Why You Should Microchip Your Pet in Bend, Oregon

June is National Microchipping Month, and it’s a reminder for all pet owners to bring their unchipped pets to our vet clinic in Bend to get their chips and registered into a national database. The major benefit of microchipping your pet is the increased odds of being reunited if your pet gets lost or stolen. They can also store important health information about your pet which helps with their survival when they’re found. Getting your pet microchipped also proves ownership in the event your pet is stolen, or someone finds your pet and brings them to an animal vet in Bend for scanning. There are several good reasons to get your pet microchipped, and there’s no time like National Microchipping Month to get it done.

What is a Microchip?

A microchip is a radio frequency identification tag that’s encased in glass. It’s about the size of a grain of rice and is inserted between the shoulder blades by your veterinarian in Bend. This location keeps the chip from migrating as well as being the default location when looking for the ID number. During the procedure, your contact information is matched with the chip number and recorded in a database. In the event your pet gets lost and found, the rescuer can use a microchip reader to find your information. They can then get in touch with you to let you know they have your pet and where they’re located for pickup.

A Collar Isn’t Enough by Itself

Collars are useful until they’re not. They’re good for holding identity and rabies tags for visual confirmation, but they can fall or get torn off. A pet without a collar is a pet that won’t be returned quickly to their owner, if at all. Bringing your pet to the vet clinic in bend for microchipping is your best defense against the loss of your pet. The microchip stays in your pet even when the collar is lost or removed.

The Importance of Microchip Databases

Once you’ve had a dog veterinarian in Bend insert a microchip into your pet, you link your personal information to the number stored on the microchip. The database is kept by the company that manufactured the chip, but you can also enter the information into a variety of databases such as AKC Unite and the American Animal Hospital Association LookUp database. The more databases you put your pet’s ID number into with your contact information, the better.

Keep Your Contact Information Updated

As previously noted, you enter your current contact information during your appointment with your animal vet in Bend. In the event you wind up moving to a new residence or change your phone number, your contact information becomes invalid. Make sure to put a note on your list to update the information on your pet’s chip as part of your move. It’s not unheard of for pets to be found and reunited with their owners many years after they’ve been lost because of current contact information in the microchip database.

Microchipping Your Pet Gives You Peace of Mind

Microchipping your pet increases the odds that you’ll be reunited with your pet if they’re lost. It’s affordable, requires a short visit to your dog veterinarian in Bend, and is permanent. You get peace of mind knowing you have a permanent record of ownership for your pet that can’t get lost.