MyLostPetAlert

I totally edited my previous review because it sounded pretty paranoid.

When my cat first went missing, I put up a post on the local Craigslist Lost & Found board to get the word out. Then I started receiving responses from what seemed like concerned individuals recommending that I use MyLostPetAlert.com, but every message had almost the exact same wording even though they were from different addresses, which seemed suspicious. Regardless, I went ahead and paid for the "rural" package, or whatever they call it -- Woof? -- in the hopes that more neighbors, vets, and shelters in my area would be reached than I could manage by myself.

The things I liked about the service are that the basic package is affordable for the average person, and I also liked that they use a voice actor to record the personalized message that is played (by robocall?) over however many neighbors' phones you pay for in a particular service package.

The things I didn't like are that I suspect they use bots to trawl through lost pet posts online to then send what looks like messages from concerned individuals who do not work for the company. If that's the case, I would suggest to them that they just go ahead and be aboveboard about how they represent themselves. "Hi, we're sorry about your missing animal, but we're a service that helps you locate your pet, and this is how you can reach us." And anytime I update my Craigslist posting, I start getting phone calls from *another* location service called PetAmberAlert.com. Where are they getting my phone number if it's never been in my Craigslist posts, nor even my name or any identifying info? See? I sound paranoid, right?

Anyway, if you're desperate and can spare the money, sure, use this service. But I really recommend you do some research online about how to find (and think like) a missing pet -- for example, it turns out calling out your cat's name while searching for it is a bad idea -- and enlist anyone you can find to help you create and distribute flyers and posters to the areas around where your animal was last seen. You might have to keep searching and putting in the effort for weeks or months, but Do. Not. Give. Up. Hope. You will be amazed how resilient a lost animal can be. I was certain my cat had died because he was injured when he got loose, and the weather was so hot and dry for weeks afterward. However, he is alive, but unfortunately still on the loose almost two months later. I've been receiving updates about his whereabouts from local residents, and I hope to trap him soon!

Good luck!