I Lost My Dog, FREE Lost Dog Search & Recovery Ocean County

Covering the Toms River Area of Ocean County, New Jersey

Welcome to I Lost My Dog "Volunteer Lost Dog Search Team" The information below is what we do and can be done by anybody that has the misfortune of losing their dog. If you are in the Ocean County area of New Jersey then you can call us to help search for your missing pet. We are only able join in the search as time permits but we also have places to post your information where others in the community can help and instruct you on the most effective ways to conduct your search. The most effective postings are here: Ocean County area you can post your lost dog on our Facebook page or If you live in The State of New Jersey you can post your lost dog on our Facebook page so others can help. We wish we were able to help everyone and join in every search but we cant so follow the information and we hope for the best.

Click Here to see our current searches Help us Find Rocky!

Thousands of dogs are lost every year. Thankfully, many are found. What can be done to make sure you and your pet enjoy a speedy reunion?

We are a non-profit search and rescue lost dog recovery team located in South Toms River, N.J. covering the following Ocean County New Jersey areas: Toms River, South Toms River, Beachwood, Bayville, Ocean Gate, Pine Beach, Whiting, Manchester Township, Parts of Lacey Township and Berkeley Twp. Lanoka Harbor, Forked River and most of the surrounding Toms River Areas. Our volunteer dog search and rescue group is dedicated to help you find your missing dog. If your dog is lost It is Imperative you act quick and follow the information below. The quicker you act the faster and better your chances are to recover your pet.

"Please do not call us for stray dogs. If you want to report a stray please call your local Animal Control Agent or your local police and they will direct you to the proper authorities."

Due to the large amount of calls we get, we are only able respond to the calls by the owners or guardians of the lost dogs. We urge you to call us ASAP so we can get the information we need to conduct our search, the longer you wait the harder it is to recover your pet. If you are a friend or relative of the owner and you want to make a report of their lost dog you can do so by placing a post on Facebook to Ocean County Lost Dogs. We will not search for a lost dog if you are not the owner or guardian, we have been on to many 3rd party searches where dogs have been let out by their owners and the dog is not lost but just out for a walk in the neighborhood and has returned home. and we have spent days searching for a dog that was not missing. Please do not call us for stray dogs, we do not have the facilities or money to care for them. If you want to report a stray please call your local Animal Control Agent or your local police and they will direct you to the proper authorities. If you would like to help without getting involved in a search just print out a flyer of our current lost dog searches to keep with you in your car.

*** Also keep in mind we are a volunteer group and due to work and prier commitments it's sometimes difficult to gather the team together on short notice. Please follow the instructions on this page and we will due our best to get to you in a timely manner. ***

(We can not conduct a proper and effective search unless we have all the information on the report, from the owner of the lost dog)

Report Your Lost Dog Online - If you live in these Towns

Toms River
South Toms River
Beachwood
Bayville
Ocean Gate
Pine Beach

Manchester Township
Parts of Lacey Township
Parts of Berkeley Twp.
Lanoka Harbor,
Forked River
Whiting

Take these steps without delay:

Use this information as a guide to find your lost dog:

* Check the immediate surroundings first, such as your yard and neighboring yards.
* Contact your local Police and Animal Control and let them know your situation
* Enlist your friends and neighbors in the search. The more people searching for your pet the better.
* If your dog likes car rides, drive around your neighborhood calling the dog's name, hoping that he will run from where he is and jump into the car. Just be sure that you don't call your dog into incoming traffic.
* Tell everyone you see you are looking for your dog and to induce the dog to enter an open garage or fenced backyard. Give everyone your dog's poster.
* Sometimes it's best to pursue the dog by foot because you can go between homes and take unpredictable routes...just as your dog is likely to have done. Again, alert people as you go.
* In a survival mode your dog may seek shelter at night and forage for food early in the morning and travel in daylight so It is wise to search around day-break and while the sun is out.
* If you spot your dog, DO NOT CHASE HIM! your dog may be in a state of shock, he may not recognize you at first and think you are trying to harm him and will run from you, and you will never outrun a dog. The best chance for you to safely get his attention is to drop to the ground and call your dog. If you and your dog took obedience classes and he responds to "sit/stay!", you have the added advantage of potentially stopping his escape because he remembers his training.

