We get many inquiries and a fair amount of confusion on many animal related situations here in Price County such as reclaiming a found pet, reporting a stray, surrendering a pet, reporting neglect, etc.
This post will help guide Price County residents in the right direction with the following situations:
I’ve found a stray cat or dog or have a stray hanging around my place and I’m located in Price County. Now what?ALL Price County stray animals should be referred to the Price County Humane Officer or Price County Sheriff’s office before contacting Catkins Animal Rescue. You can do so by calling 715-339-3011 and reporting where you found the animal and where the animal can be picked up by a deputy, officer, or the humane officer. The animal will then be brought to us at Catkins Animal Rescue. After checking for a microchip, we will post pictures and a description of the animal on our Facebook page in hopes of locating the owner. The animal stays on the stray hold for 4 days plus the intake day (5 days total). We take all measures to share the unclaimed lost animal on lost animal webpages and through local veterinarians, etc. If the animal is not claimed in that time period, per Wisconsin statute, the animal is then vetted and placed for adoption through Catkins.
***Please note: if you find a stray animal outside of Price County, you will need to contact the law enforcement of the county the animal is located at.
What if a found stray is my pet? How do I reclaim my pet?Call or text our office at: 715-762-0122 or message us through or Facebook page to make an appointment to reclaim your pet. Appointments must be made during our available hours, and we are unable to meet you after hours to reclaim your pet. To reclaim your animal, we ask for proof of ownership. This can be vet records, photos, etc as well as a photo I.D of the owner. We also require proof of rabies vaccination for all pets. If the animal is not vaccinated, you will have a window of time to make an appointment to do so and show proof to the Price County Humane Officer once the vaccination is received.
Reclamation fees are due at the time of reclaim (we waive the first night’s fee to give you time to schedule pick up). If there are any veterinary costs incurred while your animal was boarded with us, those will also be due at the time of reclaim. We are not able to return a reclaimed animal to anyone except the actual owner of the pet (no 3rd party reclaims). Our goal is to safely return a pet to their family as quickly as possible.
My pet is lost! What should I do??Immediately report your lost pet as soon as possible to Price County Humane Officer and Catkins Animal Rescue and we will share your pet’s photo and information, with your permission. Please share your contact information for us to contact you with updates we may receive. There is also a Lost Dogs of Wisconsin and Lost Cats of Wisconsin page you can report your lost pet to. If your pet is brought to Catkins, we will contact you as soon as possible to reunite you with them.
I can no longer care for my pet. How does the surrender process work?Here at Catkins, we know that life happens and sometimes you need to surrender your pet. We do not charge a surrender fee for Price County pet surrenders. We are not here to judge you and are here to help you. While we will always do what we can to help you keep your pet, if that isn’t a possibility and you need to surrender, please follow these steps:
-Submit this application for our team to review. We will contact you with the next steps:
To request a dog surrender: https://new.shelterluv.com/matchme/owner-surrender/CATK/Dog
To request a cat surrender: https://new.shelterluv.com/matchme/owner-surrender/CATK/Cat
-We will discuss the process with you and whether your pet will do well in our program and make an appointment for surrender once we have space available. Please note, we are often at capacity at the shelter and cannot take in new pets until kennels open up. You may have to add your pet to our intake wait list or wait for us to find a foster placement before bringing in your pet.
-Only the actual owner of an animal can do a surrender, not a
third party. We have paperwork for you to sign and again, we do not charge a surrender fee if you are a Price County resident.
-If we are full, we will add your animal to an intake waiting list and call you as soon as we have space available.
-PLEASE make sure you have an appointment before surrendering your animal. Not only do we need to make space, but we also have many questions about your pet so we can find them the best home match in the future.
I’m concerned about a Price County animal’s welfare and need to confidentially talk to someone about my concerns. Who do I contact?Your first step is always to contact the Price County Humane Officer Mindy Dabler with your concerns at 715-339-3011 or you can go to the Price County website and anonymously report to the “Nixle hotline”: https://co.price.wi.us/civicalerts.aspx?aid=22 You are more than welcome to discuss the situation with us and we can also point you in the right direction.
I’m struggling right now and unable to provide food for my pet/s, how can you help?We have a pet food pantry available to all area residents! To utilize the pantry, please come in during open hours or email to make an appt. If you are housebound or a senior citizen, we may be able to deliver pet food to you. Our pantry is stocked with food and supplies for cats and dogs.
We hope this helps clear up some questions on how these processes work. We are here for our community and the animals within it!
As always, if you have any questions or concerns, you’re welcome to email, call, text or message us:
Email: catkinsmanager25@yahoo.comPhone (text or call) : 715-762-0122Visit our site for more information and resources: www.catkinsanimalrescue.org