Microchips?

[Casper]

There have been a few cases in recent news where animals have been reunited with their owners after years of being separated, all thanks to a microchip.

HERE (http://www.hsus.org/pets/issues_affecting_our_pets/common_questions_about_microchips.html) is a link to an article describing what microchips are (and a few answers to common questions) in case some aren't too familiar with them.

We have yet to get any of our dogs or cats microchipped. I know for a fact that all of the local vets and the city pound do not have scanners at their facilities. I am pretty sure our exotic vet offers this service, but he is located an hour away.

Its hard to fathom any of our beloved critters getting lost, but it is even harder to think that they might never make it home. I am really looking in to getting them microchipped. I know it is not a guarantee of being reunited incase we were separated, but I think it might increase the chance.



How many PTers have had their pets microchipped?

[Freedom]

Sugar, Lacey and Marlin are all chipped. Tasha will be when next she needs a vet visit (hasn't needed on yet).

I don't do this with the cats; I'd go broke with the annual fee!:rolleyes:

[Grace]

We have 6 cats, and they are all chipped. 4 are in/out; 2 are in only.

Doesn't take any time at all to chip them; every Vet visit they check to make sure it is still there. Couple of years ago we took a stay to our local Humane Society - first thing they did was check for a chip.

A cat or dog can lose a collar, but the chip stays.

[Randi]

Fister has a tattoo on his ears. They do that here when a cat gets fixed and vaccinated.

I found a cat in our yard last year, he had wandered off a mile from his home, but I checked his ears, called the vet - and he knew where he belonged. So I got the no. to his his humans and they came a few hours later to get him. :)

[chocolatepuppy]

Layla and Jake are both microchipped. Lacey and the cats are not. I got Layla chipped around the time Kay's Kiara went missing. That was reason enough for me. She was just puppy then. Jake came from our shelter and they chip all dogs and cats that are adopted.

[Genny]

I don't do this with the cats; I'd go broke with the annual fee!:rolleyes:

Do you have to pay for the microchips each year??

[kokopup]

I have Koko my dog Chipped but my 2 cats are not.

All Vets and Shelters in this area have scanners.


Do you have to pay for the microchips each year??

The chip is for forever and you only pay once when it's installed.

[Grace]

The chip is for forever and you only pay once when it's installed.

That's correct, and our Vet gives us a rebate on the cost of registering - so it costs us nothing. And if I'm remembering correctly, the cost is only $15. So if you've got multiple animals - spread out the chipping :)

[Christmas_Hamster]

None of my pets are chipped.

[cali]

Electra came to me with a Chip.none of my others are chipped. it isnt recoomended here, I actually asked the vet about it, and they strongly discouraged it lol. its because our Tattoo system is better, you dont choose the tattoo, its assigned per the vet, and its all tied into 1 centeral system, so in my city you can call any vet, any shelter or city hall, relay the tattoo and you will be instantly connected with the dogs owners and because its through the vets, any changes are automatic when you walk into a vet office, or get the yearly licence. where as with a chip you would have to physcally take the dog down to a shelter or vet, have them do a scan to see if they MIGHT be chipped, then if they are, hope the owners remebered kept up with the info. then their is the cost...a Tatto is $20..a chip here is $85..and thats at the cheap vet!

[kuhio98]

Yes, all our kitties are chipped. 4 of our 5 were already chipped when we adopted them. The various rescues in our area chip cats before adopting them out.

We lost Kuhio in 2002. If she had been chipped, her life could have been spared. Kuhio's story is here: http://petoftheday.com/talk/showthread.php?t=41856

[Genny]

None of ours are. We have 8 dogs and 5 cats. We keep the 4 small dogs in and the others stay out in the fenced area it's a really big area though and they have lots of room. We don't ever let them out although they have gotten out when we opened the gate before but they'll only wander around the yard and then come back. Our german shepherd will stay out though and come when ever you call him. He listens so well, but our other 3 do as they please. :rolleyes:

[Taz_Zoee]

The dogs are chipped. Taggart came with his chip from the shelter and then I got Zoee chipped shortly after.
Recent events have lead me to eventually (probably after vacation) get Paizly chipped as well.

[Laura's Babies]

Since I live in a hurrican prone area and saw what happened to the pets after Katrina, I RAN to the vet and had all mine microchipped and will always have any new one done soon as I get them.

What happened to Kuhio is a poster story why all of them should be microchipped. Amy with her CH, should she ever accidently get lost, I want them to know she is NOT SICK but has a birth defect, otherwise... I hate to think what would happen to her.

