# What is the best response if you see a pet out on the neighborhood street? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 27, 2015, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111 "2015-03-27T13:59:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2015, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/1 "2015-03-27T13:59:05Z")
I turned into my neighborhood and about two streets from my home saw a loose Yorkshire Terrier. Looked like it had recently had a summer cut. Difficult decision. Do I stop? Do I assume the owners are near by and will fetch it? What if it bites me? I kept going. Thinking it came from a house very close by. Pet owners will search the street in front of their house first. If I see it out loose again then maybe it is lost. I didn’t want to pick it up and risk being accused of theft. What would I do with it anyhow? It may or may not have a name tag and address. I have spotted my neighbors dog loose. I collected the dog and took it back home. No bid deal when I know the dog and where it lives. How do you react? ---
**Author:** ![Honey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honey/32/5074_2.png) [@Honey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Honey)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2015, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/2 "2015-03-27T14:39:19Z")
I always stop. I have brought home so many dogs, I couldn’t even tell you. We have a local lost pet Facebook page. These days that’s where I list the found dogs. They have all gone home. It’s much easier than the old days of calling the local radio station, and having them announce a found dog. A long time ago I returned a beautiful Irish Setter to his owner. He was about 5 miles from home ,had crossed a bridge over the falls to get to my area. That was a good day. If an owner sees me with his dog and yells, so be it. I’d explain that I was worried about the dog. Sometimes, it seems I’m more worried than the owners are. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2015, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/3 "2015-03-27T14:58:08Z")
Depends on the dog. I know most of them around here. If its loose on the street, I’ll make sure our gate is locked. If it in the yard trying to get the livestock, I shoot to kill. We have lost lots of expensive livestock to “pets”. Kinda ironic, but the _known biter_ (bit the owner several times, bit his son in law twice and bit me) next door is named **Honey**. 😃 I saw that bitch wandering out in the sage one day and actually was rooting for the coyotes. ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2015, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/4 "2015-03-27T15:00:23Z")
Just last summer, I found a Shih Tsu wandering around on her own. I knew she wasn’t a regular neighborhood dog. I was out with my own dog at the time. I sat down, held out my arms, and called to her and she came right over to us. Dogs love it when people sit down on the ground. The key thing is to not chase the dog. Sit down and play hard to get and let the dog come to you. My neighborhood has a Neighborhood Watch association that’s very active and they always send out emails about lost dogs so I connected with the owner that way. If we didn’t have that, I would have put a leash on her and taken her out walking and then gone door to door with her in evening after work hours. It’s never occurred to me that an owner might think I was stealing their dog while strolling around the neighborhood with it. Any owner that tried to get shirty with me about would get an earful on the subject of their lousy pet skills. But in reality, I’ve never met an owner who wasn’t grateful that I’d found and looked after their dog. (And last summer was not the first time I’d rescued someone.) And no, I’m not worried about getting bit. Dogs never bite me. They aren’t allowed. Just be cool about it and the dog will, too. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2015, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/5 "2015-03-27T15:19:52Z")
> [@Honey](#): > > I always stop. Even if you are miles from your own home? I have only gathered in loose dogs within my own neighborhood. If I’m driving to from somewhere and see a loose dog, I assume animal control or the owners will eventually get it. If I’m out at the ranch, there are numerous loose dogs including mine when I’m there. I know most of my neighbors dogs, but stray dogs are shooed away. Feral dogs are shot. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2015, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/6 "2015-03-27T15:26:22Z")
I had to bring the neighbors dog home a couple of times. Once he gets out of the electric fence zone he has to be dragged back in. Gotta say that thing worked well, it’s no longer active but he won’t go anywhere near the line. For a dog I don’t know I’ll stop and see if he’s got a collar on, if he has tags I’ll try find his home, no collar and no tags and I’ll probably call animal control. Around here there’s an occasional horse on the loose and I’ll just go down to the stable and tell them. ---
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2015, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/7 "2015-03-27T16:21:28Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > What is the best response if you see a pet out on the neighborhood street? > > …How do you react? (post shortened) If your nervous around stray dogs, or dogs in general, notify someone else and let them handle the situation. How do I react? A terrier which lives down the street has gone walk-about several times. If I see it, I’ll spread my arms out wide and walk towards it, chasing it home. Why it keeps getting out is the real problem. I’ve found a Treeing Walker Coonhound wandering about behind my house. I thought it was the biggest beagle I had even seen. :eek: > **[Treeing Walker Coonhound Dog Breed Information and Pictures](http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/treeingwalkercoonhound.htm)** > > Treeing Walker Coonhound dog breed information, pictures, care, temperament, health, breed history, puppies. I knelt down and called the dog over. It had a collar and tags, so I used my belt as a lead, and called the owner. Unfortunately, there was no answer, so I called the police. Sure enough, the police were helping the owner track down his dog, and they arrived quickly. Nice dog, but it was a hunter. I don’t believe the owner was. Not a good match, in my opinion. 