Microchip Benefits

Microchipping dogs is a safe, permanent method of identifying canine pets. Statistics show that 1 in 3 dogs will become lost during their lives, but only 17 percent of those animals return to their owners. A microchip can help improve the odds of your dog being returned safely if he wanders off or is taken from your home.

How Does a Microchip Work?

A microchip helps identify your dog. Animal shelter or veterinary clinic staff members use a scanner to read the small computer chip, which contains a unique code number that will help reunite you and your dog. Microchip manufacturers estimate that 275 billion unique identification numbers are currently available, which means that no two dogs can ever have the same number.

The information in the chip connects the staff member to the registry that manages your dog’s microchip. The registry has your contact information on file, and the staff member can now alert you to your dog’s location.

While a microchip is very helpful at locating a lost pet after the fact, it cannot be used to track an animal on the move because the radio frequency emitted by the chip is only detectable by a scanner that’s held over the chip.

Your veterinarian can implant a microchip in your dog fairly easily. He or she will inject the chip between your dog’s shoulder blades, and your dog will feel very little (if any) pain. Any dog aged 6 months or older is a candidate for the microchip implant. The chip is designed to last about 25 years.

Better Scanners Now Available

European pet owners have made better use of microchip pet identification than American owners have. A major drawback to more widespread microchip use in the United States has been that the microchip manufacturers have been reluctant to join together and share resources, but that has begun to change. The companies have designed universal scanners, which read more than one type of chip, and have made the scanners easily available to shelters and veterinary clinics. The chip manufacturers are also collaborating with the American Animal Hospital Association to create an Internet search engine to help shelter and veterinary clinic workers locate microchip code information that will help pets and owners get back together.

What’s Good About a Microchip?

Microchips are a permanent method of identification and an ideal backup to your dog’s identification tags and collar. While some dogs seem to always lose their ID tags, the microchip will always be with them.

If your dog runs away from your home or gets lost while you’re out on a walk, a microchip implant helps improve his odds of being reunited with you. The chip can help humane organizations reunite you and your pet more quickly, and it can also help you prove ownership of a companion animal if there is a dispute.

More Benefits

From the ArcaMax Publishing, Cats & Dogs Newsletter:

http://www.arcamax.com/news/catsanddogs/s-264700-380145

Pet Microchips - A Do or a Don't?

Melissa Turner

If you are worried about losing your pet, new technology allows for biologically safe microchips to use in the place

of, or in addition to the classic dog tags. Microchips are an excellent option for a form of identification, and it is

rapidly becoming popular in families throughout the country. Here are a few answers to common questions people

might ask in relation to the use of these microchips.

What exactly is a microchip? A microchip is a small device that is comparable in size to a grain of rice. This device

has a special identification number that helps animal shelters and local humane societies get in touch with the pet's

owner.

How does this microchip work? As stated earlier, a microchip has a specific I.D. number, which allows shelters and

humane societies get in touch with the pet's owner. The I.D. number is transmitted through an all-purpose handheld

scanner, which relays the number to a computer screen. The handheld device transmits radio waves at a frequency

of 125 kHz, which is completely safe and non-harmful to your pet. Depending on the brand of the microchip (the

two most common brands are AVID and HomeAgain), the animal shelter or humane society will go to the registered

microchip databases, and they will either contact you or the microchip company should your pet be found.

Where do they place this microchip? On cats and dogs, the microchip is placed in the fleshy part between the

shoulder blades on their back. They cannot feel the microchip, and once it is in, it should give them no problems.

Could my pet have an allergic reaction to a microchip? It is highly unlikely. The microchip is made out of an outer

shell of extremely tough glass, and has safe biological contents inside. Because of the way the chip is made, your

pet will quickly develop connective tissue that keeps the chip in place.

How is the microchip inserted? The microchip is simply administered like a shot. Though the syringe may be slightly

larger than that of a common vaccine shot, it will not hurt any more or any less. Your pet will not react any

differently than they would if they were receiving a routine shot. Anesthesia is not necessary, nor is it recommended

for this procedure.

What kind of animals can be microchipped? Almost any animal! The most common uses are dogs, cats, birds,

horses (other livestock, such as pigs, sheep, or cows), and even fish! Many farmers or animal breeders microchip

their animals as an easy form of identification; this takes the place of branding or tagging.

You never know when a natural disaster may befall your area. With hurricane Katrina and earthquakes, many

animals have been misplaced and lost their homes. With the aid of a microchip, thousands of pets have been

reunited with their loving families.

Microchips are safe, beneficial, and the cost is definitely worth the security of knowing your pet has a chance of

being found should they become lost. === Melissa Turner writes article about various pet related topics. Her articles

and information can be seen on sites such as: Dog-Bed.org, LVE Productions and Dog Training Methods.