[wolf_Q]

My three are all microchipped. I don't think Sydney is.

[lute]

None of my dogs are microchipped. My vet just started doing microchipping last year, but he charges like $75 a dog! I can get it for cheaper at the vet in the next town I just haven't. Beanie is getting old enough he's not gonna wonder off and Chloe would probably die if she ever lost sight of me. They both have rabies and ID tags as identification.

[wolfsoul]

Tandem is chipped. Honestly I would have tattooed both pups except that stupid CKC never gave me my number in time. I waited for weeks for that number and my pups were 7 weeks old before they finally issued it, so I opted for microchips (as holding down a squirming puppy to get tattooed is not fun unless you put them under which I wasn't about to do). $50 per chip as opposed to $10 per tattoo... I could have died after what this litter already cost me. But they are chipped, I made sure the chips were recognised by CKC, so I guess that is all that matters. Visa is tattooed.

[Taz_Zoee]

How does a tattoo work? Is there a central database or something that links the number to the owner?

[Flatcoatluver]

Sage is chipped, but my other two are not.

[cloverfdx]

I am surprised at the number of animals not chipped on PT :(. By law they have to be chipped here before being sold/ rehomed, be it through a shelter, breeder, BYB or shop.

Realy even the most well behaved animal could easily get a fright and take off, is it worth not chipping them.

[Cinder & Smoke]

From a previous (1/2009) thread on the subject of MicroChipping >>>

Quote:

Most vets have scanners available to read the most common systems out there:

There are also local microchip companies, which service a set geographic region.
Only vets in that area are going to have scanners which can read the chip.

- changing companies, find a vet who will use the microchip of the company you want,
and have a new microchip injected. Then register it.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It's not a universal truth that "most vets" have scanner/readers! http://petoftheday.com/i/our_smilies/frown.gif
Vets in SOME areas of the USA and Canada do have one or two of the MANY
brands and types of scanner/readers; but MANY areas, and some whole states,
do NOT have Vets, Shelters, nor Rescues that can read microchips! http://petoftheday.com/i/our_smilies/frown.gif

Before spending money on microchipping a pet, make some phone calls to
area Vets, Shelters, and especially Animal Control - and ASK if they have
a scanner/reader and if they USE IT on all stray dogs and cats.
Unless a majority of the institutions have and USE a scanner/reader, the
probability of a lost pet being returned because of a microchip being detected
is pretty small.

As for having a "second" microchip inserted into a pet ...
I think that might cause some real problems!
If the microchips are similar in design and operating frequency, the TWO chips
might interfere with each other and give a meaningless indication on the
reader/scanner.

Lastly, here's a very lengthy discussion of the pros & cons of microchipping -
a must study for anyone who has or is thinking of purchasing pet microchips.

"Microchips & Your Pet" >>> http://home.att.net/~rfid/pet-chip.htm (http://home.att.net/~rfid/pet-chip.htm)

/s/ Phred

[wolfsoul]

I am surprised at the number of animals not chipped on PT :(. By law they have to be chipped here before being sold/ rehomed, be it through a shelter, breeder, BYB or shop.

Realy even the most well behaved animal could easily get a fright and take off, is it worth not chipping them.

I think in North America it's probably alot different -- up here there are SO many different kinds of chips, and most vets do not have universal readers so most times a chip can not be detected or read. For instance, my female puppy that just went to the states. The vet that chipped my pups messed up and wrote "black male" on both papers so, having a 5/50 chance, I sent the papers and tag for one chip, and the owner's vet confirmed that it was the right one. However the pup just went to a new vet last week, and she tried with three different scanners to detct a chip -- two of them could not scan or detect it, and the last one could detect it but couldn't read it. In my opinion chips are useless. If CKC would have sent me my tattoo series in time like they should have, they would have been tattooed (and I would have paid $20 instead of over $100!!)

A friend of mine had a litter two years ago and one of the owners insisted on a certain kind of chip. So she chipped the pups with this special chip she wanted. Then she discovered that CKC would not accept this chip as a means of identification. So she had to rechip the dogs that were local and available for her to rechip. Now CKC won't let her register these dogs because they know she sold them before she re-chipped them. Pain in the butt, I much prefer tattoos, readable by anyone whether it's a shelter or just a normal person who found your dog, and MUCH less expensive! I pay $10 each for tattoos.

[chocolatepuppy]

I am surprised at the number of animals not chipped on PT :(. By law they have to be chipped here before being sold/ rehomed, be it through a shelter, breeder, BYB or shop.

