Your pet is part of your family. Losing your pet can be a can be a traumatic experience for both you and your pet.
By identifying and registering your cat or dog with the City, you’re helping ensure that your pet is reunited with you if it becomes lost. It has been our experience that a cat or dog with a registration tag attached to its collar/harness is often returned to the owner the same day that it is found.
If your pet goes missing, you may choose to turn to social media or post flyers for help. However, the City does ask that you also file a report with Service Ottawa, whether it be via Ottawa.ca or 3-1-1.
This extra step may help By-law officers return your pet to you even more quickly.
When an officer retrieves a stray dog or cat, they will check for the animal’s registration tag and search the lost animal reports in the database. The priority is to return the animal home, free of charge on the first offence.
If the officer cannot identify the animal, they will bring it to the Ottawa Humane Society, where the owner will have to pay a fee to retrieve it.
