Humane Society of Elkhart County

HSEC Social Media Purpose - The Humane Society of Elkhart County, Inc. is a private, not for profit organization that has sole discretion of what may or may not be posted on its social media. Content may be scrutinized for appropriateness and truthfulness as well as relevance to the Humane Society’s purpose or marketing objectives of promoting the organization’s adoptable animals, activities of the shelter and educational segments HSEC deems of importance.

Hundreds of groups and individuals may request to cross post information. However, the Humane Society cannot accommodate all such requests.

Lost and Found Animals - Relevant to finders of lost animals, Elkhart County’s ordinance requires that all lost animals are to be reported to the Humane Society by the finder and they are to speak to the Humane Society staff in order to provide necessary information. A social media post or message to HSEC by itself is not acceptable. All finders are still requested to contact the shelter in order to gather more specific and pertinent information. They may also be directed to other relevant social media sites that offer pet lost and found report functions as their specific media purpose.

Owners who have lost pets are also requested to speak to the Humane Society staff in order to provide necessary information. A social media post or message to HSEC by itself is not acceptable. Owners may also be directed to those social media sites which offer pet lost and fund report functions as their specific media purpose.

Reporting Suspected Abuse and Neglect
Messages or social media posts alone may not be used to pursue reports of abuse or neglect. Contact the Humane Society or local law enforcement to ensure necessary investigation.

Potential Banning of Individuals/Groups Posting or Messaging - Individuals who may display profanity, misinformation, malicious gossip, hearsay, fail to repeatedly follow directions or information provided to them in response to their previous posts or messages or who consistently post information that does not fall into the realm of the Humane Society’s designated objectives may be banned from posting any information on HSEC social media.

Confidentiality - Information regarding animals that may be at the shelter will not be released due to the confidentiality of the owner, animal situation or possible ongoing investigations.



FAQ - Lost and Found Animals

Q. MY PET IS MISSING. WHAT ADVICE CAN YOU OFFER ME?

As soon as you notice your pet is missing, call the Humane Society to complete a lost report. We are the only Humane Society in Elkhart County, and people often bring stray or found animals to the shelter or call to report a found animal. Additionally, we serve as animal control for the county and often pick up stray or running at large animals which are then housed at the shelter.

We’ll also ask that you come into the shelter and look for your animal. Only you know what your pet looks like, and we often get similar looking animals of the same breed.

Contact your local newspaper and check ads for lost and found. Some of the area newspapers will print a missing pet ad in their classifieds at no charge to you.

Post flyers in your neighborhood including a photograph.

We do ask pet guardians to be proactive, and consider a microchip for their dog or cat. This service can be provided at the Humane Society or at your local vet office.


Q. WHAT DO I DO IF I FIND A STRAY ANIMAL?

The Humane Society of Elkhart County will only accept animals found in Elkhart County excluding the city of Nappanee which is serviced by another animal welfare group.

First and foremost, immediately contact the Humane Society to file a found report. Take the animal to the Humane Society or to a local vet office to check for a microchip which readily identifies possible owner.

Follow up by checking in the neighborhood to see if someone is missing the animal. You may also contact your local newspaper to see if they run free ads in the classifieds for found animals.

When turning in an animal, you will need to provide a valid driver’s license or proof of identification to confirm you are an Elkhart County resident. Once a stray animal is released to the Humane Society, no further information will be provided to you or anyone else other than the owner regarding the status of the animal.

Individuals who wish to keep the animal at their home after filing a report and having the animal checked for a microchip, may hold onto the animal for up to ten days. If you do not want to continue to keep the animal for that period of time, you may turn the animal into the Humane Society immediately or before the ten day period ends. It will be accepted as a stray and no fee will be charged. Again, once a stray animal is released to the Humane Society, no further information will be provided to you or anyone else other than the owner regarding the status of the animal.

If you feel you may want to keep the animal as your pet, you may continue to keep the animal. After ten days from the report date to the Humane Society and checking for microchip and no lost report has been filed, the animal will become your pet. Nonetheless, if you keep the animal beyond the 10 days and then decide to turn it into the Humane Society, you will then be charged an owner release fee.

For more FAQ - visit our website at:
http://www.elkharthumanesociety.org/about-us/faq/