Microchipping
Every year, millions of pets are lost in the United States. Sadly, most are never reunited with their families. No matter how much you love and protect your pets, accidents can happen, they can get lost or stolen, and without a microchip, the odds of finding them are pretty low. Microchipping your pets is a simple, inexpensive way to protect your furry friends.
What Is a Pet Microchip?
About the size of a grain of rice, a pet microchip is a permanent identification device that contains a microchip in a small biocompatible capsule.
How Does a Pet Microchip Work?
A microchip is inserted into pets in a standard location (between the shoulder blades on cats and dogs) with a special needle. Like an inoculation, pets might feel a small pinch during insertion, but won’t experience any ongoing pain.
Each pet microchip contains a unique, identifying number. If a pet becomes separated from its owner and turned into a veterinarian or an animal shelter, the microchip can be read with a special RFID scanner. The veterinarian or shelter representative can then log into a national microchip database, look up the pet’s number, and contact the owner.
Once your pet has been microchipped, you’ll need to register your contact information along with your pet’s identification number with a national microchip database. (Our veterinarian will provide you with instructions.) Also, anytime you move or change your phone number, you’ll want to be sure to update your information.
Why You Should Trust Microchipping Over ID Tags
ID tags get dirty, wear out, and become unreadable. They also commonly fall off pets. In addition, they’re easily removed by any ill-willed individual attempting to make your pet into their own. Conversely, microchips provide a permanent form of pet identification and proof of ownership that can’t be lost, rendered unreadable, or simply removed from your pet’s collar.
But don’t take our word for it; the proof is in the numbers. A study from the AVMA found that:
- Compared to 38.5% of cats with microchips, cats without microchips were reunited with their owners an abysmal 1.8% of the time.
- Compared to 52.2% of dogs with microchips, only 21.9% of dogs without microchips were reunited with their families.
Schedule Your Pet's Microchipping Appointment in Redondo Beach
No one plans to become separated from their pet, but fireworks go off, fences fail, doors come unlatched, and accidents happen. If you haven’t already microchipped your pet, then we strongly encourage you to schedule an appointment at Pacific Animal Hospital right away. We’ll microchip your pet and show you how to register your contact information with your pet’s identification number (and keep it up to date!) in the national database.
