Returning Lost Pets Easily and Efficiently

Animal Control Officer Frances Echeverria has been on a roll lately in getting lost pets back to their families quickly and safely. Over a recent weekend, Officer Echeverria scooped up a lost Chihuahua and a Pit Bull within hours of one another and reconnected the lost dogs with their people thanks to her diligent work.

Return-to-Owner is the highest priority for nearly all lost pets that come into our care, either by way of Animal Control or through our Animal Resource Center. Checking a pet for identification or license tags and scanning them for a microchip is the first step in this process.

ACO Echeverria was pleased to find that the Chihuahua had a microchip; his name was Chuy and his family lived nearby. She tried both numbers in the microchip database in an attempt to get in touch with the owner, but both calls went unanswered. However, additional information in the database- the owner’s address, allowed her to deliver him back home to his happy family.

On her next shift the very next day, Echeverria picked up a Pit Bull with a nearly identical outcome- He, too was microchipped. His owner had been out looking for him all over the neighborhood, so he was thrilled to receive the call and even happier to get his boy back home, delivered by Animal Control.

“It’s one of the most rewarding parts of my job,” says Echeverria. “Seeing the genuine joy on peoples’ faces when their pet gets found and returned them- it’s really special.”

In the last 12 months, Pasadena Humane’s ACOs have successfully reunited over 500 lost pets with their families. Their diligent work and determination has kept those 500+ pets from ever having to enter the shelter and resulted in many happy reunions!