Are there too many out-of-date microchips on cats and dogs? It would appear that a lot cat and dog owners fail to update their pets’ microchip when moving home.
With respect to dogs (from which we can guess something similar occurs for cats) a Dog Trust survey found that less than 10% of dog owners considered updating their pets’ microchip a priority. Surprisingly, the study participants considered sorting out a digital television as more important. Isn’t that a clear indication that possessions are often more important than pets?
Perhaps these dog owners are unaware of the potential ramifications of failing to update a microchip.
The recent story of 27-year-old Banjo an abandoned, microchipped cat highlights this.
A least 12 dogs a day face being euthanised in the UK for the simple reason that their owner failed to keep their microchip details up-to-date.
Of the 37,000 lost or abandoned dogs taken into shelters in the UK in 2015, one in eight – 12.5% – had outdated microchip information. This often means that the owner cannot be traced.
In the UK, since April 2016, it has been mandatory to microchip a dog. Failure to do so results in a £500 fine. The law does not apply to cats to the best of my knowledge. Luxembourg are enacting laws to make cat microchipping obligatory nationwide. Times are changing. We have to foresee such a law in the UK in the not too distant future especially as letting cats roam free is the default method for cat ownership in the UK.
Remembering to update microchips is probably low on the moving “to do” list, unfortunately. My phone number has stayed the same over my past 4 moves, and I’ve changed my address when I’ve moved. I do get online reminders about keeping that microchip information up to date, which is very helpful. This seems like a simple way to help people update this important data. But it means putting all contact information on the form. Email addresses seem to remain more constant than phone numbers. Facebook is another way that owners might be reached, but I’m not sure how far shelters go in trying to locate previous owners.
Small details can sometimes mean the difference between life and death for our pets.
You make a nice point Sandy that some contact information is normally unchanged when a person moves. Microchips do contain the email address so it is surprising that so many pets are not being reunited with their owners.