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The importance of microchipping

Microchipping your pet is one of the most important and responsible actions that you can take as a pet owner. Hundreds of pets end up at pounds and shelters each year because they do not have appropriate and up to date identification. Microchipping is an effective way to make sure your pet can be returned to you should their tags be lost. Pet owners should make sure their pets are implanted with an ISO (FDX-B) microchip that meets the Canadian standard established by the National Companion Animal Coalition, of which the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies is a founding member. A list of these microchip manufacturers can be found here.

It is important to keep your contact information up-to-date with your microchip manufacturer as well as your veterinarian. Be sure to keep the microchip manufacturer’s information handy so that you can promptly let them know when your contact information changes. You can usually contact them by phone, email or even on their website to change the information associated with your pet.

In order for microchips to be an effective method of pet recovery, it is crucial for humane societies, SPCAs, pound facilities, other shelters and veterinarians to make sure they have dual compatible microchip readers so they can read the new ISO (FDX-B) technology as well as the old FDX-A technology. In order to have the best chances of reuniting lost pets with their owner, having only readers that can recognize both types of microchips is essential.