Pet Care: Tags And Chips

Featured in this Show

• Microchips Help Pet Owners Find Their Furry Friends

  Download

  Having a pet get loose or lost is a nightmare for any pet owner, but there are things that can be done to increase the odds of finding him or her.

  Pet owners have a much better chance of locating their missing friends if the animals have a microchip and an ID tag, said veterinarian Sandra Sawchuk of the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine.

  Microchips are implanted just under the skin, usually right between the shoulder blades. It’s a relatively easy procedure, done with a large needle and without anesthesia, according to the Humane Society of the United States.

  Each microchip contains a registration number and the phone number of the registry for that particular chip brand. Using a handheld scanner, an animal shelter or vet clinic worker can read the chip, find the registry and get the owner’s name and phone number, according to the Humane Society website.

  When a chip is embedded, owners complete the paperwork that comes with the chip and send it to the registry. This can be done online with some chips. There may be a one-time or an annual registration fee for this service. Pet owners also receive a tag for the pet’s collar with the chip number and registry phone number.

  “You want to have an external identification tag that has the chip number on it,” Sawchuk said. “Having that information on the collar, along with your personal ID, is really helpful, and sometimes having that ID on their collar may deter people that may want to take a dog.”

  The cost of implanting a microchip depends on where the procedure is done and the chip used, she said. The cost is usually around $30, and some shelters implant microchips as a fundraiser.

  If contact information changes, contact the chip company to update their database. This is also important if a pet with an embedded chip is adopted, Sawchuk said.