15 years ago, while shore fishing Lake Michigan, I found a Pit Bull wandering the shoreline. I knelt down and called the dog over. Dogs like me. No collar, so no tags. I made a lead from my belt, added a stringer for length, and waited for the owner, who arrived some 40 minutes later. The longest time I’ve ever spent trying to return a dog was around 5 hrs. My original intention had been to spend the morning bow hunting deer. While passed a state-run facility (aka outhouses with running water), I noticed a mutt lying by the woman’s building. I know those buildings are paddle locked at that time of year. I checked the door, just to make sure it was locked, called out for the owner, beeped the van horn, and called the dog. We decided to share my breakfast and lunch, and decide what to do next. Obviously an older, inside dog, but no owner, no collar, no tags. It was cold, high 30’s, and there were active coyotes in the area. I drove to a couple dozen homes in the area to see if anyone owned, or recognized the dog. Nope. I eventually dropped the dog off at a vet’s office in the area. And drove home with no deer, but it was still a good day. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2015, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/8 "2015-03-27T16:40:07Z")
In the town where I grew up there was no leash law, so dogs were always running about. I would never have given it a second thought unless the dog looked injured. In my current town I’d probably stop if the dog looked agitated or confused. I see cats wandering around from time to time and I wouldn’t stop for them; either they’re feral or outdoor cats. I’d probably wander my immediate neighborhood with the dog and see if anyone recognized him or just call animal control. ---
**Author:** ![Honey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honey/32/5074_2.png) [@Honey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Honey)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2015, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/9 "2015-03-27T16:48:58Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > Depends on the dog. I know most of them around here. If its loose on the street, I’ll make sure our gate is locked. If it in the yard trying to get the livestock, I shoot to kill. We have lost lots of expensive livestock to “pets”. > > Kinda ironic, but the _known biter_ (bit the owner several times, bit his son in law twice and bit me) next door is named **Honey**. 😃 I saw that bitch wandering out in the sage one day and actually was rooting for the coyotes. :eek: Not the first time I’ve been called a bitch. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Honey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honey/32/5074_2.png) [@Honey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Honey)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2015, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/10 "2015-03-27T16:50:40Z")
> [@Omar\_Little](#): > > Even if you are miles from your own home? > > I have only gathered in loose dogs within my own neighborhood. If I’m driving to from somewhere and see a loose dog, I assume animal control or the owners will eventually get it. > > If I’m out at the ranch, there are numerous loose dogs including mine when I’m there. I know most of my neighbors dogs, but stray dogs are shooed away. Feral dogs are shot. No. In my neighborhood, always. Out of town, it depends. ---
**Author:** ![Helena330](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/helena330/32/531_2.png) [@Helena330](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helena330)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2015, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/11 "2015-03-27T20:02:45Z")
In my neighborhood/housing development, always! I don’t have a dog, but I keep a leash in my car, anyway. We have a fairly active SafeCity network and many pets have been re-united with their families. I don’t come across them very often in other areas, but I have stopped for dogs. They’ve usually been scared and run away. ☹ I’ll try Merneith’s sitting down tip next time (thank you). I used to volunteer for a shelter and still have contacts, so I call one of them and ask what to do. If they aren’t bombarded by emergencies (dogs in hot cars in the summer), usually someone will come out. My family all loves animals, so about the only reasons we wouldn’t stop are emergencies or doctors’ appointments. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2015, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/12 "2015-03-27T20:43:27Z")
We always stop, and go to considerable lengths to bring stray dogs to safety. I don’t want them to be hit by cars. Occasionally I have given up the chase, when a large, fast dog cuts across roadless terrain faster than I can keep up. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2015, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/13 "2015-03-27T21:03:48Z")
I always stop. If the dog looks friendly, or safe, or can be caught, I will read the tags if it has them and try to return the pet where it belongs. If the dog looks dangerous or can’t be caught I might knock on some nearby doors to see if anyone owns it. This applies if I am miles from my own home, but actually it has never come up when I’m in a different town, so hard to say. I think I would probably do the same thing but I don’t know. ---
