--- title: "Guides: Lost Pets, Found Animals, Adopting, Fostering and TNR" description: "Free, practical guides for a missing dog or cat, a found animal, adopting, the first week home, fostering and trap-neuter-return. Printable checklists, no account needed." canonical: https://www.whiskermatch.com/guides markdown_url: https://www.whiskermatch.com/guides.md generated_from: "canonical page server-rendered HTML; the HTML page is authoritative" last_modified: 2026-10-10 last_updated: 2026-10-10 publisher: "Veldarium Technology Systems LLC" --- Guides # What to do, in the order you would do it. Practical steps for a missing dog or cat, an animal you just found, the first days after adopting, fostering, and the community cats on your street. Free, printable, no account. General guidance, not veterinary or legal advice. ## Your pet is missing - [What to do when your dog is missing](https://www.whiskermatch.com/guides/lost-dog) Start searching on foot from the place your dog was last seen, and leave someone at home in case they come back. Within the first few hours, call your microchip registry, your local animal control and nearby shelters. Lost pet · 6 steps · 4 questions answered - [What to do when your cat is missing](https://www.whiskermatch.com/guides/lost-cat) A cat that slips outside usually hides close to home and stays quiet, so search your own yard and your neighbors' yards slowly and thoroughly before you widen the circle. Look under decks, in sheds, garages and bushes with a flashlight, call your microchip registry and local shelters, and visit those shelters in person every day or two. Lost pet · 5 steps · 4 questions answered ## You found an animal - [Found a dog or cat? What to do first](https://www.whiskermatch.com/guides/found-a-pet) Keep yourself and the animal safe first, then check for an ID tag and get the animal scanned for a microchip at any vet clinic or shelter. Report the animal to your local animal control or shelter, post a found report with a photo and the general area, and check lost-pet posts nearby. Found animal · 5 steps · 3 questions answered - [Found kittens outside? What to do first](https://www.whiskermatch.com/guides/found-kittens) If the kittens look clean, quiet and plump and are in a safe spot, the mother is probably nearby: step well away and watch for a few hours before doing anything. Kittens that are cold, wet, crying constantly, injured or in danger need help now: keep them warm and call a local shelter, rescue or vet for advice before you feed them anything. Found animal · 6 steps · 4 questions answered ## You are adopting - [How pet adoption works, step by step](https://www.whiskermatch.com/guides/how-pet-adoption-works) You choose an animal, apply, and the shelter or rescue reviews your application, which may include references, a call, a meet-and-greet or a home visit. A person at the organization decides. Adopting · 5 steps · 4 questions answered - [Bringing home an adopted dog: the first week](https://www.whiskermatch.com/guides/first-week-adopted-dog) Keep the first week quiet and predictable. Prepare a calm space before your dog arrives, go straight home, keep visitors and outings to a minimum, and build a simple routine of meals, short walks and rest. Adopting · 5 steps · 3 questions answered - [Bringing home an adopted cat](https://www.whiskermatch.com/guides/bringing-home-adopted-cat) Start your new cat in one quiet room with food, water, a litter box and a place to hide, and let them come out on their own terms. Introduce other pets gradually, by smell first and sight later, over days or weeks. Adopting · 4 steps · 3 questions answered - [Adopting a senior dog or cat](https://www.whiskermatch.com/guides/senior-pet-adoption) An older dog or cat often comes with a known personality, habits and history, and usually needs less training and supervision than a young animal. In exchange, plan for more frequent vet visits and possibly ongoing medication. Adopting · 5 steps · 3 questions answered ## You want to foster - [How fostering a dog or cat works](https://www.whiskermatch.com/guides/how-fostering-works) A foster cares for a shelter or rescue animal in their own home until it is adopted or ready to go back. The organization usually stays responsible for the animal and its vet care, and often provides supplies; the foster provides a home, daily care, transport to appointments and honest updates. Fostering · 4 steps · 4 questions answered ## Cats live outside near you - [What is TNR? Trap-neuter-return explained](https://www.whiskermatch.com/guides/what-is-tnr) Trap-neuter-return (TNR) is the practice of humanely trapping community cats, having them spayed or neutered and vaccinated, ear-tipped so they are recognizable, and returned to the place they live. The aim is to stop new litters so a colony gets smaller over time. Community cats · 4 steps · 3 questions answered - [Stray, feral or community cat? How to tell, and what to do](https://www.whiskermatch.com/guides/stray-vs-feral-cat) A stray cat is a pet that has lost its home or wandered; it is usually used to people and may be someone's missing cat. A feral cat has had little or no contact with people and avoids them. Community cats · 4 steps · 4 questions answered ## Understanding the animal in front of you - [How to read a cat's body language](https://www.whiskermatch.com/guides/cat-body-language) A relaxed cat has soft, half-closed eyes, ears facing forward and a loose body; a tail held up as it walks toward you is usually a friendly greeting. Ears turned sideways or flat, wide eyes, a low or wrapped tail and a crouched, still body mean the cat is worried and wants space. Understanding animals · 5 steps · 3 questions answered - [How to read a dog's body language](https://www.whiskermatch.com/guides/dog-body-language) A relaxed dog has soft eyes, a loose open mouth and a loose, wiggly body. A dog that turns its head away, licks its lips, yawns, lowers its body or shows the whites of its eyes is unsure and asking you to slow down. Understanding animals · 4 steps · 3 questions answered ## More help on WhiskerMatch - [Free printable tools](https://www.whiskermatch.com/tools): a lost-pet flyer maker, vaccination and medication records, an emergency info card. - [Whisker World](https://www.whiskermatch.com/world): three-minute lessons with safe field activities, and a journal of what you learned. - [Rescue and adoption words](https://www.whiskermatch.com/glossary#care-words), defined in plain terms. - [Applying through WhiskerMatch](https://www.whiskermatch.com/adopters): your application goes to the organization, and you keep a private page showing where it stands. - Run a shelter or rescue? Your checklists are in [shelter workflow resources](https://www.whiskermatch.com/resources). --- About WhiskerMatch: WhiskerMatch is workflow software for animal shelters and rescues that keeps one reviewed record per animal across intake, foster care, adoption review and public profiles, with people making every placement and publishing decision. ## Sitemap See the full [WhiskerMatch sitemap](https://www.whiskermatch.com/sitemap.md) for every public page, or [llms.txt](https://www.whiskermatch.com/llms.txt) for a short summary.