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Microchipping?


Guest LRay82

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This might be a topic more suitable for "general," but how does everyone feel about microchipping - both for greys and in general? I've never read a whole lot about it one way or the other, but in general it seems like a really good idea. Does anyone have their grey microchipped? Advantages/disadvantages?

 

Thanks!

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Our Arrow is micro chipped because his ear tattoo's are not legible. Usually around here most of the shelters know that greyhounds have tattoo's and who to contact if they pick up a greyhound. They can read the tattoo's to Vicki at Midsouth and she can find who the dog is and most likely who it belongs to.

Judy, mom to Darth Vader, Bandita, And Angel

Forever in our hearts, DeeYoGee, Dani, Emmy, Andy, Heart, Saint, Valentino, Arrow, Gee, Bebe, Jilly Bean, Bullitt, Pistol, Junior, Sammie, Joey, Gizmo, Do Bee

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The adoption groups I've worked with send out all their hounds with chips. The chips are registered through the adoption group.

 

I do know of one vet in Florida who informed me they chip only in the leg; in the event that the foreign body inspires a tumor, the leg can be amputated.

 

If concerned about cancer, one has to weigh the risks: the lifetime risk of cancer, versus the lifetime risk of escape. Our local pound has a hold-and-notify policy for all dogs that come in with chips that can be traced back to an owner. (Some people don't register their paperwork; a year or two ago, I missed out on saving a "Scottish deerhound" whose owners had the dog chipped in Mexico City for $300, but never filed the paperwork. The dog was put up for adoption, but ultimately euthanized because it came down with kennel cough- a nasty fate in a high-kill shelter.)

 

For dogs that are strays without chips or tags, they probably don't look for tattoos- they may not know about them in greyhounds, depending upon the location- so there'll be the standard 3-day minimum hold (in this state, it's law- but I think the pound tries to hold for 5 days minimum, if space permits).

Coco (Maze Cocodrillo)

Minerva (Kid's Snipper)

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I was a tad bit nervous but microchipped my girl a couple of months ago, and feel really happy and relieved to have done it. No way would I trust that some random shelter worker or whoever would know about the tattoos or how to trace them. While I'm still neurotic about losing her somehow, I now feel like I've done all I can do (that, plus the ID tag on her collar and on her harness).

With Cocoa (DC Chocolatedrop), missing B for Beth (2006-2015)
And kitties C.J., Klara, Bernadette, John-Boy, & Sinbad

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I've owned three greyhounds, and I've chipped all three. I've always had the vet do it on the dog's first "well-doggy" visit.

 

Jacey bled some after she was chipped--and it showed on her white neck, but it didn't bleed long and cleaned up quickly. All three were chipped in the loose skin at the back of their necks. None of the dogs even let out a yip when the chip was inserted.

 

Periodically, on vet visits, I get the tech to scan to be sure the chips are still where they're supposed to be. Oreo was chipped for the four years, four months, that I owned her; Sam's been wearing his chip for seven years now; Jacey's been wearing hers for three and a half years.

 

(ETA: Oreo died in surgery after she threw a pulmonary embolism--nothing remotely related to her microchip.)

Edited by KF_in_Georgia

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Kathy and Q (CRT Qadeer from Fuzzy's Cannon and CRT Bonnie) and
Jane (WW's Aunt Jane from Trent Lee and Aunt M); photos to come.

Missing Silver (5.19.2005-10.27.2016), Tigger (4.5.2007-3.18.2016),
darling Sam (5.10.2000-8.8.2013), Jacey-Kasey (5.19.2003-8.22.2011), and Oreo (1997-3.30.2006)

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All four of mine are chipped. We've had no problems at all. None of them even yipped when it was done. I scan them every time we go to the vet to make sure it's still active.

 

Our group used to chip all greys that were adopted, but they had two die when they bled out after chipping - nothing was done wrong by the vet, both the dogs had a clotting disorder - but now they let the new owners decide. There's also a chance of tumors developing aorund the implant, as someone stated above.

 

Many people have reported that the chips seem to migrate on their greys. Their skin is thin and they have very little body fat, which can tend to make this happen more frequently.

