Whilst every dog owner is legally obliged to ensure that their dog is wearing a collar and identification disc, thousands of owners have now taken positive steps to ensure their much-loved companion can also be identified through microchip technology. Since being introduced in 1989, over 4 million dogs and cats have been microchipped, and this number continues to grow at an estimated 8,000 registrations per week.

Microchipping is now recognised as the most effective and secure way of permanently identifying a pet. A unique identification number is registered and the owner’s details are placed on a national database. Sadly, the reality is that of the many thousands of dogs that go missing each year, it is estimated that less than half of them are reunited with their owners. Getting your dog microchipped gives the assurance that should they become lost (or be stolen); they are more likely to be returned to you safe and sound.

Each year thousands of lost and abandoned animals are taken in by charities and rescue centres across the UK. Some of these animals never make it home because they can’t be identified. Microchipping offers you the only truly permanent method of identifying your pet and linking them back to you. So, if you want to improve your pet’s chances of getting home fast and safe in case it were to go missing, microchipping is your best option.

How Microchipping Works

A microchip is a small electronic device, which is the size of a grain of rice. The microchip is coded with a unique number that can be read by a scanner.

Using a specially designed implanting device the microchip is injected through a sterile needle under the dog’s skin between the shoulder blades.

Collars and tags can be removed or get lost and tattooing can become illegible over time. Microchips are the only truly permanent method of identifying your dog. It lasts for the lifetime of the pet.

Animal microchips are about the size of a grain of rice and are typically implanted by a registered agent just beneath the surface of the skin between the shoulder blades. The process is similar to receiving vaccination through a needle. Most animals don’t even react when the microchip is implanted.

The chip is powered by a scanner which sends a signal to the chip and receives the unique identification number stored on it. When a vet, rescue centre or dog warden finds a lost or missing pet, they use the scanner to read your pet’s chip. They contact Pet Protect’s Lost Pet Recovery Service with the number from the chip. They then contact you and reunite you with your pet. That one free telephone call is all it takes to set the process in motion – if your pet ever goes missing, petprotect can track all enquires coming in to ensure not a moment is wasted reuniting you and your pet together again.

Contact us today to arrange your pet to be microchipped…