STOP PET THEFT: Make it the Law For ALL Found Pets to be Taken to Local Municipal Shelters

For far too long, there has been no consistent and uniform protocol when citizens find stray animals, many of whom are the lost pets of other citizens. Laws regarding stray animals in all 50 states vary, some which may protect the rightful owner in a variety of ways, but they are not clear or direct enough. Many people are under the impression that it's "finder's keepers" when it comes to finding animals on the street. Some well-meaning people might think the animal is abandoned simply because it doesn't have on a collar. That is often not the case at all. Household pets can slip out of their homes in a matter of seconds or escape from a dog walker on an adventure leaving behind owners who are worried sick. This petition proposes one clear and consistent law that would blanket the country: a uniform protocol that requires finders of stray animals to turn animals in to the nearest municipal shelter within 24 hours of being found. The municipal shelter is the most obvious place a pet owner would look for their missing family member. Furthermore, reuniting lost/found pets with their families is one of the many reasons municipal shelters were created in the first place. Municipal shelters have universal microchip scanners which many veterinary offices/police stations don't have and can read chips of all brands. They have ways of tracing unregistered chips to find the original source and track the buyer/adopter of the pet. They have a larger database of reported lost pets and may already have a report from the owner missing their pet. They can verify proof of ownership and provide education to owners of found animals about microchips, pet identification tags, dog licensing, and affordable veterinary care.

The rise in pet theft is scary enough, but the fact that many people are keeping lost pets in their homes, maybe posting to local facebook lost and found pages hoping an owner turns up just isn't comforting. There needs to be a uniform law across the country that protects the families of beloved pets and the pets themselves who are confused and eager to return home.

Municipal shelters have stray holds/take hold slips and in the event an animal is truly abandoned, the finder, any other member of the public or a rescue group can return after the stray hold to take the dog if they're truly concerned about the dog's wellbeing.

Under no circumstances, is it ever okay to keep a found pet in one's home as their or own, resell the pet, breed the pet, abuse the pet, or pass the pet off to someone claiming to be a private rescue or a private animal shelter that isn't run by a governed municipal agency (even if it's a registered charity - they're not regulated as much as they should be). Too often, situations arise where the pet ends up being kept by the finder because they're selfish, or they end up "missing", stolen, or adopted out because a private rescue has a false sense of authority and misjudges the owner of the pet based on personal bias. A uniform law would ensure a penalty for not following proper protocol including IMMEDIATE SEIZING OF THE PET AND SUBSEQUENT RETURN TO ITS RIGHTFUL OWNER/COMPANION, prison time, a large fine, a criminal charge of theft, revocation of a shelter's 501c3 status, and any other applicable charge depending on the outcome and whereabouts of the dog and/or its wellbeing.

Please sign and share to ensure the safety and successful reunion of our beloved pets!