Lost Pet Help
Lost a Pet? Here’s What to Do
If your dog, cat, or other pet is missing, it can be a scary and stressful experience for both your family and your pet. Pets can go missing quickly, whether through an open door or gate at home or when frightened by loud noises.
Try not to panic. If you have lost a pet in Raleigh, Wake County, or the surrounding area, use the steps and resources below to help bring them home safely.
What to Do When Your Pet is Missing
The first hours after a pet goes missing are important.
Start close to home, spread the word quickly, and keep checking local lost-and-found resources as your search expands.
Within the First Hour Search Nearby and Alert Your Neighborhood
Start by searching close to home and alerting the people around you. Knock on your neighbors’ doors to ask if they have seen your missing pet.
Post on community message boards or apps. This could include neighborhood apps such as Nextdoor & Ring Neighbors, a neighborhood email list, or a local Facebook group. Make sure to include:
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A clear photo of your pet
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Your pet’s color and size
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Whether your pet is male or female
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The last known location or closest intersection
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Your contact information
If your pet is microchipped, contact the microchip company right away to report your pet as lost. Make sure your phone number, email address, and other contact information are up to date so you can be reached quickly if your pet is found.
Within the Next Few Hours Expand Your Search and Spread the Word
Start searching the Petco Love Lost database and upload photos of your lost pet as soon as possible.
Petco Love Lost, an SPCA of Wake County partner, is a free lost-and-found pet database that uses photo-matching technology to help reunite missing pets with their families. Your pet’s uploaded photo will be compared with photos of found animals reported by participating animal shelters and members of the community.
Next, make a lost pet flyer. Walk your neighborhood and hand it out to neighbors, postal carriers, UPS and Amazon drivers, landscapers, and others who spend time in your area. Tell them your pet is missing and ask them to keep an eye out.
Consider setting up a PawBoost alert to help spread the word about your missing dog or cat.
Within the First 24 Hours Contact Local Shelters and Keep Searching
Contact your county’s animal shelter or animal services agency to see if your pet has been turned in. If your pet is missing in Wake County, be sure to check the Wake County Animal Center listings frequently. Because lost pets may not arrive at a shelter immediately, continue checking back as often as you can.
Hang lost pet posters around the area where your pet was last seen. Hang posters at major intersections within a 3-mile radius for a lost dog or a 1-mile radius for a lost cat. Once your pet is found, please retrieve your lost pet posters from wherever you hung them.
Post your missing pet on social media and in local lost-and-found pet groups. Include clear photos of both your pet’s face and body, along with your contact information and the location where your pet was last seen.
Continue searching frequently. Check local animal shelter websites, lost-and-found pet websites, community apps, and social media groups for animals matching your pet’s description.
Wake County Resources Who Should I Call If I Lost a Pet in Wake County?
If you lost your pet in Wake County, start with the Wake County Animal Center, which handles stray animals for the county. Check its found-pet listings frequently and contact the shelter directly if you think you see a match.
Wake County Animal Center
820 Beacon Lake Drive, Raleigh, NC 27610
If you live near a county line, check neighboring county shelters as well. Lost pets don’t always stay within county boundaries, and they may not arrive at a shelter until hours or days after they first go missing.
Continue checking shelter websites and lost-and-found pet listings frequently while you search.
Watch Out for Lost Pet Scams
Unfortunately, scammers sometimes target people searching for a missing pet.
A scammer may call or text claiming to be from SPCA Wake, law enforcement, a veterinary hospital, or another legitimate organization and tell you that your pet has been found badly injured. They may create a sense of urgency by saying your pet needs immediate surgery or medical treatment and demand payment before they will provide care.
⚠ SPCA Wake will never call you demanding payment for a lost animal's care.
If someone contacts you claiming to have your pet and asks for money:
- ● Don't send payment or provide financial information right away.
- ● If the caller claims to represent an organization, hang up and contact that organization directly using the phone number listed on its official website—not a number provided by the caller.
- ● Be cautious even if the caller ID appears legitimate. Scammers can spoof phone numbers to make a call appear to come from a trusted organization.
- ● If you confirm that the call is fraudulent, report it to 311 for investigation.
Learn more about how to recognize and avoid lost pet scams.
Get Lost Pet Help from SPCA Wake
Last but not least, fill out an SPCA Wake Lost Pet help form via the Helpline button below.
The form will ask for information about your missing pet, where they were last seen, and how we can contact you. Include as much detail as possible, and please attach photos when prompted.
If we receive a call from someone who has found a pet matching your pet’s description, we will contact you.