RSPCA teams up with animal searchers to reunite much-loved missing pets in Nottinghamshire

From April, the RSPCA started working with Animal Search UK – a search service for missing animals.

If a stray comes into RSPCA care, the animal will now be registered on the Animal Search website which automatically matches found pets with lost animals of the same description.

The public are being encouraged to register free on the Animal Search’s website.

A 24-hour customer advice and information line is also available, and there are additional services such as specialist publicity campaigns and a fully uniformed missing pet search team can also be accessed, often using pet owner’s existing pet insurance policy.

Almost 10,000 pets were reported missing on the website in 2021

Dermot Murphy, Chief Inspectorate Officer at the RSPCA, said: “We hope that their extensive knowledge and resources in this area, free website, pet search teams and seven-day advice and information service will result in more animals being successfully reunited.”

The RSPCA recommends that owners get their pets microchipped. It is now a legal requirement to have any dog over the age of eight weeks microchipped and for their details to be registered with an online database and kept up-to-date.

Andy McNair, from Animal Search, said: “No one expects to lose their pet, even fewer people know what to do when the worst happens. The most important thing is to build awareness and act quickly.”

The organisation also has a ‘Petwatch’ community of more than 86,000 online volunteers, who receive email alerts of pets that go missing in their area and can search.

Tips for what to do if your pet goes missing include : Check your home and local area thoroughly, if the animal is definitely missing, register them with an organisation like Animal Search UK.

If you suspect the animal has been stolen, contact the police

Call your microchip company to flag your pet as missing, to alert them to anyone trying to re-register the same microchip number

Call your local RSPCA branch vets and animal welfare organisations, talk to neighbours, postman, etc, and ask people to check sheds or garages and put flyers on notice boards and through letter boxes.