Realy even the most well behaved animal could easily get a fright and take off, is it worth not chipping them.

Even though Layla and Jake are chipped, it doesn't make me feel all that safe. Layla got her chip at my vets and Jake from our shelter, two different companies. Both can be read by my vets scanner, we checked them. But what if one of them were lost and whoever tried to read the chips couldn't because their scanner wouldn't read it? :(

[Zippy]

Nope,Zippy and Pumpkin don't have microchips.

[Alysser]

Sassy did not have a chip; Mikey DOES have a chip, which is good because he would run at the chance.

[*LabLoverKEB*]

When Rita got spayed in 07', we got her chipped.
Sadie is not.

[Catlady711]

I see this was an older poll thread that I already voted in (voted no pets chipped). I guess I never put in a post explaining why.

In my area; some of the vets, some of the humane societies, and NONE of the animal control offices will scan cats!! I don't see why dogs get preferential treatment in this area.

I'm not going to pay that money for 7 cats, put them through being tranquillized, poked, then 3 days of hissing at each other just to not have them be scanned if they are picked up anyways.

Until every area of animal handling scans every single animal, I'm not changing my position on it.

[Miranda_Rae]

Heidi is microchipped. When i had Heidi microchipped it took me FOREVER to get my parents to let me do it ( i was still underage at the time) because of their religious beliefs. I am very glad that she is though. I feel a bit safer with her chipped.

[Kaydonette]

Both of my cats are microchiped. Its required for us to have our pets microchiped to live on a miltary post. Not only do they have microchips but they have tags on there collars stateing which company its from!! ours is from HomeAgain pet recovey service

[apbtmom76]

Phoenix, Penny, Orion & Highway are all chipped as are all 3 of my roommates cats. Phoenix is done thru AVID and everyone else is thru 24HourPetWatch. After having my last three APBT's stolen from me, I told myself when I got more animals they would all be chipped and I am ok with tatttoing also as sometimes the chips move or scanners can not read, I will check into with my vet though, I know he does it. My little show girl is the only one who is not done and she will be asap :D

[Seravieve]

All three of ours are, and so was Zeke. My RB Pepper was too. I don't see why would wouldn't chip a dog. It's always been offered when we've adopted them at not extra cost.

I can understand cats, as they stay inside all the time.

[mrsmagoo]

my 2 dogs are chipped , 1 isnt and my cat isnt i was going to get them chipped but theres been news its causing tumors in animals around the chipped sites so ive now chosen not to chip the 2 .

[Suki Wingy]

Mine are, and now that Chester is missing, I'm really glad he is. He was an indoor cat who never left the house and never even showed interest in leaving.

[amberlynn]

none of our pets are chipped one they dont leave the yard and two the last dog that i had chipped wen he got lost they scanned him and they couldnt find the chip or any of our information so i dont like it i jus train my dogs to stay next to me....plus i dont have that much money for it anyways

[Indigo Bully Connection]

I have all of my Am. Bullies micro'd, my other two will be micro'd on their annuals in Feb. Thank goodness I haven't had to rely on them... I have a fully fenced yard, and the older dogs stay in kennels or on a cable while not supervised. The pups... they're never unsupervised, but you never know what life will throw at you!

Now, I just wish that every vet would scan every single new animal that comes into their office. It doesn't happen like that down here... if you go to a vet, and claim the animal is yours they never get scanned :(

[StaffyDaddy]

Gotta have the microchips. It's one of those just in case items that you'll thank yourself for in the end. Plus theyre CHEAP!!!

[boomersooner]

Boomer is, and I just got Sooner chipped on Saturday when she got her last set of shots.

[Kalei]

None of my furbabies are microchipped, although I know the vets here offer it whenever you are getting an animals spayed or neutered. I will definately be getting my future dog microchipped, but I probably won't ever microchip my cat, or future cats, just cause all my cats have been such indoor cats, they don't know an outside exists lol.

[Pawsitive Thinking]

The dogs and cat were all chipped

[omgitsapibble]

Almost all of my dogs are chipped. The only ones that aren't are a few of the newest ones, and they will be done. The cat is chipped. Even my rabbit, before he passed away, was chipped.

Microchips are cheap and a great back-up. Collars come off, so tags aren't always fool-proof if an animal goes missing.

[Tollers-n-Dobes]

Dance was microchipped in January. Neither of my other two are, but they do have ID tattoos. When Ripley is neutered someday I'll probably get him chipped as well, though. :)