It’s often said, love is the universal language. And, one thing is for certain, people love their pets. So there was nothing lost in translation – except the dog, and perhaps a language barrier – found wandering in the metro area, whose microchip indicated it was from France.

Although it’s one of their more far-fetched cases, a large percentage yielding “happy tails,” it is among the thousands of recovery efforts conducted by Lost Pets of Omaha Area, a volunteer nonprofit established in 2014 by Cathy Eaton, an animal lover herself.

No worries, despite the current news, the world hasn’t completely gone to the dogs – a perhaps unfair, oft-used idiom, meaning worsening, giving our canine friends a rather bad rap.

There still remains a “scents” of honor, decorum, decency, as well as civil obedience, among both sectors – further evidenced by the fact that all their services, offered to area residents – and occasionally beyond – are free.

The pooch eventually went “Oui, Oui, Oui” (French for “yes,” pronounced wee) all the way home, once they found an airline that could guarantee its safe return.

“LPOOA is devoted to helping lost pets get back home,” according to Eaton, a retiree, who has loved pets ever since she was a child.

“In the last 10 years, we have successfully brought over 25,000 lost pets back to their owners.”

But their mission goes beyond running a well-moderated Facebook page – where photos and descriptions of lost, found, and wandering pets are posted, in addition to searches and signage.

Just how active … No need to conduct a sniff test, these stats alone may give readers “paws” …

“Our Facebook page boasts a community of over 68,000 followers, dedicated to helping us reunite lost and found pets with their families. We receive about 30 requests a day to post lost, found, and wandering pets, with a response time of about 15 minutes,” said Eaton, whose page reaches 30,000 views per day, fielding hundreds of comments.

However, it’s gotten a lot more sophisticated than “Timmy” searching the hillside calling “Lassie” home, in reference to the classic, canine TV show.

“As a proactive team in pet reunification, we provide various forms of assistance tailored to each situation, including safe traps, cellular trail cameras, signage support and direct involvement in on-site searches, which include trapping and use of thermal-imaging drones,” she said.

In fact, they even pitched in when disaster struck the metro.

“We played a role in several lost pet searches after the tornado in April 2024, using our drone and coordinating efforts,” she said, assisting Douglas and the Washington County Sheriff.

And, in this age of computer technology, they also have a great track record, in addition to a comprehensive website, listing everything from tips, services, volunteer opportunities, and actions to take if a pet is lost, wandering, found, or sadly, deceased.

“Our microchip network consists of more than 35 dedicated individuals spread across the greater Omaha metro area, equipped with microchip readers to promptly check lost pets for microchips, thereby enhancing the likelihood of a quick and efficient reunion.”

In fact, microchips are so effective, they’ve opened the gates, so to speak … imagining Fido speaking? … encouraging others to follow their lead – by offering this service free.

“Pets with microchips have a higher chance of being returned home, saving their owners both time and money,” she explained.

To do so, LPOOA purchases the microchips and donates them to the American Animal Hospital.

“Their vet techs donate their time to place them. AAH essentially donates its facilities, and the time spent by a vet tech is time that could be spent on paying customers.”

Given that, they ask people to donate $10 per chip to the hospital’s Angel Fund, to help pay vet bills for people who might lose their pet if they can’t afford payment.

However, it is equally important that pet owners complete the process.

“We see so many cases where people get a pet chipped and fail to register it. Micro-chipping is important in that it provides clear ownership in the event of a dispute. If a lost pet is found, and the chip is registered, Nebraska Humane Society will bring the pet home at no cost. If we send out our volunteers to scan a pet, and the chip is properly registered, we can arrange for the owner and finder to meet.”

But it’s not just for the birds … dogs … cats. LPOOA has also posted reptiles, chickens, and even livestock.

It all began in 2013, when Eaton spotted a lost dog and posted on Craigslist.

“The post caught the attention of someone who had lost their dog. The dog's owner, an over-the-road trucker from California, had stopped at a Wal-Mart in Gretna, Neb., for a break when his dog ran away. Despite searching for several hours, the trucker had to adhere to a strict schedule and continue his journey,” she said.

Eaton stepped in, taking on the task of following up on leads, coordinating communication, putting up posters, and organizing searches, since the trucker had to depart, highlighting a real need for this service.

For funding, LPOOA receives private donations, corporate matching, and participates in Share Omaha’s fundraising events, as well as plant sales, held in partnership with Heartland German Shepherd Rescue.

Among their biggest expenses are website updates/maintenance, drone insurance, replacement of equipment, such as various traps that don’t make it back, and the approximately 500 microchips they donate each year.

On alert for scams, they’ve also taken steps to ensure the integrity of their site, including a no-joke, spam, memes, and/or negative comments policy, posting only content given by the original owner/finder.

Nor is anything listed for monetary gain.

“Our experience is that rewards bring out bad motives. We are the only page that refuses to post rewards. At least 15 others have created similar sites. Some of those sites selected names very similar to ours, causing further confusion. Too often, pets end up at Nebraska Humane Society because a connection isn’t made.”

The good news, their relationship with the NHS is mutually beneficial.

“Every pet we recover is a possible pet they don’t need to handle. They are overwhelmed and underfunded as it is. NHS will often alert us to a pet that they picked up that is on our page, so we can arrange to get the pet home, without the trauma of ending up at the shelter.”

Which can save pet owners money, which, one imagines from the pet’s point of view, could be better spent on treats.

“The charge for a pet picked up by the NHS runs from $35 plus $16/day boarding for a first-offender pet that is neutered. Fees can run as high as $600 for repeat offenders for un-neutered pets,” she added.

In 2024 alone, the NHS reunited 2,148 animals with their owners, according to Steven Elonich, Executive VP of PR/Marketing/Internal Communication.

“The fees for reclaiming stray pets are set by the city. The fees are determined from a number of factors: Are the pets spayed/neutered? Are they licensed? Repeat offenders? All of those can play a factor,” he explained.

“I would just like to commend and show my appreciation for the folks at LPOOA. Losing a pet can be a gutting feeling, and they do everything in their power to keep that from happening,” Elonich said, calling them an incredible community resource.

The fact is, NHS and LPOOA share a common goal: reuniting pets with their owners.

“The positive impact they’ve made on the Omaha community and our pets has been tremendous. As many people know, shelters nationwide are pushing up against and often surpassing capacity, so the more pets we can keep from coming into the shelter, the better, and LPOOA has been among the most helpful organizations to help accomplish just that.”

Offering nothing but praise, two things impress him most…

“The first is how they continue to grow. They aren’t just posting lost and found pets – even though that’s already a monumental undertaking. They have also pushed micro-chipping, vaccinations, licensing, and have even crowd-sourced funds for technology to help find animals on their own. The second is that, at its core, this is a group of people who are out making their community a better place,” he said.

That’s because most pet owners treat their pets like family, according to Eaton. “If a family member is lost, you’ll do anything to find them.”

Which is essentially what LPOOA wants to do …

But like their human counterparts, they can be unpredictable – even disobey.

“Life happens! Pets getting loose doesn’t mean someone is a bad owner. Gates can fly open due to high winds, sometimes a pet will door dash when your hands are full, or a squirrel really got their attention,” Elonich notes.

Hoping to get more eyes on their mission, the nonprofit is seeking volunteers.

It’s not like they’re begging, but the “dog-gone” truth, they’re not going to sit or stay; they, too, want “Lassie” to come home.

To learn more, please visit https://lostpetsofomahaarea.org/ or email: info@lostpetsofomahaarea.org