Microchipping your Dog
Tuesday, September 2nd, 2008
Are you the owner of a dog? Have you had your pet microchipped yet? If not, then read on.
Every year thousands upon thousands of dogs are both lost and found. Thankfully now to microchipping the lucky dogs can be traced back to their owners. However there are still many dogs that have not yet been microchipped and these are the unlucky dogs which will then either stay in animal shelters or dogs homes for months on end or even have to be put to sleep.
Microchipping has been around for many years now and it is essential that you have your dog chipped as soon as you take them into your home if they haven’t got one already. If you are visiting a dog shelter or dogs home the majority of organisations will no doubt of already microchipped the dog before it leaves, but there are some which do not offer this service. Here in the UK the average cost to microchip a dog is around £10-£20.
A tiny microchip is painlessly inserted under the animal’s skin. Once a dog has been microchipped it has its own unique number. The owner’s details and the code are put on to the national PetLog database. If a lost or stolen animal is found the code will be revealed by passing a scanner over the microchip. Then it’s just a case of matching the code with the PetLog database. Which means the dog will be able to be returned back to it’s owner.
If you haven’t already had it done, then please do think about it. Lots of dogs love to venture out, especially when their owners are not looking! Also, there are some characters in this world who wouldn’t hesitate to steal a pedigree dog if they had a chance.
