There are some tricks that you can use to recover your missing k-9.
Where did the dog escape from?
Was it from your car while on a trip?
Was it from your home?
Did the dog know the area he was roaming in?
Was it a female in heat or was it a male following after a female in heat?
Ask yourself, has the dog run off before and where did it go?
Most females in heat will come back home when she gets tired. Even dogs must rest from too much honey mooning.
If your pet gets loose while on a trip away from your home, about the only thing you can do is run ads in the papers where the dog got lost. Also check at the rescue places, humane society and dog catchers.
If it happens to be in the country, you can do as the fox hunters do when looking for their dogs that has run a fox out of the area where the hunter is hunting. Leave your coat lying close to where the track started. Also leave some food in the dogs own food dish. You will need to go to that area everyday to see if your pet has returned to your food and coat. Many fox hunter has come back and found their dog lying on his coat. They will stay with the scent that is on the coat and his food dish. A hunting dog will often back track him self to the starting place of the hunt. This works the same way with a dog that has gotten lost while following a female in heat.
If the k-9 is a male that is following a female in heat, then your chances of recovery is more than likely a waiting game. If the dog has not been killed or taken into a home, when the honey moon is over he will go home. As a rule they will not wonder to fare.
If the dog has gotten loose and does not know the area, he will wonder around checking everything out. Most of the time the dog will make a circle to his right. Start your search going to the right of his home. He may wonder as much as a mile from home. Every dog we have ever lost has been found within two miles of our home and to the north of us.
If you have another dog that lives with the lost dog, Take that dog on lead and start him on the track where you know the lost dog has walked. Then just follow the dog as he sniffs of where the other dog has traveled. He may take you for a long walk but many many times the dog on lead will go find his lost buddy.
If you are lucky enough to have a trained track dog, then it will be easy for your to find the lost dog if he is in your neighborhood. Just take your tracking dog and tell him to track find from the lost dogs bed.Search the neighborhood. Walk or drive through your neighborhood several times each day. Ask neighbors, letter carriers, and delivery people if they have seen your pet. Hand out a recent photograph of your pet and information on how you can be reached if your pet is found.
Advertise. Post notices at grocery stores, community centers, veterinary offices, traffic intersections, online at www.pets911.com, and other locations. Also, place advertisements in newspapers and with radio stations. Include your pet's sex, age, weight, breed, color, and any special markings. When describing your pet, leave out one identifying characteristic and ask the person who finds your pet to describe it.
Be wary of pet-recovery scams. When talking to a stranger who claims to have found your pet, ask him to describe the pet thoroughly before you offer any information. If he does not include the identifying characteristic you left out of the advertisements, he may not really have your pet. Be particularly wary of people who insist that you give or wire them money for the return of your pet.
Don't give up your search. Animals that have been lost for months have been reunited with their owners.
A pet—even an indoor pet—has a better chance of being returned if she always wears a collar and an ID tag with your name, address, and telephone number. Ask your local animal shelter or veterinarian if permanent methods of identification (such as microchips) are available in your area.
Don’t give up. Look until you find your pet and good luck to you
Jim Hornbeck