Microchipping pets

[JadedLegend3]

Hello oh wise FMDers! :D

My little boys (Frank and Jesse...who are really cats, btw) are signed up to get microchip implants on Saturday morning.

I am taking them to a vet other than my primary vet because he doesn't do microchips (he's very old school...which is why I like him so much). I called them today to find out the specifics...like will it hurt my babies, will they have stitches (that needle is huge!!!), what's the risk for infection, etc.

They said they've never seen infections from chipping, no stitches, and if they're good and sit still (that means you Jesse) they shouldn't hardly feel it.

So my question is...do any of you have chipped pets? Do you think it was traumatic? Ever hear of infection with it?

I'm such a paranoid mother. :rolleyes:

Thanks guys! :hugz:

[La Bomba]

*The dumb guy raises his hand*

What do the implants do?

[scrape_medic]

The implants contain an identity number which can be checked on a national data base. There are a number of different companies offering implants, but any vet should have no problem identifying your pet should it be brought into the surgery without you. They just hold a scanner above the area where the chip should be found and read off the number.

Mister was chipped at seven months old....he was injected in the scruff of his neck, just in the same way as he would have been given an antibiotic.

It was short, sweet, and I think mister forgot about it within seconds.

No follow up care was needed, and its has never caused him a problem, even with having further routine injections in the same spot.

the chip is mere millimetres big, you can't even feel it under the skin.

[chasa]

I got my dog microchipped in March at the same time she was spayed. She naturally had stitches for the spay (but even that was a tiny incision!), but I could see no evidence of where they injected the chip -- there was no visible wound -- and she didn't seem sensitive about that area.

I'm really glad I did it. I got her (and her kitten brother) from a shelter last August, and she was an animal control pickup...though I don't know her history, it was clear that she hadn't been running wild her whole life...which means she was either abandoned or lost. Now she'll never be lost :)

[LiLOrion]

I dont have Ripley chipped, but I was watching something a little while ago about how some chips arent even recognized cause apparently you need a particular scanner to find a particular chip.
Not sure if that is still going on or if it was just some vets and shelters not updating their scanners to look for newer chips.

[AnnaSun]

Hi,

My cat has a chip in here. It didn't hurt her at all. She's never been sick. Had her 4 years now.

From
AnnaSun
Thanks

[JadedLegend3]

Thanks guys, for all the info. :D

LiLO, I think that has changed...the vet told me anyone could read the chip. :dunno: I'll ask again though, before I have them done.

[zahncrelnik]

sounds like a good idea to be able to i.d. the pet if it gets separated from the owner

[DRD 1812]

Seamus is. Even though he never leaves our yard. The dog is stuck like glue to us! There was a well-groomed Shepard one day roaming the neighborhood and it came to us. We took her to the vet and they scanned her. We delivered Shayna right back to her owner.

[JadedLegend3]

I'm getting ready to move into my first apartment in about a month and as much as I adore my roommate, she's a bit of a ditz at times and also my boys like to try and make a break for it into the wild outdoors whenever possible, so I wanted to get them chipped so if they do get out maybe someone would bring them home. :)

But they will *not* be getting out! :whip:

[Col.Batguano]

I haven't had any pets in years but I would get a chip in my cat or dog even if everyone doesn't use the technology (yet),
it increases the chances of a lost pet being returned to the owner
it is added protection that sounds sensible to me.

of course there are always potential side effects......
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v507/slatster/catHarvey.jpg

[Judith]

I believe that the chips used at Petsmart are the ones that can only be tracked if you bring the pet to a Petsmart store to get scanned.

There are two major microchip companies that most animal shelters and most vets use. (And it's not an either or thing luckily...they usually have the ability to scan both). Unfortunately, I can't remember the names. However, you could probably find out if your vet is using one of the really popular ones by calling a couple animal shelters in your area and asking what brands they have the ability to scan for. Then call the vets office to see what they use.

I don't have my cats chipped, but should. I keep meaning to. They're strictly indoor, but it's not impossible to imagine a situation where they could get out. But I've heard from other people that their pets barely noticed the procedure. Its really safe.

