Have you lost a pet? We’re here to help!

If you have lost a pet, please visit the shelter located at 7077 Elmwood Avenue at your earliest available opportunity and check our Found Pets list. Our shelter receives animals every day and one of them could be your pet.

We are required to hold stray animals, animals that do not have an identified owner, for five days. After this five day holding period, any stray animal can be put up for adoption, transferred to another shelter, sent to rescue, put into a foster home, and in rare cases, euthanized (only if serious medical issues exist or there are issues of aggression).

As the owner you are the best person to identify your own pet, therefore we cannot tell you with certainty whether your pet is here or not.

Step 1

• Fill out our Lost Pet Form.

Step 2

• If you have not yet provided one, please send a photo of your missing animal to [email protected] within 24 hours.

Step 3

• Visit our main shelter location to see if your animal is here. We’re located at 7077 Elmwood Avenue Kansas City, MO 64132 and open Noon-6pm Monday-Saturday and Noon-5pm on Sunday.

Step 4

• Review KC Pet Project’s Found Animal Photos to see if a pet matching your description has come in.

• Check on social media pages and the Nextdoor app
• Notify your veterinarian that you lost your pet
• Notify area veterinarians and provide them with photos of your lost pet
• Post flyers in your neighborhood
• Visit other area animal shelters and post lost pet notices
• Check Craig’s list for “found” pets and post a “lost pet” ad
• Check local newspapers for “found” pet advertisements
• Look on Petco Love Lost and register your pet so you can use their facial recognition software
• Check Lost Dog Registry KC
• Pawboost is a paid service you can try, too
• Don’t give up hope. Pets have been found months after getting lost!
• Additional resources

It is always a good idea if your dog is purebred or could be considered purebred to contact rescue groups in the US who specialize in that breed.—If your dog is not pure bred please continue to contact rescue groups just in case!

PetFinder provides a great resource on their website that allows you to search for rescue groups based on their breed as well as based on their location. Dogs are transported to rescues all across the U.S. so don’t be afraid to contact out of state rescue groups as well. 

If you think there is a chance your dog is stolen please contact the police to fill out a report. Reports are great to have on file in the chance that you find someone who has your dog and won’t give it back. Make sure that you have photos of as many angles as possible of your dogs as they also help in proving ownership. If your pet is microchipped this is THE BEST proof of ownership you can have. If you see someone with your dog the best thing to do is call the police and provide them with any evidence you can (picture, license plate, address) so that they can handle the situation.

If your animal is microchipped please contact the company: ensure your information is current and report your pet as lost. If you do not know if your pet is micro-chipped you can contact the facility that you received your pet from and they can give you the info. If you’re not sure what your pet’s chip is registered with, you can search the chip number. This website will also give you the microchip company’s name, as well as contact information so you can report your pet missing.

If you are fortunate in finding your pet, we ask that you consider having him/her microchipped as a means of permanent identification. This is a service we offer at the shelter during normal business hours for $25. You do not need to make an appointment to have your pet microchipped.

Also, please make sure your pet is always wearing a collar and ID tags. ID tags can include rabies or license tags, microchip tags, personal ID tags etc. It is important to realize that only 5% of lost pets that are not wearing identification ever get reunited with their owners. Please ID your pet! It is your pet’s ticket home!