For 16 Years, One Place Reunites Thousands of Lost Pets

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Sept. 24, 2014 - PRLog -- This October, PetFBI.org, or Pets Found By Internet, celebrates 16 years of  reuniting lost pets of all species and breeds with their families with new shelter partnerships and enhanced services.

Their efforts have resulted in some amazing reunions such as Verde the black cat with green eyes who was reunited with his family after being missing for more than 3 months, and Phil the Cockatiel who landed on a good Samaritan who used Pet FBI to find his owners several miles away.

Pet FBI's enhanced formula for helping pet and their families reunite combines the best of the Internet and local communities.

First, the robust online national database serves all 50 states, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. Lost and Found Reports are now easier than ever to create and search. Plus they are kept for at least 5 years, something other databases and websites don't offer.

Next, Pet FBI's dedicated legion volunteers regularly contact owners with sightings of missing pets, recovery tips from their own experience and the Pet FBI library, and offers to help physically facilitate a reunion. The Pet FBI - Ohio Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/petfbi.org) alone has nearly 10,000 followers which often results in a single post being shared locally hundreds of times and seen by more than 20,000 people.

Finally, new partnerships with rescues and shelters such as the Capital Area Humane Society (CAHS) are changing protocols for pets surrendered as strays even if they don't have a microchip or other official identification. By reporting all strays to the database and keeping an eye on the social media postings, shelters decrease euthanasias and increase placement.

According to founder Maresa Fanelli, approximately 35% of dogs and 25% of cats listed on Pet FBI are reported as reunited, and she suspects that the success rate is actually higher because people simply delete or don't update their reports.

"There are more than 450 records updated as 'reunited-rehomed' since January of this year," Fanelli says. "That is 189 cats, 272 dogs, a sprinkling of birds, iguanas, and other critters that Pet FBI has helped get back home."

Started in 1998 and based in Columbus, Ohio, Pet FBI is one of the United States' first online databases dedicated to helping worried pet owners and good Samaritans connect. To date they have helped dogs, cats, birds, ferrets, goats, reptiles, and even bulls find their way home.

Pet FBI a non-profit 501(c)3 organization run entirely on donations and by volunteers. It is not a part of any government agency or commercial company.