FORT WAYNE, Ind. (Press Release): This March, Fort Wayne Animal Care & Control is participating in the No Place Like Home Challenge – launching new resources for pet owners and offering free microchips and ID tags to increase the number of lost pets returned to their owners.

The No Place Like Home Challenge is a national effort to keep more pets at home and out of the shelter, focusing on lost pets. One in three pets will become lost at some point in their life. In 2020, only 38% of the 4,667 lost animals that were brought to FWACC were reclaimed by their owners.

FWACC will be offering free microchips and ID tags to Allen County residents during the entire month of March. Up-to-date identification tags and microchips are the best ways to ensure your pet is returned to you if it’s lost. Pet owners can visit the shelter between the hours of Noon – 4 p.m. Monday – Friday to get their pet(s) microchipped and get a personalized ID tag. Free microchips will be available to the first 250 pet owners – there is no limit on the number of free ID tags. Pet owners must bring a photo ID and proof of ownership – like vet records – with you to the shelter.

If your pet is already microchipped, make sure all information linked to your pet’s chip is up-to-date so you can be contacted if your pet is lost. Learn more about updating your information here.

The shelter is also partnering with Finding Rover to provide pet facial recognition software to help identify lost pets. Pet owners can upload a picture of their lost pet to Finding Rover and the software will search FWACC’s and nearby shelters’ photo databases to find a match. Pet owners can also upload photos of found pets. To access Finding Rover’s lost pet database click here.

To see more tips on what to do if you lose a pet or find a lost pet, click here.