Are You Dog's Microchipped?

[DocsDoctor]

Yes. We got it done relatively cheaply at the local dogs' home show - £10 I think. He squeaked a little when the needle went in but swiftly forgot about the ordeal. It was done in the usual place, between his shoulderblades, and now the vet checks it with her scanner whenever we have an appointment just to make sure it's still working and hasn't migrated. Collars and ID tags can come off off, not everyone knows about greyhound tattoos, and were Doc to get lost or indeed stolen (which God forbid, but petnapping does seem to be on the increase here in the UK) I would breathe a little easier knowing he has his microchip. It is also a prerequisite for the UK Pet Passport scheme, should we ever want to take a holiday on the Continent!

[silverfish]

I was under the (probably wrong) impression that if ear tatoos are legible, then microchipping is not necessary.

 

Yeah, that's what my vet said when I took mine to be done first time.

 

Not true over here. No-one checks ear tats, though many know about them. If you ask at the shelters they'll tell you it's a waste of time because greyhounds get passed from owner to owner so much and half the time the one registered isn't the real owner, or they'll say they gave the dog away a long time ago, or they simply don't want them back.

 

So yes, all of mine are done. And as DocsDoctor says, greyhounds (and other breeds, but greyhounds are especially desirable to travellers) get stolen over here.

 

Only one of mine yipped when the needle went in, just a yip, not a GSOD. And wouldn't you know, she was the one who had to be done again because when we checked it a week later it had fallen out. She bled a lot when that first one went in, which is unusual, and the vet thinks it probably either got washed out, or caught up in the clot/scab and fell off. The second one was fine.

 

None of the chips in my dogs have migrated or caused any problems, and it's peace of mind. I don't even have to ask the vet to check Renie's because her skin and hair are so thin I can feel in under the skin.

[Guest Nik]

Yes, not much is involved. Out adoption group does it. It's s pin prick and I have never seen a dog GSOD over it. It's permanently there and it's just another way of protecting them.

 

Well, Jedi was chipped at the vets as soon as we got him, and he did GSOD.

 

But he got over it pretty quickly, and better chipped than not.

[Zoolady]

Dogs and cats all microchipped here. It was done while they were awake and wasn't a big deal for anyone.

[PatricksMom]

Patrick came chipped, 5 years ago. I have the vet check periodically, and it's still where it should be. If I had a dog who didn't come chipped I would chip them--any extra safety backup is worth it imo.

[kamsmom]

Mine are going today to get chipped and toe nails clipped. I was shocked when I asked my vet about this as he charges $72 to place it and another $22 to register it!! I called the local shelter and they will do it for $15 and it is another $14 to register.

 

 

[beledi]

Allmy dogs are chipped. Banfield, in PetsMart will do it for $29.95 and it comes with a lot of other goodies such as no extra fees for a lot of things...medical records online, emergency care, etc.

[Guest KaylyRed]

It's a very simple process: The microchip is injected under the dog's skin in the shoulder blade area. The dog is scanned again to see if the chip is there, and the place that chips your dog usually doesn't register him for you. However, some low-cost mobile clinics do register for you, as mine did. If not, though, you'll have to register your dog with the company. Otherwise, the chip is just a bunch of numbers. The chip should stay in place, but traveling chips are not unheard of. That's why shelters and vets will scan all over your dog's body to check for the presence of a chip.

 

My husband is a regional IT manager for Home Again, Shering-Plough's microchip program. They make a point of saying that their chips do stay in place. They have tiny barbs that help them attach and stay put. (Sounds bad, but it sure makes locating the chip for a scan much easier later!)

[Guest jsk4x]

All of our pets are chipped. The cats were chipped by the rescue group. We had Chewie's done by the vet. He didn't make a peep. I did hear about a recent study that came out linking pet chipping to cancer. I didn't fully read the study. I feel that the small risk of an increase in cancer is worth the peace of mind of added security. I don't trust the ear tattoos, but I know the local shelters check chips.

[Guest dauphinelaura]

We just got our girl chipped last week. They just inject the microchip into the back of their neck. You fill out a form with all your info on it (addresses, names, phone numbers), and in a few weeks they send you a letter with the info on it. It's really great to have in case your dog gets loose, vets can look up the info among others. My girl didn't even flinch , didn't bother her a bit. We don't have our little man chipped because he has a tattoo from The Humane Society that's still clear.

