Who are we?
We are a friendly, dedicated group of volunteers, who have extensive experience with successfully locating and reuniting lost dogs, either by trapping or other methods.
Trust us to help bring your pooch home…
OUR MISSION
Our aim is to not only rescue lost dogs and reunite them with their families, but to strive to keep them safe while they are lost. This involves doing all we can to stop people searching for the lost dog (unless necessary), approaching, chasing (on foot or in a vehicle), calling their name, shouting and whistling. This is because a dog will react negatively to this and they will bolt. They may leave the area completely. They keep themselves safe while they are out there but if the above happens, they forget about staying safe and will run out onto roads in order to escape from those people doing this. This includes motorways, railways and rivers/canals. Many lost dogs have lost their lives because of this.
Our vision is to educate people to understand why a lost dog needs to be left alone so that the dog’s owner (they have the best chance of securing their own dog) or a trapping team like ourselves can work in a non-threatening manner to the dog to safely secure them. We advise and support owners to lure their dog if they don’t return home or to the place they went missing from. We also support owners with using specific body language techniques when trying to lure their dog to them (a lost dog will rarely respond positively to their owner until they are in a calm state of mind and close enough to recognise their scent). We are a trapping team, however, a trap is not always needed. By using our methods without having to trap, we can get your lost dog safely home. Sometimes a lost dog needs to be humanely trapped and if so, they are not put under any undue stress and safety for your dog is always paramount.
We do not condone drones being used for a lost dog, unless, for example, the dog is feared stuck on the moors or elsewhere. We also don’t condone tracking dogs searching for a lost dog, again, unless the dog is feared stuck. The reason for this is because if drones and tracking dogs are used, this is the same as searching and a lost dog will react negatively to these. Natural sightings work more effectively and the lost dog does not feel threatened.
A lost dog will be frightened and the last thing that the dog needs is for strangers approaching them or coming across their safe place (if this happens the dog will definitely bolt and move area), people shouting or whistling them, tracking dogs running to them (if they do track the dog down), and drones flying above them. There are also certain rules/laws that people who fly drones have to follow and a lot of the time the area is unsuitable for a drone. Another reason why we don’t condone drones is because with most drone groups, they publicise any sightings of the dog on the social platform for all to see and ask for ground searchers. A dog is a sentient being who will respond negatively to any attempt to seek them down and catch them.
We work in a non-threatening manner to the lost dog where we poster the area and ask people not to acknowledge the dog if they see him/her but to phone immediately with the location details. We place feed stations with live cameras and scent trails to lead the dog to the food. Once a dog has fed we place a humane trap down with tempting food and monitor it 24/7.
If your dog becomes lost, we highly advise that you immediately contact us or another team in your area who shares the same values. Be careful posting on social media. If you do, make it clear that you only want sightings of your dog and that you don’t want people to search or approach your dog. If your dog approaches them that’s great. But this is very rare. Don’t publicise the exact location where your dog went missing from. Also don’t put your dog’s name on the post. People will shout your dog’s name if they see him/her and this has a negative effect on the lost dog.
We are volunteers and do not charge. We rely solely on donations to buy specialist equipment, maintain it and buy food needed for feed stations and traps.