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Creating Happy Endings for Michigan's Lost Pets
Michigan Pet Fund Alliance workshop onreuniting lost pets with their owners Sept. 27 in Livonia
Bloomfield Hills, Mich., Sept. 4, 2013 – After their dog Charley squeezed through a gap in a fence and disappeared four months ago, the Tzay family never thought they'd see him again. But they did, thanks to a microchip and a dedicated animal control officer.
Madison Heights animal control officer Suzette Gysel had just received the brand new scanner, paid for by a community fundraising effort led by All About Animals Rescue. The first pet she tried it on was a stray dog who had been picked up near 12 Mile and John R. When she scanned him, she found out he was registered to the Tzay family.Not only did she contact them, but she drove the dog home, too.
"Thank you so much for finding him, using the microchip reader, and delivering him home," owner Kristin Tzay wrote Gysel. "I had accepted that someone had picked him up and decided to keep him themselves. So thank you, thank you, thank you!"
Unfortunately, Charley's happy ending isn't common in Michigan. While around 25 percent of dogs and 2 percent of cats are returned to their families nationwide, in Michigan those numbers are a dismal 9 percent for dogs and less than 1 percent for cats.
The good news, however, is this represents a great opportunity for shelters and animal control agencies all over the state to immediately and inexpensively boost their save rates and reduce intake to their facilities – a big cost-savings in tough economic times.
That's why the Michigan Pet Fund Alliance is inviting all Michigan animal lovers, elected officials, shelter staff and pet rescuers to attend a day-long workshop with Kat Albrecht of Missing Pet Partnership from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.on Friday, September 27, at the Embassy Suites Detroit-Livonia/Novi, 19525 Victor Parkway, Livonia, MI. Albrecht will cover a wide range of innovative lost pet strategies that can be used by community members and animal control agencies alike.
The cost to attend the hands-on workshop is $70, with discounts available for students and groups. Register now and find out how communities across the country are reducing shelter intake, cutting animal control costs and turning sad lost-pet stories into happy endings!
For more information and to register, visit
About Michigan Pet Fund Alliance
Michigan Pet Fund Alliance (MPFA) is an all-volunteer, not-for-profit 501(c)(3), tax-exempt, charitable organization. MPFA was formed to stop the archaic practice of euthanizing healthy and treatable companion animals in Michigan shelters as a means to eliminate the problem of homeless pets and to bring more humane practices to homeless companion animals in Michigan.
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