 

To me, the risk of chipping was outweighed by the knowledge of what could happen if my dog got out. We also travel with them, and the added security is worth it. I would never count on a non-greyhound-person knowing to look for tattoos to get my dog back.

 

greysmom :D

Chris - Mom to: Felicity (DeLand), and Andi (Braska Pandora)

52592535884_69debcd9b4.jpgsiggy by Chris Harper, on Flickr

Angels: Libby (Everlast), Dorie (Dog Gone Holly), Dude (TNJ VooDoo), Copper (Kid's Copper), Cash (GSI Payncash), Toni (LPH Cry Baby), Whiskey (KT's Phys Ed), Atom, Lilly

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Guest eaglflyt

We had our Ady Bea microchipped shortly after we finalized her adoption. Greyhounds can get out of their collars so easily because of their skinny head that I'd never trust a collar with tags to stay on her if she got lost. Also, her ear tattoos are incorrect and make no sense to anyone, so those wouldn't help her at all. Also, I have no idea if our local shelters would have any idea about grey ear tattoos since we don't have racing in our state. I wouldn't want to rely on that alone. Ady's microchip is through Home Again. The placement was simple and she had no after effects at all. We attended our group's meet and greet the next day and she was a very happy hound.

 

Good Luck with your decision and enjoy your hound!

 

Shelly & Ady Bea in OK

Edited by eaglflyt
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Very interesting stuff. Amy got out of the yard when the gate was open a few weeks ago (mom and dad took their eye off her for a second) and of course the first thing she saw was a cat, and off they went... luckily, Amy just "treed" the cat up a children's playset in the yard behind ours - I know it could have been MUCH worse, and I don't think I've ever run so fast in my life, especially in stocking feet! So, needless to say, I've been thinking about it since then. We go to get her rabies shot in a few weeks, I think I'll ask about it then. Thanks for all the input!!!

 

 

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mine are chipped. a good friend who breeds and shows corgis has chipped every puppy she has breed or dog she has owned over the last 25 years...talk about chipping! she has had NO PROBLEMS what so ever.

 

beware, homeagain ( that is the company i use???) now has a policy which includes accident insurance and medical coverage. but it is only for an incident that may occur if your dog is lost. if you have pet insurance you don't need it. w/ out the extra it was a one time registration fee and there are lots of room for many contact numbers on your pet's registration. it can be updated very easily and you can include a picture.

 

i had it done at a discount at a local shelter. see what is available in your area.

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While the idea of a chip is one I think is a good idea, my personal experience with one of the leading micro-chip companies has left me with a bad first impression of their utility.

I adopted a dog that came with a HomeAgain chip. I once kept a log of the nightmare I went through with this company trying to get the information on my dog transferred to my name, but I didn't save it and it would be waaaay to long for this forum anyway. I will try to highlight the pertinent stuff.

. logged into the site with the info provided from the group to register the dog with my contact info, created a user name and password, updated the info etc.

. next day tried to log in with my id/pw and was getting error msgs

. tried to call the phone # on the pamphlet I received. It was a wrong number. The man I spoke to said that he receives up to 25 calls a day from folks looking for HomeAgain. He gave me what he thought was a current number

. that number was disconnected

. went on-line to find a number. Took a long long time to find a number that actually worked

. finally found a human being to take the call........and that is when I entered the Twilight Zone

 

I will interrupt my tale to say that I understand working the phones of customer service can be a very difficult job. If you are talking to ppl who aren't clear what the problem is, are fuzzy on the details of what led to the problem, are belligerent etc......This was not the case though. I was very clear and concise. I can safely say that at the end of my life if asked 'Who are the top 5 STUPIDEST PPL YOU HAVE EVER DEALT WITH IN YOUR LIFE' that HomeAgain rep will make the list.

 

. after 45 minutes of a 'Who's on First' type of dialog I was laying on the floor banging my head.

. after my cell phone minutes reached 1 hr on the call I finally lost it and asked the guy (in all seriousness) 'Sir, have you been drinking? Because I keep laying it out here for you in language that a toddler would understand, yet you just don't seem to grasp it.'

