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by: JohnBear
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According to the American Humane Association, only about 17% of lost dogs and 2% of lost cats actually find their owners after being lost. In fact, more than 20 million pets are euthanized year after year because animal rescue units cannot find the original owners. But you need not fear because there is now an effective way of tracking down lost pets.

The option of microchipping has been considered the most effective way of tracking down lost pets. The procedure is done by most veterinarians today with a hypodermic needle. This hypodermic needle contains a small microchip that contains your pet's permanent identification number. This identification number is entered into a data bank - national or local depending on the brand - and lists the pet's name, owner's name, address, and phone number.

Veterinarians and most animal shelters can provide this service. If you opt to have a microchip inserted in your pet, the fee is $5 to $10 in most animal shelters, and about $50 at private veterinary clinics. The process is quick and painless as a microchip ID is a very small chip, it's just about the size of a grain of rice.

Three companies that produce these microchip IDs are HomeAgain Pet Recovery Service, 24PetWatch and AVID (American Veterinary Identification Devices) Microchip ID. Each of the sponsors has their own national database for pet information.

A handheld electronic scanner can scan the microchip to retrieve the information. Small handheld scanners are held close to the implant site while scanning and they have a reading range of about 3 inches. Larger, more powerful scanners can be used for various commercial and research applications and they read ranges vary from 6 to 20 inches depending upon specifications.

Animal shelters and animal control officers have been educated and informed about microchip identification and how it functions. Shelters use industry-wide, cross-compatible scanners that read all chips operating at a certain frequency and once a microchip is located in an animal, the appropriate steps are then taken.

For pets traveling to all countries with the exception of China, you should use ISO 15 digit microchip that meets ISO standards 11784/11785. This is because the immigration officers use the microchips to compare the pet they are scanning to the presented veterinary documents.

There are still some drawbacks despite the fact that microchips to track your pet are completely safe. Some owners are against microchips because there was an issue reported that these microchips cause Fibro Sarcomas in the animals that have been implanted with these devices.

But this doesn't really hamper dog and cat owners to have their pets microchipped. These electronic IDs offer a number of physical advantages over external tags. They are considered remarkably more reliable. The process is even quick and painless, similar to receiving a vaccination. The chip is permanent and can never be lost. The pet's identification number is unique in the world and the database can have the pet's pertinent history.

Microchips provide an important extra level of protection for you and your pets in the event that your worst nightmare happens- your pet gets lost. But before you do anything drastic or something you might regret later, weigh your options first.

About the Author

Author John Bear can assist you to find your perfect Pet Medications. Visit us now to get your Discount Pet Medictions and Pet Supplies Get your free report on Pet Supplies Discounts

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