1. The dog will be scanned for a microchip.

2. At the microchip scanning location, you’ll be given the link and prompted to file a Found Dog Report.

3. If the dog is microchipped, a Microchip Lookup Staff Member will work to locate the owner. You'll receive a Found Pet Poster to share in local lost and found Facebook groups, along with additional tips. If not microchipped, you'll still get the Found Pet Poster and extra tips.

4. In many cases, we’ll get back to you with the owners details so you can arrange for the owner to collect the dog or for you to drop off to them.

5. If no owner has been tracked down right away and if the dog appears healthy and friendly, try to hold the dog for a few hours or overnight. If not possible, check in with neighbours/friends to see if they could hold. IMPORTANT: Some dogs may not get along with other animals, so ensure they are kept separately to existing pets.

6. If no owner comes forward, the dog must go to the local pound for the council area in which it was found in within 24 hours. By law, you cannot keep, give away or sell the dog but if you are interested in adopting if the owner doesn’t come forward, please tell the pound when you drop off the dog.

Our process greatly increase the chance of a lost dog actually going home.

As two of the main reasons why dogs aren’t reclaimed at pounds are: cost to reclaim after the dog enters a pound and council staff not having enough resources to do everything possible to try track down owners, FindMyOwner doesn’t have either issue.

Vet clinics: There is a national vet shortage and vet clinics around Australia are under a lot of pressure already to deliver a great service to their clients. Whilst many vets will be willing to scan a lost dog for a microchip and try find the owner, we want to ease the burden of stray dogs on the vet clinics to ensure they spend more time giving life-saving treatment to animals. Plus, vet staff are not generally trained and don’t always have the time, knowledge or access to use all the techniques we use to try find owners of lost dogs who have been found.

Unfortunately FindMyOwner doesn’t offer a temporary dog minding service. But by using FindMyOwner, it increases the chance that the dog will go back to the owner.

A friend, family member or neighbour may be able to look after the dog for a few hours or overnight. If not, the dog should go to the local pound for the council area in which the dog came from.

The longer a dog can be held for (even if it’s just 30 minutes) can really help the chance of the dog going back to their owner [up to 24 hours]. Some vets ‘may’ be willing to hold the dog however many are not able to and they are under no legal obligation to hold stray healthy dogs.

FindMyOwner Microchip Lookup Staff are available 8am-10pm EVERY day to look up microchips and try find the owners of lost pets.

Filing a Found Dog Report or Cat Microchip Lookup Request is available outside these times but reports will only be viewed and actioned 8am-10pm.

This can be done by scanning a QR code at any FindMyOwner Microchip Scanning Location. There isn’t a button on our website to do this as you need to have the dog scanned for a microchip first.

If you have your own scanner and scan stray dogs, see the next FAQ.

Absolutely! We can look up microchips for you regardless of where you are in NSW. Please contact us here and mention you scan lost animals and the area you scan in. You can also access our Dog & Cat Microchip Lookup Request Form & Found Dog Poster Generator form on the Volunteer Microchip Scanner page.

We have Microchip Scanning Locations in the Blacktown Council area but plan to expand to other areas soon.

We can expand to other areas quicker if your council is on board.

Please get in touch with us via our contact us page.

Visit how to find a lost dog for helpful tips and to create a Lost Pet Poster.

Unfortunately FindMyOwner is specifically for dogs only at this stage.

There are many reasons why this service is not for cats, such as the very low rate of cat microchipping, a significant population of unowned cats, many pounds not accepting cats even with microchip scans, and the potential inundation of lost and found Facebook groups with indistinguishable cat pictures who will realistically be unlikely to be looked for, reducing the likelihood of noticing other animals with much higher chances of being reclaimed.

This all being said, if you found a volunteer microchip scanner in your local community and the cat was microchipped, we could then look up the microchip. Our Microchip Scanning Locations strictly cannot scan cats.

If the dog has minor injuries (e.g. minor cuts or sores), the dog can go to a FindMyOwner scanning location. If the dog has significant injures, please take the dog to the local vet ASAP.

Please take the dog to the nearest vet.

Unfortunately we don’t have volunteers available to catch roaming dogs who are not secured. Please try catch the dog if safe to do so and/or contact your local council rangers.

FindMyOwner is currently free to everyone, thanks to a NSW government grant which funds this project until 30.6.24.

If a dog is growling aggressively, lunging, trying to bite or otherwise known to be aggressive, please do NOT go to a FindMyOwner Scanning Location. The dog should go to the local pound for the council area in which he/she was found in and please contact the council. If after hours, call the after hours number for the council or the local police station if you believe there is a high risk of a dog attack.

No. A Lost Pet Poster is generated which will have details of the pet and the email for FindMyOwner as well as a unique number generated for the animal. Your details will be shared with FindMyOwner Microchip Lookup Staff but will not be made available publicly.

Search the address that the dog was found on this website. Then check the pet section on the website for that council to confirm which council pound their stray dogs must go to.

Only paid employees of Animal Welfare League NSW look up microchips for FindMyOwner. We are aware that there are strict regulations including but not limited to The Privacy Act 1988 and Companion Animals Act 1998 that must be followed.

FindMyOwner was created and is managed by Animal Welfare League NSW and the project is funded by the NSW Government.

Feel free to reach out to us on our Contact Us page with general or volunteer enquiries.