Stray Dogs

Organisations to Contact if you Have Lost Your Dog

If you have lost your dog, there are a number of things you should do. It is recommended that you regularly contact the following to see if they have any knowledge of your dog:

  • Gravesham Borough Council on 01474 33 70 00 after 11 a.m. This will give us time to have updated our records with regards dogs held at Viking Oak Kennels or being looked after by the finder since the end of the previous day.
  • The council’s Kennel Service, Viking Oak Kennels on 01732 88 34 68. Your dog may have been picked up as a stray. Dogs are kept for 7 full days from the day of collection before being rehomed. There are fees to be paid when claiming your dog.
  • The Police by phoning 101.
  • The neighbours in your local street.
  • Vets in and around your area. The local vets in Gravesham are:
    • Meopham Vets 01474 81 53 33
    • Parrock Street Vets 01474 35 27 93
    • Shrubbery Vets 01474 53 48 91
    • Vets4Pets 01474 54 69 00
  • Kennels in and around your area including Battersea at Brands Hatch on 01474 87 51 03 and Battersea London 0843 509 44 44.
  • Councils bordering Gravesham as it may have been handed into their stray dog kennels. The neighbouring councils are:
    • Medway 01634 30 60 00
    • Dartford and Sevenoaks 01322 34 34 34 or 01732 22 70 00
    • Tonbridge and Malling 01732 84 45 22
  • The RSPCA http://www.rspca.org.uk/home or telephone 0300 1234 999
  • If your dog is microchipped notify the company that holds the database e.g. Petlog, Anibase or Petrac.
  • You could also visit the Dog Lost website or telephone 0844 800 3220. Dog Lost helps reunite dogs with their owners. You can post details and a photograph of your dog on the website. It also has details of found dogs.

Stolen Dogs

If you believe your dog has been stolen, in addition to the above, inform the Police and you could also:

Visit the dog theft action website. This website provides information to victims of dog theft and assists them in their search for their stolen or missing dog;

You may wish to put messages out on Facebook and Twitter. You may also wish to put posters, with a contact telephone number on, on notice boards or in shop windows around where you live and where you have lost the dog, or put leaflets through your neighbours’ doors.

Additional Information

Any dog found in a public place or on any other land or premises, and is not under the control of the owner, is a stray dog under the above legislation and as such the council has a duty, if practicable, to seize the dog and detain it. If it was found on land or premises which is not a public place it was seized at the request of the owner or occupier of the land or premises.

Please be aware that it is a legal requirement that all dogs wear a collar with an identity tag when in a public place. If a dog is lost or strays this will enable the dog to be reunited with its owner more quickly, causing less distress to both the dog and owner.

It is strongly advised that in addition to your dog being microchipped and the database being kept up to date that it wears a collar and tag with your contact details on it. It is in fact a legal requirement for every dog to be microchipped and for it to wear a collar with tag when it is outside its home. Most veterinary practices offer a chipping service and the council carries out microchipping events two or three times per year. The date of the next council chipping event will be posted on the microchipping page on the council’s website.

A 'chip’ (about the size of a long grain of rice) is injected into the dog and carries a unique number that allows the dog to be traced to its owner once scanned. All of the owners contact details are stored on a National Database. The council’s kennelling service will scan the dog for a microchip and will contact the owner as soon as is practicable.

The council has been advised that in the event of an accident whilst a dog is straying, if the owner’s details are unavailable a veterinary practice will only carry out basic first aid. A microchip will enable quick tracing of the owner’s details thus allowing in-depth medical treatment, potentially saving your dog’s life. It is important that the details on the database with regards the owner’s address and phone numbers etc. are kept up to date as failure to do so may result in you not being reunited with your dog