Vernon, BC – Each year, thousands of pets go missing, and although a variety of tracking methods have been developed to tag, and uniquely identify animals, quite often those pets remain missing. The Humane Society of Canada (HSC) has established a Pet Recovery Team in Ontario which covers all of Canada. The Pet Recovery Team is a unit which works to identify and register household pets, using a double-sided tag, with the animals name, the owner’s name and telephone number and the toll-free number for the Pet Recovery Team.

Maureen Terrey of EarthAnimals Pet Services advised her pet sitting and dog walking customers of the benefits of registering with the Pet Recovery Team and many have registered their pets. But Terrey would like to spread the word further, and feels it is very important for pet owners to have their pets registered on a national database in case of loss, or in the event of a natural disaster like hurricane Katrina.

Since the program was launched simultaneously in Canada and the US in 1994 over 10,000 pets have been registered and tagged. Michael O’Sullivan, Executive Director of the Humane Society is pleased with the results, but knows there are a lot more pets out there who need to be identified.

The difference between this service and other tagging or identifying methods is simple. Most communities have a dog registration program, which for a small fee, offers a tag and registration of your dog in their records. But this does not always include cats or other animals, and the animals are often not cross-registered with neighbouring communities. Other common tags will list numbers to Vet Clinics which have limited office hours, or may not get updated when people move.

Tattoos can be problematic if the animal is too young when they are done, or if there is damage to the ears. And microchips are great, however, the technology is needed to find the chip and read it, not something readily available in all areas.

Registration is simple, online or by mail, with tags being sent by mail quickly. The program is funded entirely by donations, and staffed by a part time coordinator and two volunteers. There is no charge for your pet's lifetime registration in the HSC Pet Recovery Team.

And the program works. Veronica Fortune of Kingston, ON, has had her dogs, Spencer and his sister, 11 year old black labs, registered for the past year. Then the day came when Spencer and his sister were caught by the Dog Catcher, landed in Canine Jail and when Fortune paid their bail, she decided that there had to be a better way.

Recently, a contractor working on her house left the gate open and Spencer escaped again, only this time, within 30 minutes, a neighbour called her number on the tag and she was able to pick him up without searching or paying fines.

To register your pet or to make a donation to the Pet Recovery Program, please visit the website www.humanesociety.com and look under Pets or call 800-641-5463.

Maureen Terrey has a passion for working with animals and believes in the equality of all life. As a professional Pet Sitter/Dog Walker, she is certified in Pet First Aid, and her business, EarthAnimals Pet Services, is Licensed, Insured and Bonded. To support her work with animals, she is a proud member of the All Canadian Pet Services Network and the International Association of Animal Massage and Bodywork. Terrey has extensive training in the healing arts and also works with people introducing them to the healing benefits of Sound & Energy in their lives.

For more information call 250-938-5151.

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