May is National Chip Your Pet Month!
We never think our pet will get lost. How many times have you said, “My dog never runs off” or “My cat is strictly indoors”? Though that might be true, it can and has, happened.
“Sure!” “sure!”, you’re thinking. “I know my pets!” “This will never happen to me!” I imagine most of the people who lose pets are thinking the same thing. Your calm cat, who never ventures to the door, runs out when spooked by the repair person. Maybe the fireworks never bothered your dog before, but now he is older and he acts nervous. The door opens, and out he goes!
In the past few years, our area has seen an increase in dangerous storms. Tornado warnings? Hurricanes? In our area? Hurricane Sandy left thousands of pets homeless and lost to their families. A shelter is overjoyed when they can connect a pet with their family, and microchipping makes this possible.
A study found that dogs with microchips
were returned 52% of the time, while dogs
without microchips were returned only 17%
of the time.
Cats with microchips were returned 39% of
the time, while cats without microchips were
returned only 2% of the time.
If your pet is already chipped, it is important you keep your contact information up to date. Outdated phone numbers and addresses are the most common problems encountered when lost pets are scanned.
It’s all about the chip! One little chip, the size of a grain of rice, can save a pet’s life and reunite them with their family. Make May the month you chip your cat and dog!
Read more about the microchipping process here
