Microchips - the best way to reunite with your lost friend

photo credit: Kamryn Bartley www.flickr.com

August 15 was National Check the Chip Day, so this month we're writing to remind you about the best way to  increase your chances of finding your pet if he or she ever gets lost.

What is a microchip, anyway?

• A microchip is a way to permanently identify your pet.
• It is a small electronic chip enclosed in a glass cylinder.
• It is the size of a grain of rice.
• ​The microchip is not a tracking device. It only contains your pet's unique ID number.
  
• A needle is used to place it underneath the skin, usually between the shoulder blades.
• Your pet can't feel it once it's in place.
• All animal shelters and veterinarians have scanners that can read the ID number on the microchip.
• You keep your contact information up to date in the microchip database.

​Do microchips work?

Yes! A study of stray animals at animal shelters showed that microchipped dogs were more than twice as likely to be returned to their owners as dogs without chips. Cats with microchips were 21 times as likely to be returned to their owners as cats without chips! But even so, more than half of microchipped dogs and cats were never reunited with their owners because the contact information in the database was missing or out of date. 
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Is your pet’s microchip information up to date? Use the AAHA Universal Pet Microchip Lookup to check and see which company your pet’s chip is registered with – then contact the company and make sure they have your correct contact information. http://www.petmicrochiplookup.org/