Owners are being urged to keep their dogs safe as the fireworks season starts.

Said DogLost founder, Jayne Hayes: “This time of year is one of the busiest as dogs get frightened by fireworks and bolt.”

Whilst many return home on their own, or are found locally, others are often found deceased as they are involved in a road traffic collision or are hit by a train.

Said a DogLost spokesperson: “We have a few simple suggestions for owners to ensure they keep their dogs safe:”

• Never take your dog for a walk after dark – even if you think he isn’t nervous
• If you have to take him out in the back garden use a lead – dogs have been known to leap fences out of fear
• Make sure he’s registered with DogLost should the worst happen

Follow more advice from the Dogs Trust

When dog owners Manie and Heather’s young Clumber Spaniel passed away earlier this year, they decided to do something to honour young Bracken.

They decided to create a calendar and give the profits to DogLost and the Working Clumber Spaniel Society. As two of the founding members of Facebook group, Working Clumber Spaniels UK they asked their 400 members to submit pictures of their dogs to use in the calendar.

Heather is the artist and she has composed what the group think is a fantastic calendar of this rare breed.  Said Heather: “We went back to our members to ask where the profits from calendar sales should go.  Many of us are members of the Working Clumber Spaniel Society  and it was agreed that 50% of profits would go to this organisation to continue their work.  The members of our Facebook group overwhelmingly agreed that the other 50% of profits should go to DogLost.”

Calendars are £9.50 each plus £2.00 postage and packing. If you order 5 or more calendars then the calendars are £8.50 each plus £3.50 postage. Orders should be sent to Working Clumber Spaniel Calendar and payment to PayPal to that e mail address.

The time has come for the last of DogLost’s big outings of the year: Paws in the Park in Kent.

This year the Kent team will be checking dogs’ microchips and advising owners on how to keep their dogs safe.

Alongside will be Kent Police, and for those who need to have their dogs chipped, Maidstone Borough Council’s dog warden will be providing an on-site service.

Dogs missing in the area will be screened, with visitors getting the opportunity to see the video made by the students of Pauline Quirke Academy, Romford on dogs and theft.

The local team will also be fundraising with a tombola.

Visitors to the show at the Kent Showground in Detling won’t miss the Kent team: A great big DogLost sail will mark their presence by the marquee.

Other activities over the weekend include a companion dog shows and loads of ‘have a go’ fun events including agility, flyball and K9 Aquazone.

Paws in the Park runs on Saturday and Sunday 20th & 21st September.

DogLost supporters have been helping Manchester Dogs Home with offers of blankets, food and potential foster homes after the horrific fire which killed 50 dogs.

Donations have been pouring into the Manchester Evening News’ JustGiving page. If you are able to help our friends at the Home please donate, however small. JustGiving

DogLost has joined four organisations in the field of pet theft and loss to push for greater reform to reduce the impact the issue has for owners.

Launching at Westminster with Neil Parish MP, chairman of the Associate Parliamentary Committee for Animal Welfare and Angela Smith MP Shadow Defra Minister, the Alliance is to push for five key reforms.

Three lie with microchipping: Compulsory scanning of microchips by vets, rescues and animal wardens, and of deceased pets by highway authorities and Network Rail. This, the Alliance, believes will be crucial in reuniting pets with their owners.

Said an Alliance spokesperson: “The compulsory microchipping of dogs scheduled for England in 2016, and Wales next year, provided the ideal opportunity to implement these reforms, but sadly Defra has not taken this on board.”

The Alliance also wants a microchip to be absolute proof of ownership rather than simply the registered keeper so that ownership disputes can be more readily resolved.

Another strand to the campaign is through the judiciary, whereby the Alliance is asking for animals to be reclassified under theft legislation. As the legislation stands, theft of a pet is no more serious that the theft of an object. Prosecutions are few and custodial sentences unheard of.

Continued an Alliance spokesperson: “We have already made a submission to the Sentencing Council and this has been supported by Neil Parish in his capacity as AGPAW chairman.

The five organisations comprising SAMPA are DogLost – the country’s largest reunification organisation; Dog Theft Action; Pet Theft Awareness; the Dog Union and Vets Get Scanning – run by Sir Bruce Forsyth’s daughter, all of which have a common interest in pet theft and micro chipping.

Celebrity supporter, Marc the Vet, whose Pup Aid campaign prompted a parliamentary debate last week, also supported the launch and he is pictured with Angela Smith MP and Neil Parish MP.

DogLost will be at Pup Aid tomorrow at Primrose Hill. We’ll be with colleagues Vets Get Scanning, Dog Union, Pet Theft Awareness and Dog Theft Action on the eve of the launch of Stolen and Missing Pets Alliance.

Fun dog show, celebrity supporters and more. Primrose Hill, London.

On National Dog Day, DogLost is urging people to pre-register their dogs with DogLost.

When a dog goes missing, every owner is in a panic. Finding a photo and microchip details are time-consuming but necessary.

By registering with DogLost and providing all a dog’s details in advance, valuable time can be saved should the worst happen.

“It just takes a few minutes” said founder, Jayne Hayes “and it will take away a lot of the worry should your dog go missing or be stolen.”

With pre-registration, just a click of a button will alert the DogLost team that your dog is missing and alerts and posters can be automatically mailed without delay.

To register, just fill in the form here

Rain didn’t deter thousands of pet-lovers streaming through the doors of Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire for The Pet Show.

DogLost was pleased to have been invited to make more owners aware of dog theft and the need to keep their animals secure.

DogLost’s team were able to chat to hundreds of dogs owners – some of whom were either registered with DogLost, had been helped by us or had, indeed, been helpers.

For many people, it was the first time that they’d realised that a microchip doesn’t offer complete protection when their dog goes missing. A big part of DogLost’s education programme is to make people aware that a chip can only help reunite a dog if the dog is found and scanned.

Celebrity supporter Marc the Vet called by in between his ‘Ask an Expert’ sessions. And for those whose animal interests extend beyond dogs, there very pets of every variety on show.

DogLost will be at this weekend’s Pet Show at Stoneleigh advising owners on how to keep their dogs safe.

With the increase in dog theft, DogLost needs to raise awareness of microchipping and registering with the site as well as ways to combat the thieves.

You will find us in on stand F13 near the main entrance and between the cafe and the Kennels Arena. Celebrity supporter, Marc the Vet will be on the Pet Show stand answering all your dog-related questions.

Other attractions at the show include: displays, special guests, meet and greet areas, animal habitat features, educational workshops, have a go activities and all the latest products, supplies and equipment for pet loving visitors.

The Pet Show 2014 returns to Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire on 2^nd – 3^rd August 2014 and is open 1100-1700 on both days. The Pet Show

Our Herts & Essex boarders co-ordinator, Kim Herbert, has finally won her five-year campaign to fence off a section of railway line in Harlow where her hearing dog was killed.

Cassie, a Border Collie, was killed when she strayed onto a section of track in Harlow. Her tragic death led Kim to campaign fiercely for Network Rail to erect a fence between Harlow Town station and an industrial estate.

Despite Network Rail’s initial refusal to act, Kim went on to enlist the help of the council, her local MP and an army of people who signed her online petition.

Read the Harlow Star story