 

You should do it! Fairly cheap to! The adoption group where I got Oni only charged me $25.

[Guest Lorraineandcrew]

I was thinking of having my two done, but of course, $80 each at the vet, so I'll look at the animal clinics. I also read something recently about microchipping and cancer though - does anyone know anything more about this?

[marion]

Some articles about this...

http://cbs13.com/health/health_story_251215137.html

 

http://www.inteldaily.com/?c=120&a=3470

 

http://www.mydogback.com/index.php?key=presse

 

 

Sorry, the last one is in German...

 

[Guest Effie]

Geez, I had no idea vets could charge so much to chip a dog... and Baylee is being chipped today during her dental... I didn't even ASK how much it would cost cause I assumed it would be reasonable... ROFL... Guess I should be glad you all warned me so i don't faint when i get the final bill today.

 

Linda

[ahicks51]

I was thinking of having my two done, but of course, $80 each at the vet, so I'll look at the animal clinics. I also read something recently about microchipping and cancer though - does anyone know anything more about this?

 

Yow. Pricey up there. Do they have clinics for reduced cost?

 

I once tried to track down a "Scottish deerhound" (wrong color and size, but that's what the pound called it), and eventually got to the name of the clinic that implanted the chip in Mexico. For some reason, the manufacturer sent the same batch of chips to Mexico *and* Canada, but I found out that one went to Mexico. $300 for chipping a dog- and they never registered it. Sadly, 2-3 days' worth of effort went down the tubes when the dog was destroyed. He'd been in the pound long enough to get a respiratory infection before I could find someone who could translate; nobody at the clinic spoke English. Such a waste.

 

As for cancer- it seems likely that many implantable objects run a risk of forming certain types of growths. It's been said that repeated injury to a given site- just jabbing yourself in the arm or hand, for example- runs a similar risk. A non-biological object lodged under the skin may foster that sort of thing. I suppose earlier models consisted of smooth glass or ceramic capsules; current models have differences in the surface to make sure they stay in place. One wonders if such surface modifications may increase the risk of cancer.

 

It still doesn't sound like a great risk; if the lifetime risk is 1%, what's the risk of loss without the chip- particularly with sighthounds?

[kronckew]

i had both blue and millie chipped & registered to me. blue doesn't have tats and millies are irish and reg. to her original owner. both are tagged 24/7 but tags come off.

[Guest Ola]

Our vet charged $65 to microchip, it was during a regular visit. I don't think that's very high, plus it's one of those procedures that (hopefully) only needs to be done once in a lifetime (like spay/neuter, which cost a lot more).

[GreytNut]

 

It's cheap insurance. Collars can fall off or be removed, and NGA tats only work if the person finding the dog knows what to do with them or if your dog is registered to you through the NGA. If your dog is stolen, it's proof that the dog belongs to you. Microchipping is simple, quick, and despite the big scary needle doesn't seem all that painful. Mine barely flinched. Usually you're handed the registration paperwork to fill out and send to the microchip company (some companies will let you do it online) along with any applicable registration fee. It's important to do that, because otherwise all that microchip is is a number... no personal info is actually contained within the chip itself. When you register your pet with the service, they keep that number and your personal info in their database so that if they're called because someone found/scanned your pet, the company can then notify you.

[Guest sheila]

My Sammy came to me with a micro-chip. Getting her microchip info transferred to me online was a nightmare. That is 5 hrs of my life I will never get back. The website was balky with lots of 'glitches' The pamphlet about the microchip had a phone number that rang in to some man in his home who said he was being inundated with phone calls. I sent numerous emails to the company that either went unanswered or were replied to with form emails with links that took me nowhere. I finally went online and found a phone number and after going through the phone tree and waiting on hold for a loooooong time I was connected with a man who was dumber than a box of rocks. (He even spoke English and yet could not for the life of him figure out what I was trying to tell him)

At the end of the day I *think* I have the microchip registered with correct info. However if Sammy ever gets lost they will be the last ditch effort for trying to find her. I will find my own dog even if it means (as some of you know) wading into swamps barefoot at 4 AM while 669 miles away from home.

[Bevd]

We are all chipped