Tips for Finding a Lost or Missing Dog

#1 Search the Neighborhood

If your dog is lost in his own neighborhood, ask family, friends, and neighbors to help scour the streets. Call the dog's name and listen very carefully. If your dog is locked in a garage, garden shed, or entangled in foliage, he may be barking his location. After calling his name, stop and listen for his response.

#2 Post Lost Dog Signs

Print brightly-colored "Lost Dog" posters and staple them to telephone poles. Ask permission to post them at veterinary hospitals, pet supply shops, grocery stores, grooming salons, doggie daycare centers, churches, and community centers. Post them at parks where dogs and their owners congregate. The signs should include a recent photo of your dog along with the date and vicinity that he went missing, and offer a reward if you wish. Police suggest avoiding contact from unscrupulous individuals by refraining from including your full name and street address, especially if you are offering a reward. Download Free Lost Dog flyer With Tear off or Free Color Lost Dog Flyer Do not give out all the info you have Example: if your dog has a distinguishing feature like a mole Do Not put that in your posting. If someone calls and says they have your dog ask them to describe him to make sure its not a scam. if your pet has no distinguishing features but had a red collar on when leave that color of the collar out of your flyer and ask the caller what color was his collar. Leave a reach number that if someone spots your dog you can respond immediately, acting quickly is imperative in retrieving your pet

#3 Collar Tags & Microchips May Not Bring Your Dog Home

Contact local Police and Animal Control. Phone animal shelters, check their websites, and visit in person. Don't assume that your dog's collar tags or microchip identification will automatically assure his ticket home. Collars and tags can be lost, microchip scanners may be malfunctioning, and administrative errors can occur.

#4 Offer a reward

If someone does find your dog, with or without ID there is a chance that they will keep them or give them or sell them to someone they know who is looking for a dog. A reward will interest the monetary side of them. A dogs value has gone up drastically over the years and for people who put a value on money more then animals, this is a quick way to make some easy money especially if your pet is a pure breed. Don't put the amount of reward on your flyer, if some one has your dog this may peak their interest enough to call you. please read about scams in the "Beware of Scams" section below

#5 Use pet-friendly resources to spread the word about your lost pet.
There are plenty of resources out there that specialize in reuniting lost or missing pets with their families. Try the following some are free:

#6 If you think someone has your Dog: This is where persistence pays off. get at least 100 Lost Dog Flyers and either fax or I prefer to visit EVERY vet, supermarket, pet store, Wal-Mart, Kmart, 7-11, Wa Wa or any place that sells dog food and pet products, post office, police etc. in your area and get the word out. The more eyes that are open the better chance you have that someone will spot your dog and call you. I really believe at first people do have the right intention to make an effort to find the owner but as time moves on they become attached and reasoning goes out the window so you need to keep up the pressure and stay positive and focused on this task

Beware of Scams
Scam #1 Sadly, there are criminals who see your misfortune as an opportunity to gain money. Avoid posting the reward amount on signs and fliers, and do not give out your full name or address. If you receive a tip about your lost dog, do not send money until you have your dog back in your arms. Never go alone to pick up your dog from a stranger. Bring along one or more friends, and tell others where you are going.
Scam #2-   Some people find this a perfect opportunity to get money from someone in a state of panic and confusion by asking for an exorbitant amount of money for their services to help find your dog, They may tell you they have a scent dog, a search dog or a tracking dog and for X-amount of dollars they will have their dog "search" for your lost pet. If this is the case the number 1 thing to do is to ask their success rate and ask for at least 3 references on pets they have found. If they refuse or become belligerent then you know they are a fraud. Any legitimate person or company will be happy to tell you this info. The second thing to ask is if the price they are charging you is for 1 visit or multiple visits leading up to the return of your dog. Remember this, if they tell you a price for their service and it sounds like a lot then it probably is, move on and find someone else. There are ligament people out there that offer this service but it is up to you to decide on who to use.
Scam #3-   Pet Physics- you may get a post or e-mail saying " I lost my dog several Months ago and I used this Pet Physic and I had my dog back in 30 hours" The e-mail or post may be from the pet physic themselves using an alternate e-mail address. Being you are in a state desperation they know what to say and do to pray on the owner of the lost pet being they are in a week frame of mind. Don't get me wrong there are legit ones out there, we use them occasionally ourselves, how ever the legitimate physics will usually offer their services for free when it comes to lost pets and children.

