FORWARDED MESSAGE
PLEASE CROSS-POST WIDELY
Tuesday, March 30, 2004
NATIONWIDE MICROCHIPPING ALERT
Microchips from Banfield Hospitals (Petsmart) not read by most
scanners
The Colorado Veterinary Medical Association (CVMA) and the Denver Area
Veterinary Medical Society (DAVMS) would like to inform members of a
current animal welfare issue. In February 2004, Banfield pet hospitals
began implanting a 134-kHz microchip which CANNOT be read by scanners
currently used by most veterinarians and animal care and control
professionals.
The AVID and HomeAgain microchips used in the U.S. operate on a 125-
kHz
frequency, and the manufacturers of these chips have distributed
scanners
widely so that the chips can be read (or at least detected, in some
cases
due to AVID's encrypted technology) with one scanner. However, the
scanners used to detect AVID and HomeAgain chips CANNOT read or detect
the presence of the 134-kHz chips currently being implanted at
Banfield
pet hospitals. Thus, should a pet that has been chipped with the 134-
kHz
chip become lost, that animal may not be able to be reunited with its
owner, and could be adopted out or euthanized, depending on shelter
circumstances. Pet owners are paying for a procedure with the
expectation that it will provide peace of mind about the return of
their
lost animal, but in reality this is not the case.
The 134-kHz chip from Banfield is compliant with the International
Standards Organization (ISO) standards, and is marketed as the new
gold
standard in permanent identification. CVMA and DAVMS leadership
believe,
while it may be desirable to transition microchip technology in the
U.S.
towards international ISO standards, it is irresponsible for any
business
to introduce a microchip that, because of its frequency, cannot be
detected by the scanners currently in place throughout much of the
U.S.
CVMA and DAVMS leadership believe that a responsible product
introduction
must include widespread distribution of an effective scanner BEFORE
new
chips are implanted in animals. While Banfield has
distributed some scanners, it has not been a robust or effective
effort -
nor did it address the veterinary requirement for scanners.
According to
Crystal Imports, the distributor of the chipping technology being
sold by Banfield, approximately 600 scanners have been distributed to
shelters nationwide. CVMA and DAVMS leadership estimate the number of
scanners needed to saturate the shelter community in Colorado alone is
approximately 1,200. This figure does not include Colorado
veterinarians.
Even if Banfield distributes sufficient numbers of scanners for their
chips it would still result in a situation where veterinarians and
shelter personnel would have to scan an animal twice with two
different
scanners. CVMA and DAVMS leadership believe a one-scan "universal
scanner" with open technology (no encryption) is the only solution to
this problem.
"We know that the Metro Denver Shelter Alliance, the Humane Society of
the United States and PETsMART have all asked Banfield pet hospitals
to
temporarily stop implanting microchips until this issue can be
resolved,"
says Jed Rogers, DVM, chair of the DAVMS Animal Issues Committee. "As
of
today, there has been no response from Banfield."
The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) has taken a lead in
public
awareness on this issue, and disseminated a news release late last
week
to media around the country. American Humane has also just put out a
press release. Please see below for a link to each.
HSUS has also sent a letter to all microchip manufacturers, inviting
them
to a summit to discuss the creation of a universal scanner, among
other
topics. Despite the fact that a mutual agreement at such a summit
would
be simple and necessary element, because each of the companies
involved
has competitive and strategic issues in the microchip market, a
definitive resolution may be difficult to reach. If the microchip
technology issues cannot be resolved at the summit, other approaches
must
be identified, including a possible moratorium on implanting
microchips.
In Colorado, both CVMA and DAVMS are aligned with the animal care and
control community on this issue. The leadership of the veterinary
organizations believes it is not the responsibility of the animal care
and control community - or the veterinarian - to resolve this issue.
That
responsibility belongs to the commercial companies who benefit
financially from the sale of microchips.
The news releases from HSUS and American Humane are likely to
precipitate
questions from consumers and requests for more information from
members
of the media.
For the press release from HSUS, please use the following link:
http://65.61.158.165/ace/20788
For the press release from American Humane please use the following
link:
http://www.americanhumane.org/site/PageServer?
pagename=nr_news_releases_m
icrochips
If you are contacted by any representative of the media, please
contact
Ralph Johnson or Scott Piper at the CVMA/DAVMS office at 303- 318-
0447.
We can provide background information, important message points, and
training on how to respond to media questions. We also have trained
veterinarians adept at handling any media inquiries at our disposal,
if
you are not comfortable addressing questions.
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