Phoenix-area shelters get busy returning dogs scared off by fireworks
Jul 5, 2018, 10:32 AM | Updated: 10:37 am
(Facebook Photo/Maricopa County Animal Care & Control)
(Facebook Photo/Maricopa County Animal Care & Control)
PHOENIX – If July 4 is Independence Day, then July 5 might be called Reunion Day, as animal shelters get to work returning pets that were frightened by fireworks explosions into fleeing.
“We are expected to be quite crowded this evening with all the lost and stray animals,” Maricopa County Animal Care and Control spokesman Jose Santiago told KTAR News 92.3 FM on Thursday.
The two county shelters take in 80-100 lost or stray dogs on a typical day.
“Today we will more than double those numbers,” Santiago said.
Santiago said animal control officers hit the streets at 7 a.m. looking for dogs who ran off and strays suffering in the extreme heat.
Loud noises can cause high anxiety in dogs, and some that are usually fine in yards respond by jumping over or tunneling under fences.
“We’ve even had cases of animals that have jumped through windows inside of homes to escape those loud noises,” Santiago said.
If your furry friend got out, Santiago said you should visit both county shelters (2500 S. 27th Ave. in Phoenix and 2630 W. Rio Salado Parkway in Mesa) to look for your pet and report it as missing. He also recommended using social media sites such as the Straydar Facebook group.
Officers will attempt to directly return dogs found that have tags or are microchipped.
Through Saturday, the shelters will provide free microchipping when an unchipped animal is reunited with its owner.
Dogs taken to the county shelters that go unclaimed for 72 hours will be put up for adoption.
“We’re hopeful to have many happy reunions today, and we’re going to do our best to make sure that any lost pets get home,” Santiago said.
KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Jeremy Foster contributed to this report.