Using a Trap: After doing a lot of Research and using common sense methods this is what I found. Keep the trap set during the daytime hours, you are more likely to catch your pet in the daylight. Dogs are NOT nocturnal and will start to forage for food in the early morning hours and mostly during the day and seek shelter at night, (feral dogs are a bit different, the best time to trap a feral dog is at night). I'm not saying you will not catch your dog at night but you are more likely to catch skunks and possums in the night time hours.  If you do set your trap at night check it late at night and early in the morning.

If your dog has been spotted, place the trap in the area it was last seen if not then place your trap off the beaten path so your dog will feel more secure in entering it

Make sure you have a clear path leading to the trap, if the path is hard to get to or in an area with brush and sticker bushes your dog may avoid it.

Use hotdogs or cooked chopped meat as bate, make a trail outside the trap leading into it, hotdogs and chopped meat are very aromatic to a dogs sense of smell.

If you do decide to set a trap make sure you check it every several hours for the safety and comfort of whatever is trapped in it.

No matter where you put your trap, place your Lost Dog Flyer, with a reach number, close by so if someone does stumble across it you can be notified immediately if the trap is occupied and if its not occupied people will know what the trap is for.

When Our Pit Bull "Romeo" went missing I received an anonymous E-Mail saying " If you want to find your dog say this prayer" I did say it and it worked
"Jesus was lost and then he was found"

How the "I Lost My Dog Lost Dog Search Group" got started.

Back in 2008 my Pit Bull "Romeo" escaped from a local doggie day care in Toms River. Through negligence, a door was left open by one of the attendants and Romeo bolted out of the facility and went running into the nearby woods. 8 of the best friends in the world must have seen the helplessness and despair in our faces and joined us, relentlessly, in a 4 day search literally from sun-up to sun-down to find Romeo. Well to make a long story short Romeo turned up about a mile away from our home 4 days later, battle worn and covered with over 200 ticks. I cannot express in words the feeling you get when something like this happens. Its a Helpless feeling, a feeling of despair that turns into desperation as every second passes. If you want to read more about Romeo's story go here: "Romeo's Story"

Recently while checking out the local Lost & Found posts on Craigslist I came across a posting for a lost Chihuahua named "Luna" and forwarded it to my wife. The next thing I knew my wife Debbie was on the phone with Luna's owner and then told me to get ready that we were going on a search for a lost dog. We drove over to Manchester Township and met with Elli, Luna's Mom, and immediately I saw that same look of distraught and despair in her eyes that Debbie and I had just a couple of years earlier. I have to say even though we had just met Elli I had a flashback of Romeo's ordeal and I felt that we could not give up the search till Luna was safe at home. We enlisted the help of our neighbor, Pam, and began searching using what we had learned in the past. Luna was found the next morning by her owners several blocks away from her home. After receiving a phone call from Elli that Luna was recovered and safe a feeling of elation came over us knowing that the little Chihuahua named "Luna" was safe at home again. Now we want to help others in that same situation and that is why "We do not charge for our services. Our aim is to re-unite you with your lost pet as fast as possible" We are not doing this for money just for our love of animals.

Thanks To Johnny "Miami" from 732-Signs on Rt.9 Beachwood for the great artwork on our Search Van

You can help us to help others by donating

Thanks in advance for your Help and Contributions.

New Jersey Animal Abuse Hotline: 1-800-582-5979

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Any Lost Dogs in Ocean County can be posted here: Ocean County Lost Dogs open Facebook group