Never a lost cause: P.E.I. Lost Pet Network brings hope for families missing pets

When Madison, a chihuahua, went missing in the Borden-Carleton area in 2011 she spent four days on the lam.

Her family had stopped at a gas station and she jumped out of the car.

During that four-day period people posted on Facebook, made calls to neighbours and even went out looking for her.

Though the response was admirable, Lisa Kerr thought there had to be a better way to connect missing pets with their owners.

Kerr had recently come back from a visit with a woman in Nova Scotia who had started a lost dog network there and decided to bring that idea to the Island.

"It just seemed like there should have been a better system online for getting word out about the missing dog," Kerr said.

"It's a small community, everybody knows somebody and it's the perfect place to get things out there."

'Grown so much'

What started as the P.E.I. Lost Dog Network quickly became the P.E.I. Lost Pet Network to include cats and other missing pets.

Kerr ran the group on her own at first, then others offered to help out.

After about three years helping to keep operations going, Kerr felt it was time for her to step aside. One of the volunteers, Vicky Smith, took the reins.

It's hard reading the stories, it's hard seeing the ones that consistently go missing … and then you see the horror stories like the ones that have been hit by a car or the ones that are never found and you feel bad for those families.- Lisa Kerr

Kerr said Smith was more savvy with social media than she was, making her the perfect person to maintain and expand the P.E.I. Lost Pet Network.  

"As she did more and more I kind of felt I was getting in the way of the progress of it," she said.  

Smith, who worked 13 years with the Cat Action Team on the Island, was well known in the pet community, Kerr said.

"She was kind enough that she stepped up," Kerr said. "It's grown so much and that's because of Vicky."

'Really nice to see'

Smith now runs the PEILPN on her own and is modest about the amount of work that goes into it.

She is self-employed but admits she doesn't spend very much time doing paid work.

Kerr estimated that Smith must be spending close to 40 hours a week making sure the Facebook page and Twitter account are updated, as well as checking the Humane Society website and other Facebook groups for posts about missing animals.

Kerr and Smith said the work can be emotionally draining.

"It's hard reading the stories, it's hard seeing the ones that consistently go missing … and then you see the horror stories like the ones that have been hit by a car or the ones that are never found and you feel bad for those families, you really do," Kerr said.

Though difficult at times, Smith is committed and encouraged by how the community has responded to the group.

"A lot more people are getting involved," Smith said. "They enjoy trying to help ... to reunite more animals. So that's really nice to see."

Reunification isn't always possible, she said, but even when efforts to track down missing pets are unsuccessful, it makes a difference.

"It's a help for the families too, because even if they don't find their animal at least they've got people cheering for them, rooting for them, trying to help them," she said.

"It's just a comfort to them, to have a network of people supporting them."  

'Great lady'

Kerr and Smith both suggested pet-owners use tracking microchips and make sure they have updated information on their animals' ID tags.

Smith also said people should advertise immediately when their pet goes missing, or if they find an animal.

Kerr praised Smith for her devotion to the PEILPN.

"She's a really great lady… she does a heck of a lot of work for everybody," she said.

"She's free to hand it back to me at anytime, but knowing Vicky she's going to keep in there for as long as she possibly can."

Kerr is probably right about the last point.

When Smith was asked how long she would be doing this work, she replied "Till I drop."

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