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Animal Shelter Offers Tips After Seeing Uptick In Lost Pets Following 4th Of July

DENVER (CBS4) - The Denver Dumb Friends League has a full house following 4th of July fireworks. It's the annual surge of scared dogs and an occasional cat.

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The shelter says it received 39 stray dogs and puppies in the days following the holiday; double the number it normally receives.

"The other part of our shelter that's also affected is our call center. They receive the highest volume of calls on the days after the fourth of the July because people are calling to ask questions, find a missing pet. Even if we don't have their pet, to ask advice," said Maia Brusseau, Public Relations Manager for the Denver Dumb Friends League.

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It's not the busiest 4th for the shelter. Denver Animal Rescue says 2017 was its busiest year, but the numbers this year aren't exactly low.

Denver Animal Rescue says its intake for the 4th of July was just 11 animals, but over the next five days, that number jumped to 135 animals.

Brusseau says while it's common to find pets without collars or microchips, she finds that many owners will get their pet chipped but forget to register it.

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Maia Brusseau (credit: CBS)

"So the microchips sitting there with no information which doesn't do you any good. The other thing that happens is that people's phone numbers change or their email addresses change and we can't get in touch with that owner."

She says if your pet does go missing, there are steps you should immediately take. First is notify your neighbors both in person and via social media.

"Put something familiar outside for your pet. For a dog put out a dog bed, for a cat put out a cat litter box that's been used. Make sure you check the animal shelter that's closest to you. Most of the time, if someone finds your pet, they're going to take it to the nearest shelter."

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Brusseau is passionate about getting the word out and while she loves working with the animals, her best days are when they're gone.

"We all have favorites and we will get attached to them, but it actually feels really good when you come into work and they're not here anymore because it means that they're home."

The Denver Dumb Friends League keeps a running list of all strays in house on its website.

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