This column originally was written for Dec. 28, 1991.
I'm not sure what it is about my neighborhood -- or is it me? -- but I seem to acquire an astonishing number of strays.
There have been cats of all kinds and dogs of all breeds and combinations, but in the last year they've all had one thing in common: They didn't have any identification.
Along with my neighbors and friends -- animal-lovers all -- I do what I can. We take them in and water, feed and bathe them. If they're sick, they see a vet. If they're matted, I'm usually the one who gives them a bad haircut.
Sometimes they go to the shelter within hours, usually because they can't get along with the other animals or because there's no room for more in our homes. Others will stay for a week, maybe a little longer, while we do everything we can to find their owners or get them new ones before regretfully turning them over to the shelter.
The permanent pets are tolerant of this "hobby," perhaps because it reminds them how lucky they are.
This past year was pretty typical, I suppose: One dog was reunited with her owners; four dogs and a cat were neutered and placed; and the rest were left to an unknown fate at the shelter.
I have no doubt that some of them were throwaway pets, left to fend for themselves by people who couldn't be bothered with a drive to the shelter. But other strays were clearly lost and anxious to get back to a home where they were missed. Most never made it, as far as I know.
The one exception was also the only pet wearing a collar. Her owner was putting up "lost dog" signs while we were doing the same with "found dog" ones. The dog's bright-pink collar made the verbal matchup simple, but a tag would have gotten her home in an hour instead of a day.
There's no reason not to put a tag on your pet. Even if you are convinced your pet can't get out, there's still a possibility it will. Your best -- and often only -- chance of ever seeing your pet again is to have an ID tag on it. Even if the worst happened and your missing pet was killed or found dead, it's better to know what happened than to be left wondering.
Leave room on that collar for a license, too. If your pet ends up in a municipal shelter, a license buys you both the time you need to find one another. It's a simple, cheap way to protect your pet.
One family learned this lesson the hard way. Their dog, a beautiful and rare purebred, got out of the yard and ended up at a municipal shelter. Classified as a stray because she had no ID tag and no license, the dog ended up adopted by another family after the legal hold period expired.
When the snafu was discovered, the original family asked the shelter to set things right. But the new family didn't want to give up the dog, and animal-control officials felt they had to side with the new owners.
The dog's original owners were too heartbroken to let the matter stand, so the shelter decided to try the new family again. This time they agreed to return the dog.
If the dog had been wearing a collar with an ID tag and a license, the mess would never have happened.
If you can see yourself in this family's situation, make a properly fitting collar with a current ID tag and license -- as well as considering other forms of ID, such as a microchip or tattoo -- one of your top priorities for the new year.