 

I don't know why I wasted that much of my time now. I guess I'm stubborn and I really thought that I was going to find a way to get it right. I was wrong. Now, somewhere in my dogs body, is a micro-chip that may/may not tell someone that she belongs 2000 miles away.

So yeah, microchips are a neat idea. If I ever adopt another dog that has one from HomeAgain I am going to deposit the paperwork in the trash on our way in the door and buy some good old fashioned collar tags.

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Every animal in this house has a chip. The poodles (two) were done by the breeders. The cats (two) were done by the adoption agencies. The greys (six) were done by me. Perry has two chips because the one put in by the breeder's vet is not easy to find. None of the other 10 chips has moved.

 

I have collars and tags on the dogs, but collars can come off and tags can be lost. The chip will ensure that the dog will be returned, and the process is far faster and more reliable than trying to read tattoos and track through the various agencies. My vet clinic is on a fairly busy corner and gets a lot of "found" dogs without tags: those with chips go straight back to their people; the others are picked up by Animal Services. As far as I can ascertain, the link to tumours is specious.

Standard Poodle Daisy (12/13), Grey Toodles (BL Toodles 7/09)
Missing Cora (RL Nevada 5/99-10/09), Piper (Cee Bar Easy 2/99-1/10), Tally (Thunder La La 9/99-3/10), Edie (Daring Reva 9/99-10/12), Dixie (Kiowa Secret Sue 11/01-1/13), Jessie (P's Real Time 11/98-3/13), token boy Graham (Zydeco Dancer 9/00-5/13), Cal (Back Already 12/99-11/13), Betsy (Back Kick Beth 11/98-12/13), Standard Poodles Minnie (1/99-1/14) + Perry (9/98-2/14), Annie (Do Marcia 9/03-10/14), Pink (Miss Pinky Baker 1/02-6/15), Poppy (Cmon Err Not 8/05-1/16), Kat (Jax Candy 5/05-5/17), Ivy (Jax Isis 10/07-7/21), Hildy (Braska Hildy 7/10-12/22), Opal (Jax Opal 7/08-4/23)

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Guest greytkidsmom

Three dogs, three chips here.

Two I had done during their first dentals.

One I had done at her first well-pet visit (her teeth were too good for a dental yet :)) She didn't even bat an eyelash.

 

You do have to keep the chip company apprised of any address changes, etc.

 

Makes me feel like there will at least be more of an effort to find me if they are found wandering.

I also did the NGA pet transfer paperwork so the tattoos can be traced back to me as well.

Yep, I'm paranoid.

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Guest RocketDog

I had mine chipped at the 2008 Greyhound Gathering, and don't regret it one bit. The blue AVID collar tags that came with the paperwork have since worn out, but I have the vet scan my dogs every time I have them in and the chips are still in the right spots. We get a discount off our registration fees for having our dogs chipped.

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The racing board are talking about bringing in chipping and so on a racing forum i've seen all the negative views about tumours, migrating chips etc . With the number of animals that get chipped over the world, i wonder what the risk of those things occuring is?

 

I decided to get the boys chipped as it seems the best way to get re-united with a lost dog as tags can fall or be taken off and i wouldn't like to rely on someone knowing who to contact with the tattoos. Neither dog flinched having it done and i had the vet scan when we went for vacinations and its not moved over the year. My brother's cat went missing and 6 months later its chip was scanned and he was returned home :)

Edited by moofie
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Guest ctgreylover

I am glad I chipped Tony. I had to take him to a local evet when her ripped off his dew claw. While the vet was taking care of his leg, the vet tech was giving him scritches. She asked about the tattoos and said she'd never heard of that before - with a gee wiz golly gee tone- I could see the vet roll her eyes. So, I don't trust many know to look and if they did, what to do with a greyhounds tats.

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I would caution you to remember your dog is chipped. This would be so that you don't become hysterical when you find a lump between the shoulder blades and are about to rush to the vet thinking it's a tumor. :huh Luckily DH was home to examine the lump and remind me I had her chipped. My vet already thinks I'm a loon as it is. :lol

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