DUNDALK — Baltimore County has a new tool that will help reunite lost pets with their owners.
The county now has pet scanning stations.
There are five locations where you can go in Baltimore County if you want to reunite pets with their owners.
The locations are in Essex, Dundalk, Parkville, Catonsville and Reisterstown.
The goal of this tool is to help reduce the burden on local animal shelters.
The microchip scanners are available to use 24/7.
Anyone who finds a lost pet can take a pet to a scanning station.You are able to scan the pet to see if they have a microchip.
If the pet has a microchip, the scanner will be able to locate the chip number on the screen.
Once the chip number is displayed, you can then put that information into a website.
A company will notify the pet owners that you have pet.
“It’s a win win for everyone. And I’m just so proud that we are the first agency in Maryland to be able to institute something like this. Hopefully others will do the same," said Dr. Gregory Branch, Director of the Baltimore County Department of Health and Human Services.
According to the law, if you find a lost pet, you have to submit a found animal report to the Baltimore County Animal Shelter within 24 hours. You also have 72 hours to try to reunite the pet with their owner. If a reunion isn’t reached in 72 hours, then you have to turn the pet over to the shelter.
Even if you find a pet outside of Baltimore County, you can still take the pet to one of the locations in the county.
It’s also important to note if the animal appears to be sick or injured, experts say it’s best you take the animal to the shelter.
If you’re interested in microchipping your pet, you can call 410-887-7297.