A microchip is smaller than a coin, but it could save your dog.
Implanting a microchip on your dog is relatively painless and can be done at a veterinarian's office or at the local Humane Society or animal shelter. It takes only a few minutes and it is not expensive. In fact, dogs adopted from animal shelters across the country are often given a microchip before being handed over to their new families.
Microchips and Dogs
A microchip can reunite a dog and its owner.
Microchips are small, hence the name. It is essentially a micro-sized computer chip nested in a piece of glass. A technician or veterinarian inserts the chip with a needle and a syringe under the dog's skin, most often between a dog's shoulder blades.
A microchip can be detected with an apparatus designed to "read" the chip's numeric code. Each chip has such a code, which is registered with the microchip's company. The code identifies the dog and the owner, whose contact information, such as address and phone number, is on file. A dog that is lost and scanned can then be reunited with its owner. Once implanted, a microchip does not need to be replaced, as it will last for the life of the dog. However, the chip might "migrate" during the dog's life, and so a dog is usually scanned all over to locate a microchip.
Dog Tags are Helpful, But...
Collars and tags can fall off, a microchip cannot.
Dog collars and dog tags are nice, but if they get left behind, the owner's contact information is likewise left behind. In addition, dog tags can become marred and scratched, with addresses and phone numbers becoming indistinct. Also, if a dog is stolen, it is a good bet the thief will get rid of the identifying collar and tag. However, an embedded microchip is not so easily noticed or removed. The information on the chip can help reunite the dog with its rightful owner.
Microchips and Cancer
How healthy are microchips?
There is some speculation that microchips are linked to cancer in dogs. Studies have been going on for several years. In some dogs that have been microchipped, mild inflammations were discovered, with most of them subsiding in a few months. Tumor masses have been discovered in tissue surrounding microchips, however, no definite link between the two was determined.
The FDA and the American Veterinarian Association do not cite any correlation between microchipping and cancer in dogs. However, Dr. Katherine Albrecht, an outspoken critic of microchips, has authored an article titled "Microchip-Induced Tumors in Laboratory Rodents and Dogs: A Review of the Literature." In her article, Albrecht states: "In at least six studies published in toxicology and pathology journals between 1996 and 2006, researchers found a causal link between implanted microchip transponders and cancer in laboratory mice and rats. The tumors were typically sarcomas, including fibrosarcomas. ... In almost all cases, the tumors arose at the site of the implants and grew to surround and fully encase the devices. In several cases the tumors also metastasized or spread to other parts of the animals, including the lungs, liver, stomach, pancreas, thymus, heart, spleen, lymph nodes, and musculature of the foreleg."
Mandating Microchips
In some places, microchipping is mandatory.
In the United States, some kennels require that a dog be microchipped, in addition to proof of vaccinations, before it can be lodged. Check with local kennels to see if there are any such requirements. In addition, some counties and states have microchipping requirements. For example, in Colorado, microchips are required for dogs that have caused injuries to people. Minnesota has a similar law. In Illinois, it varies based on the county, while in Virginia, dogs that are deemed "dangerous" are required to have either a microchip or an identification tattoo.
Britain is mulling over legislation to mandate microchipping in dogs in an effort to crack down on dangerous dogs, and particularly on people who raise them. As of July, 2011, airline travelers in Europe will be required to have their cat and dog companions microchipped.
Costs of Microchipping
In most cases, the decision whether to microchip a dog rests with the owner.
Microchip costs vary between $15 to $60, depending on the veterinarian and the company that makes the chip. Some Humane Societies and animal shelters include the microchip in the cost of adopting the dog.
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