Help find missing pets on your own street.
When a pet goes missing near you, you get notified so you can join the search.
Lost pets are usually close to home. The problem is nobody’s looking.
When a cat or dog goes missing, the owner can only be in one place at a time. The people most likely to spot it are the ones already walking past: neighbours on the school run, on the way to the shops, out with their own dog.
39%
Of stray dogs taken in by UK councils were reunited with their owners in 2023–24. Most of them were microchipped.1
50 m
Half of missing cats that were found alive were within 50 metres of home. Three in four were within 500 metres.2
25,000+
Dogs and cats reported missing to Petlog, just one UK database, in 18 months.3
A microchip only helps once somebody has the pet in hand. Before that, what brings a dog or cat home is someone nearby noticing it. With over 21 million pet dogs and cats in the UK,4 there are plenty of neighbours who would, if they knew to look.
How it works
A pet goes missing near you
Its owner sounds the alarm on FindMilo, with a photo and where it was last seen.
You get an alert
If it went missing within 2 km of you, you hear straight away: what the pet looks like and roughly where to keep an eye out.
You look out, and say if you see it
On your way to wherever you were going. If you spot the pet, you tell the owner where. That’s the whole job.
If you spot a missing pet
Every pet is different. Some will happily come to a stranger; others bolt at the first step towards them. So:
- Check the owner’s advice. Every alert says how best to approach that pet.
- Never chase. A chased pet runs further.
- Note exactly where and when. A street corner, a front garden, which way it went.
- Take a photo if you can, from where you are.
- Tell the owner straight away. A sighting from ten minutes ago is gold.
- Not sure it’s the one? Say so anyway. “It might be them” still helps.
Questions
Does it cost anything to be a searcher?
No. Searchers never pay, and never will. FindMilo is paid for by pet owners in areas where enough people are watching.
Do I need to download an app?
No. You can join with just your email, and alerts will reach you there. The FindMilo app is quicker, because a phone that buzzes beats an inbox, but it is up to you.
How often will I hear from you?
Only when a dog or cat goes missing within 2 km of you. Most weeks that is never. An alert is one message about one pet, not a feed.
Do I have to go out looking?
No. Most people simply keep an eye out on a walk they were taking anyway. If you are busy or away, do nothing. There is no obligation, ever.
What do I do if I think I have seen the pet?
Check the owner’s advice on how to approach that pet, never chase it, and tell the owner where you saw it. Even “I think it might be them” helps.
Will the owner see my address, or I theirs?
No. Nobody sees anybody’s address. An alert shows the pet’s photo, what it looks like and roughly where it was last seen. An owner sees only the sightings people send them.
Who can join?
Anyone aged 16 or over who likes animals. You don’t need a pet of your own. We are starting in London, so that is where alerts will come from for now.
What is the searcher’s promise?
Three things every searcher signs up to: pets are part of the family, no pet should feel alone and scared, and owners and pets belong together.
How do I leave?
Every alert email has a link at the bottom to stop them. One tap, and no reason needed.
- Dogs Trust, Stray Dog Survey 2023–24: dogs handled by UK local authorities, April 2023 to March 2024
- Huang et al. (2018), “Search methods used to locate missing cats and locations where missing cats are found”, a study of 1,210 missing cats
- Petlog, the UK’s largest lost-and-found pet database: pets reported missing, January 2023 to June 2024
- PDSA Animal Wellbeing (PAW) Report 2025, UK pet populations