Resources
Animal Service Agencies by County
How you can help a healthy stray cat.
In many cases, a social stray cat living outdoors is already in or near their home environment. You can help the cat reunite with their family by following these steps:
- Ask around locally to see if anyone recognizes the cat.
- If you have no luck, bring the feline into a local veterinary clinic to scan for a microchip.
- If the cat isn’t microchipped, post their photo on social networks and flyers in your community.
- If you aren’t able to find their family, bring them to a veterinarian to be spayed or neutered, vaccinated, and have their health assessed.
Want to bring them to the shelter? Not so fast.
Bringing cats to your local shelter may feel like the right thing to do, but in many cases, the cat is right at home in their outdoor environment.
Additionally, each county handles stray cats differently. Some counties provide shelter for cats, some partner with independent rescues or organizations to help shelter stray cats, and other counties have no protections for cats.
Click on the metro area where the cat was found to learn what resources might be available to you.
Stray and lost cats are held at Multnomah County Animal Services in Troutdale and at Washington County Animal Services in Hillsboro. Visit those agencies depending on where your pet was last seen. Provide a color photograph and description of your lost cat. Visit their website or shelter every day to check for your cat.
Oregon Humane Society Salem Campus provides services for Polk County stray cats. Contact OHS’ Admissions department for more information.
While OHS is no longer able to accept stray cats from Marion County, you may still report a lost or found pet on the Community Forum.
Strays that are brought to OHS Salem Campus are posted on our website.
In Multnomah County, all stray dogs must be transported to Multnomah County Animal Services (MCAS) in Troutdale. For other counties in the Portland metro area, see the list above.
At the county shelter, provide a color photograph and description of your lost pet. Visit the agency’s website or shelter every day to check for your pet.
Oregon Humane Society Salem Campus serves as an additional resource to local county agencies. Your next steps will differ depending on where the dog was lost or found.
- In Marion County: Contact Marion County Dog Services at (503) 566-6988.
- In Polk County: If the dog is lost or found within the city limits of Dallas, Independence, or Monmouth, call the corresponding police department. If the dog is lost or found outside of city limits, call OHS Salem Campus at (503) 585-5900, ext. 300.
- File a report through the button below.
Lost/Found Birds
Although a found pet bird may end up at one of the county shelters listed above, you can also use this online service to post lost/found birds.
- Look at every hiding spot possible in your yard and your nearest neighbors. Lost cats will remain hidden and quiet. Lost dogs may sometimes wander, but often stay within their own neighborhood.
- Ask family, friends, and neighbors to help you search for your pet. Be sure to check around your yard and under your deck.
- Walk, bike, drive, or jog through your neighborhood every day and more than once to look for your missing pet.
- Place clothing, toys, litter box, and other items familiar to your pet outside in your yard where she/he might smell them.
- Put signs around the neighborhood or area where your pet was last seen. Include a photo and description of your pet, your phone number, and when your pet disappeared. Make sure you have voicemail set up to take any messages.
- Call your veterinarian. Your pet’s rabies tag number can be traced to your veterinarian.
- If your pet is microchipped, contact the microchip company and have them put a “lost or stolen” alert on the pet’s microchip so that if it is scanned by a shelter or veterinarian, they will know that a concerned owner is looking for that pet.
- Important Tip: For your neighborhood posters, leave out one identifying feature in your pet’s description, such as a splotch of color on the nose or extra toes. This protects you from pet-recovery scams and is a sure way of verifying that someone definitely found your beloved pet.
Found Pets & Strays
If you find a pet or stray animal, please contact your local animal services agency in order to give the pet the best chance of being reunited with its owner. You can find the animal services agency closest to you by searching online for “animal services” in your area.
If your county jurisdiction does not have facilities for stray cats, contact OHS Portland Campus at (503) 285-7722, ext. 212, or OHS Salem Campus at (503) 585-5900 ext. 300 for additional resources.
These links are provided as a resource only. These are outside organizations/companies, not affiliated with nor endorsed by OHS.
- HomeAgain offers a robust lost pet recovery network.
- DoveLewis Lost & Found Pet Database provides listings of stray pets brought to their NW Portland facility and allows community members to post reports of lost/found pets.
- Salem Veterinary Emergency Clinic provides a list of resources to help reunite pets with their owners.
- Portland Craigslist lost and found section.
- Salem Craigslist lost and found section.
- Missing Pet Partnership
- Lost Cat Finder
- Nextdoor lets you interact with your neighborhood network.
