mentioned your website, so we posted her pic and info and chipped in a bought some dog food. It was the Facebook connection to your website that gave Leluja and her owner their lucky break.

Her owner lives in Marysville, Ohio. She was on a weekend retreat and doesn't really use computers, but her friend does.Leluja was being watched by another person while her owner was away and escaped from the vehicle while on a trip to Dublin. She'd been on her own for almost 24 hours and covered probably 10 miles from where she was supposedly lost before she was picked up.

I kept her at the firehouse for my shift (24 hrs-- 8 AM to 8AM), but we could not locate the owner, so I took her home with me. I live in Pickerington, Ohio. When Leluja's owner returned home to find her precious dog was lost she frantically called her friend. Her friend is an avid user of Facebook and was of course posting info about the missing dog. She saw the pet FBI link. She clicked in and in moments saw Leluja's picture. She called Leluja's owner.

Leluja's owner called one of our firehouses and told them about the posting. They called me and told me the above story and I connected with Leluja's owner. She was ecstatic. I told her I had the dog with me at a softball game in Whitehall where I coach girl's softball. I brought Leluja with me to the game because she was so sweet.

Leluja's owner asked if she could drive out to Whitehall. I couldn't believe she was in Marysville. Leluja had come a long way!

Leluja's owner showed up to the game much to the girl's dismay, but we were all very happy. I had heard Leluja bark while I had her, but when she spotted her owner coming across the field, Leluja started this big hound dog cry. It was so sad and happy at the same time. I was in the middle of a game, so my meeting with Leluja's owner was brief. I didn't even get her name. She was crying,

Leluja was howling-- she just kept saying thank you. I had time to say you're welcome and had to jog back on the field.

So, that's it. From Marysville to Dublin to Pickerington to Whitehall to home-sweet-home thanks to a couple of people and mostly thanks to PetFBI.

If it wasn't for the PetFBI website, Leluja and her owner would not have been reunited. So, thank you!

OBJECT LESSON: ​

Use all internet resources. Often one will lead to another that has the information you need.

Candy, Lost Dog ​

Candy was found in the middle of an intersection many miles away from home. Some wonderful person picked her up and took her to the animal shelter. She was there for less than a day before I found her there. She is still doing well. No other break outs thank heavens!

OBJECT LESSON: ​

Dogs can end up many miles away from home, as happened to Leluja in the article above. Cast a wide net in looking for your pet and be sure to check the shelters as soon as possible. Because the Good Samaritan brought Candy to a shelter and because the owner did not wait to look for her, there was a speedy reunion. If you are afraid to surrender a pet you have found because you fear the pet will be put down, ask about adopting the animal if the owner is not found. Then you can then keep it or foster it until you can rehome it.

Little, Lost Cat ​

Little was an indoor/outdoor cat who spent most days outside and most nights inside. On January 16, 2013 when he failed to return home after being called I began to worry. He’d never not returned home. What was worse is that the temperature dropped from 60 to 20 overnight with strong winds creating wind chills around 0. I found Pet FBI when I began the search a day later on a recommendation from a local shelter, provided the flyer it generated to several local shelters and the humane society. I spent the next couple of days searching the neighborhood with no luck. A few days later I contacted a Pet Detective who brought his tracking hounds and spent 4 hours in 5 degree weather with my friends and me combing the neighborhood, hanging signs, and passing out flyers, but we had no luck. Later that night, just before I fell asleep, I heard a strange noise out on my porch, so I went out and called one more time. Very slowly, up comes Little, dehydrated, bloody, and thin. He came in and immediately curled into my arms.

I took him to OSU Veterinary Medical Center where after a series of tests, X-rays, and a CAT scan they determined that besides severe dehydration and hypothermia his only major injuries were a fractured jaw and small fractures on his cheek and ocular cavity, injuries consistent with being in contact with a moving vehicle. A surgery was performed and his jaw was wired up for 6 weeks. He made a full recovery.

OBJECT LESSON: ​

An injured or frightened animal may try to elude you if there are unfamiliar people or animals around. Once things quieted down, Little made his presence known. But the owner is to be commended for going to great trouble and expense to try to recover Little. Tracking hounds are usually more successful.