Our pets are our friends and having one of them become lost can be a heartbreaking experience. If your pet escapes or becomes lost in some other manner, one of the best ways to get them back to you is via microchipping them beforehand. We at Pasquotank Animal Hospital in Elizabeth, NC are here to help.
The Basics of Microchipping
Microchipping is a simple procedure in which a team member will put a microchip beneath your pet's skin using a needle. This microchip is as small as a grain of rice and features a tiny electronic chip that should not irritate or otherwise harm your pet once set in place. Your contact information will then be recorded and associated with the microchip.
How Pet Microchipping Helps Connects Pets with Their Pet Owners
The microchip embedded beneath your pet's skin contains a very unique identifier. Whenever an animal clinic, shelter, veterinary hospital, or any other such animal welfare group is brought a lost dog or cat, they may use a microchip scanner to search the pet for a microchip. Once scanned, the chip will transmit the pet's identifier. That number is then used to search the national database for the owner's information.
Naturally, just microchipping is not foolproof. It is important for pet owners to keep their pet's ID number close and to update their contact information. For example, it may be a good idea to do so whenever they move or change phone numbers if that their address or phone number was given as a part of the contact information. Physical tags with your contact information might also help.
If you have adopted a pet and don't know if they are or are not microchipped, you can bring them to us and we will scan them.
It may be important to note that the microchip is not a tracking device. The good news is that you don’t have to worry about some stranger tracking you or your pet. The bad news is that it does not allow you to track down your pet if he gets lost. It can only help identify him as your pet and give contact information if he is found.
Schedule a Pet Microchipping and Preventative Pet Care Appointment Today
We hope this quick guide to microchipping helps answer any questions you might have had about the process. This is an example of preventative pet care that can help you get reunited with your pet should the worst happens. Contact our Elizabeth City, NC, veterinarian team to learn more about this and other pet wellness topics. We at Pasquotank Animal Hospital are here to help with pet wellness. Call us at (252) 264-3371 for more information about pet microchipping from a veterinarian on our veterinary team.