**Author:** ![Implicit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Implicit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Implicit)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2015, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/14 "2015-03-27T21:14:59Z")
It doesn’t matter if I’m close to home or visiting somewhere else. Over the years I’ve returned lots of dogs and I’ve had my own dog returned to me twice. Often dogs follow us when we are walking and by roaming the neighbourhood for a few minutes the owner can be found. If that doesn’t work then most of the dogs have tags, if there is no phone number then I call the vet who issued the rabies tag and they trace the owner from the tag number and call the owner for me. The only time there was no collar/tags I had to call the city bylaw officer the next day and have the dog picked up and taken to the shelter. I checked back two days later and the owner had tracked down their dog. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2015, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/15 "2015-03-27T21:24:33Z")
Interesting. It would never occur to me to try to reign in a loose dog. Now I’ll have to think about it. If i saw a dog I knew well a considerable distance from its home, and I was sure it was that dog and not a look-alike, I would think about bringing it home or calling the neighbor and letting them know where I spotted their dog. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2015, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/16 "2015-03-27T23:29:13Z")
I’ve only been in the position to actually _catch_ a loose dog once. I was with my father at a small beach/marina-type place on Long Island that is next to a large grassy hilly area where people bring their dogs and I suddenly see this giant hound-like dog, like a lab/Doberman looking thing, run out of the trees and around the beach area. I expected the owner to come out behind it but after 5-10 minutes or so and no sign of anyone I started to try and catch the dog. It looked friendly and I have no problem interacting with strange dogs, and some little kids were crying nearby cause they were scared of the dog. Eventually I managed to catch it and it did have a collar and tags, however there is zero cell service at that area so I couldn’t even call the number on the tags. There was no way we could leave the poor thing there, so we waited a long while and just when we thought, ‘Let’s put the dog in the car and drive to a place with cell service,’ the owner _finally_ comes strolling out of the trees. He looked like he was either high or drunk and he didn’t seem to care a bit that he had been missing his dog for almost an hour at that point. If _my_ dog had been gone for an hour I would have been freaking out and would be so incredibly thankful that someone kind had found him and waited for me! But all we could do was give him back the dog and that was that. ☹ (One other time I was in a car on a highway when I saw _two_ golden retrievers running next to each other in the next lane. The cars around us all slowed down and moved away but we were way ahead of them too fast to actually stop and do anything. Looking out the back window I did see them both run off to the side and out of traffic, but no idea what ever happened next.) ---
**Author:** ![Frosted\_Glass](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frosted_glass/32/3926_2.png) [@Frosted\_Glass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frosted_Glass)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/17 "2015-03-28T02:00:34Z")
If it was near my neighborhood, I would stop and at least see if the dog was friendly enough to come with me. For dogs that I know, (at least dogs that I have seen before) I would absolutely stop. When I was a teenager, my friends and I used to return neighborhood dogs all the time. Sometimes, they do get out even when people are trying to be careful and mostly responsible. Honestly, I never even thought twice about it. If the dog has no tags and I do not recognize it, then I call the local non-emergency number. Of course, this is a big advantage of living in one of the largest no kill cities (Austin). ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/18 "2015-03-28T02:31:32Z")
Both my wife and I always try to get a stray dog to come to us. Just last week, my wife saw a big white Lab walking down the street, and she got it to come to her, and get in her car. She took it home, and put it in the backyard, and then put a notice on our neighborhood website (the dog didn’t have a collar). I went out the next morning and put up signs. Within a half an hour I got a call from the owner - the dog had wandered away while her husband was in the garage. She was pretty chagrined about the lack of a collar - she said it irritates his neck, so he doesn’t’ wear one in the house. The day after she picked him up, she came back to our house with a nice note and some treats for our dogs… We probably go through this once a year or so. ETA: I’ve caught stray _horses_ in our neighborhood… ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/19 "2015-03-28T05:57:24Z")
Out of my neighborhood I’d do nothing, because I wouldn’t know what was normal. In my neighborhood I would and have collected the dog. I know a lot of the dogs nearby from since a lot of people let them run in the field across from our house and a lot more walk them past the school in front of the field. If there was no collar I could bring them to animal control, but there is an active neighborhood mailing list I’d use first. I agree that someone not comfortable around dogs should let the dog be. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111/20 "2015-03-28T14:08:01Z")
I’ve been kicking myself for not stopping. Cute yorkie with a recent summer cut. I felt it must have just got out from a house on that street. At least I hope so and the worried owner appeared within a few minutes. I don’t know anybody on that street. I don’t feel comfortable with big dogs. We’ve had two pit bull attacks in just the last 10 ten days in my state. One guy was killed taking his car to get serviced. There were three pit bulls at the location and they went under the fence and killed the guy. The other attack was a kid playing with two 8 month old pit bull puppies. Kid got excited and shrieked. That noise agitated mamma dog and it attacked. Even the 8 month old pups joined in. Kid got chewed up but lived. Any big breed Shepards, Dobies, Rottweilers scare me. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-best-response-if-you-see-a-pet-out-on-the-neighborhood-street/716111.md?page=2)