Hello Everyone!
I’m going to talk about identification of your pets today! First, let’s start with some thought provoking questions…How many of you have collars on your dogs or cats? Great, now how many of those collars display easy to read identification – i.e. your pet’s name or your name, address or phone number? OK, if you do not have a collar on your pet, or there is not an ID tag on the collar, how is your pet going to get home if it is scared during a thunderstorm and runs far away only to be picked up by a well-meaning stranger? What about those pets who always wear collars, but the collar snags on a fence or shrub and slides off? Or what if the ID tag falls off? How will anyone know who “Fluffy” belongs to or even where to start? Only 2% of lost pets without identification make it to a happy reunion with their owners.
Well, I have the answer my friends…don’t despair! There is a way to permanently identify your pets and link their ID number with your name, phone number, address, etc. That’s right! A microchip! Microchips are approximately the size of a grain of rice and are easily inserted under the skin between “Fluffy’s” shoulder blades in a procedure similar to an injection. I have one and it was (almost) painless, took less than 10 seconds, and could save my life if there was a tornado that wiped out the clinic….heaven forbid!
Each microchip contains a unique identification number that can only be read with a radio frequency scanner or a microchip scanner. (Microchips are NOT GPS locators.) Humane Societies and most veterinary clinics have microchip scanners that will display the ID number when it is waved across the microchip. Not all microchips are capable of being read overseas, only microchips with 15 digits are “ISO compatible” and can be used if traveling overseas with your pet*. The microchips used at Animal Clinic of Columbus are ISO compatible and we register the chip for you. Registration is FREE with our microchips – this is not the case with some other types of microchips. Some microchip companies charge an ANNUAL fee of $19.00 – $25.00 to maintain your information. It does ABSOLUTELY NO GOOD TO HAVE YOUR PET MICROCHIPPED IF YOU DO NOT REGISTER THE CHIP! If you do not register the microchip, your pet is just like a pet with a blank collar….we know there is an owner, but there is no way to find you!
If your pet already has a microchip, that is WONDERFUL! Please have your veterinarian check the microchip at annual visits and remember to change your registration information if you move or get a new phone number. These preventive steps will help reunite you with your pet if they become lost during an emergency such as a natural disaster (Katrina), house fire, thunderstorm or fireworks, or while traveling. Animal Clinic of Columbus has located owners for lost/found pets several times thanks to properly registered microchips!
August 1-31 = $10 OFF MICROCHIPPING**
