How to help a stray dog

"By the way society treats elderly people, children and animals, one can judge the value orientations of this society." 

You are driving, and you see a stray dog ​​on the side of the road. Its pathetic look and sad eyes ask you for help. Your thought breaks off, a lump in your throat gets stuck, and a dumb question arises — what to do?

You experience this episode every day when you leave for and return home, seeing stray dogs trudge between people from one trash bin to another. You can change this endlessly repeating plot in two ways:

1. Abstracting from the picture outside the window.
2. Having answered the question — how can I help stray animals?

To enhance the impression, imagine that a stray dog ​​on the street is your four-legged pet, who was stolen, played, and when they got tired of the dog, it was thrown out into the street.

By contacting volunteers center for helping homeless animals "In good hands" we have collected 4 practical recommendations on how to help homeless pets. 

Safety first

A distrustful, frightened, and possibly sick or injured animal may behave unpredictably. At a safe distance, make sure the dog or cat is not drooling from its mouth. See if the poor fellow has a collar. If there is one, try to read the identifying information — the name of the pet and the contact information of its owner. If you have contact details — call!

When approaching an animal, speak in a calm voice. Watch his movements carefully and make sure the animal can see you. To make contact with it, use a treat with a strong smell, such as dried liver. In this way, lure the animal into the carrier. 

Show your pet to the veterinarian

In most cases, you should not go anywhere with a stray dog ​​or cat right away, they can become aggressive. Wait for the pet to calm down. Stray animals can also carry infectious diseases and parasites. Before bringing a pet home, it should be treated, if it is sick, vaccinated and spayed/neutered. To do this, contact your nearest veterinary clinic. The time for quarantine and treatment of a stray animal can take from 2 weeks to 2 months. 

Contact animal rescue

If you are unable to take your animal to the veterinary clinic on your own, call your local animal control agency (call the police in rural areas) or contact animal rescue. Do this regardless of whether the animal is injured or not, and whether it has an identification tag on it. Stay put and keep an eye on your dog or cat until help arrives. 

Look for the owner

If the veterinary clinic finds out that the dog is microchipped, and the collar has the contact information of its owner, take a picture of the dog and publish it along with the geodata about its location in social networking groups that specialize in finding pets. 

Notes

If you want to change the world, start with yourself. Feeling the strength and desire to save homeless animals, you should always be ready for a feat. The following items, which should always be in the trunk of your car, will help you to complete the mission: 

1. A notebook with the phone numbers of the local animal control service, a shelter and a 24-hour veterinary clinic.
2. Pet carrier or cardboard box.
3. Collar and leash.
4. Thick blanket. 
5. Bowls for food and water.
6. Animal feed and drinking water. 
7. First aid for animals.

To effectively help stray animals, you need to know the legal framework in your country, which regulates the standards of keeping and handling animals. It will also help you to be effective if in advance you connect with local volunteer groups who are involved in rescuing stray animals and finding missing pets.