What is microchipping a dog or cat?

TOPICS

• What is a pet microchip?

• Understanding how a microchip works

• Whose responsibility is it to microchip a puppy or a kitten?

• Is it a legal requirement to get your pet chipped?

• What are the pros and cons of microchipping your pet?

A pet is part of our family. However, unlike a human family member, dogs and cats tend to wander or run away and get lost. To ensure that you never lose track of your furry friend, there are some things you can do.

One of the options is of course to provide your companion animal with a collar or a tag, but they can get caught or removed. There are no such worries with a microchip: a microchip implant is a permanent identification system.

What is a pet microchip?

A microchip is a small electronic chip encased in a biocompatible glass. The chip is about the size of a grain of rice and is implanted between the shoulder blades. The injected chip contains a unique code, or serial number, that corresponds to your pet’s details.

The serial number is registered on a microchip database registry with details about the animal and his owner. The microchip does not contain your emergency contact information. It only contains your unique identification number, which is used to access your paperwork.

Pet owners should ensure that their details are registered in the database in which their pet's microchip number is recorded, so they can be contacted easily. Should your pet become lost, vets or animal shelters can scan your pet for a microchip and contact you via the database.

Understanding how a microchip works

A pet microchip is a radio frequency identification transponder, but this radio frequency chip is not a data transmitter. It is only activated when a specific scanner is used. A chip can usually emit three different frequencies and some scanners can only scan one of them. However, universal scanners are used most of the time.

When a microchip scanner is passed over the skin of a microchipped animal, the implanted microchip emits a radio frequency signal. The scanner reads the unique identification number of the microchip. The microchip database is called and will use the ID number to retrieve the pet’s owner’s details.

The same system is used for public transport tickets. They are equipped with an RFID tag that contains the access rights of the card owner. The user of the transport network inserts his ticket or approaches his badge to an RFID reader terminal to validate his journey.

Whose responsibility is it to microchip a puppy or a kitten?

All dog breeders must ensure that puppies are microchipped by a vet, vet nurse, or other trained professional before the sale. This must happen before eight weeks of age.
Under UK law, anyone whose dog or cat gives birth is considered a “breeder” and must register their details in an approved microchip database.

Once adopted or sold, the new owner becomes responsible for keeping the information up to date. They have 21 days from the change of keeper to update the database.
In many cases, local rescue and rehoming centres, such as Cats Protection or Dogs Trust, will microchip abandoned pets before they are rehomed.

Your local council may offer microchipping for free or at a reduced rate. Otherwise, the microchip itself usually costs £15 – £25, depending on the provider.

Is it a legal requirement to get your pet chipped?

What the law says

In England and Wales, compulsory microchipping of dogs is required before eight weeks of age, under the Microchipping of Dogs (England) Regulations. The new Microchipping of Cats and Dogs (England) Regulations 2023 will make it a legal requirement to microchip cats before they reach 20 weeks of age.

Owners who fail to comply with the law may receive an enforcement notice. If they don’t microchip the pet within 21 days, they risk a fine of up to £500. Registering your dog or cat in a compliant database is part of your legal responsibility. The pet microchipping database must match your pet’s collar and tag.

You don’t need a dog licence in the UK anymore, but breeder paperwork must show that puppies are microchipped before sale, along with breeder and keeper details.

The microchip could be a lifesaver

But dog identification is not just a legal obligation. It is also a moral duty, because having your dog or cat identified is also a way of protecting it and therefore of being aware of the responsibilities that this implies. Identification of the pet allows a fall-off in losses, offering on average 40% more chances of finding it.

What are the pros and cons of microchipping your pet?

Advantages of microchipping your dog or cat

There are many advantages to having your pet microchipped, including the following:

• Helps to find your lost pet more easily.
• You will never have to replace the microchip, as it lasts a lifetime.
• The embedding process is quick, and the microchip is easy to install. Unlike a tattoo, your pet doesn’t have to be wrestled to the ground or shaved to get identified.
• An embedded microchip cannot be tampered with, unlike tags and collars, which can break or be removed.

Disadvantages of implanting your pet a microchip

Although dog and cat microchipping have no real disadvantages, there are a few things you should know about the procedure.

• There is a tiny risk for your pet to develop inflammation around the injection. In the worst cases, this may cause a tumour. However, these cases are extremely rare.
• You have to update the registration information on the microchip every time you change your address. Owners easily forget these details.
• Sometimes the microchip moves away and migrates from the injection site, making it more difficult to locate and scan it.
• Microchips are passive transponders, which means that they do not track the pet’s whereabouts. They therefore do not act as a GPS.
• It is not easy to tell whether a dog or cat is microchipped.