[eta_carinae]

Both of my cats were chipped by the Humane Society prior to their adoption by their previous owner (my friend). Not long after that the shelter stopped chipping automatically because it gets expensive when you're dealing with large numbers of animals, and not everyone wants a microchip in their animals. Now they give you the option of having it done, at a discount with your adoption. When I adopted my dog Mayu last year, I insisted they chip her before I took her home. It's a really simple procedure, not much worse than getting a shot. In fact, when I'm working out in the community and away from the shelter, even I can chip animals if asked. Though I generally would prefer they go to the main shelter just in case the animal freaks out for some reason (I don't want to get blamed, especially being "just a volunteer").

Anyway, it'll sting for a second, and then they get over it. It won't be sore, it won't get infected, and you'll have the peace of mind knowing if they get lost there is a much, MUCH greater chance you will be reunited.

[scrape_medic]

of course there are always potential side effects......
Bat, you ain't right, but I guess you know that.

Apparently, and I don't know how true this is, but if round here a cat or dog is found .....deceased.....on the road, its taken to the local authority yard and they scan it to see who it belonged to.......or if its not chipped hold it for seven day incase the owner wants to come claim it.

Bit morbid I know but not knowing what happened to a beloved pet can be distressing.

[BrowderChick]

I had Holly chipped when she was a puppy. Never any problems. Any Vet can read her chip so if something should happen to her then they can find out. Hers was also equiped with a medical record of all her shots and stuff. I have to take her to the vet again soon as they suspect her to have K9 diabeties. :(

[Milaya]

Both Lillis and Svarttis are chipped.Sissi ain't yet, she's too young.Also Mise was chipped.She was the first cat in Finland that was chipped while she was awake.I was the one to hold her when the vet injected the chip.I miss her so...Died in a car accident last summer.

[mgraylorn]

I have a friend in my old home town who has had her 3 cats chipped, even though they are inside cats.

I asked my vet about chipping my 3 cats and she was not enthusiastic about it. She says there are different chip types and each requires a different scanner. If whoever finds your pet doesn't have the right scanner, then your pet will not be identified. She says in her volunteer work with a particular shelter, she does do chipping, but she says that there have been times when she has just put a chip in, but then can't find it with the proper scanner herself - the chips can move around some. My vet works exclusively with cats and seems to know her stuff.

Perhaps there are regional or city differences. My friend lives in a small town in northern Idaho, so it could be that everyone uses the same chip and scanner type. I live in a sprawling midwestern city with lots of vet clinics and shelters, so maybe they do not all share the same chip and scanner technology.

I don't believe that all scanners can detect all chips, so that potentially is a problem.

[BrowderChick]

http://www.dogscouts.com/petid.shtml

[Col.Batguano]

Bat, you ain't right, but I guess you know that.

and sadly not even brain surgery could help.

[tribsaint]

I've helped *cough*hold down*cough* a bunch of patients as they got microchipped at the vet's office that I used to work at. Here's part of the schpiel they tell the owners:

The needle they use is about as thick as the tip of a ballpoint pen. Now, as needles go, that's kind of thick, but if you think about it, nothing to really worry about. No scars, no more bleeding than if you had gotten poked, and the boys will be back to their usual selves with no pain from the injection in minutes.

A lot of shelters and such will scan whichever scanners they can if they pick up a possible housepet to cover as many bases as possible. This is a good way to go if you're worried about them getting out of the house and especially if you report them missing to the shelters in the area and let them know that they have the chip, they'll be on the lookout for whatever cats come in their doors.

Um, that's about all I remember. The ones that I had a hard time keeping control of were the ones that hated ALL needles and ALL doctor's offices so this was no different than usual. The boys should be fine. :)

[JadedLegend3]

Thanks tribs, I hope so. :hug:

Wiggle gets very upset about the whole car ride thing...and we had to pry him out of the cat carrier when I took him to the doc last week for his shots...but generally he sits there and just lets us do whatever to him.

Furter though...he becomes rather grouchy. He's never bitten or scratched the vet, but he does call him some rather nasty names.

[freckle]

my cats got chipped and they were all fine,they love the vet,its an opportunity to be petted and fussed over by someone new!
absolutely no trauma whatsoever

[freckle]

I got my dog microchipped in March .....

:eek:
i swear as i was reading this i could smell wet dog! i even picked up one of my cats to sniff her and make sure it wasnt her!!!!! :eek:
in fact i was watching 'supersize me' on the pc and i could smell fries, honestly i was really freaked out!
i think i have a smell-o-monitor or something....

[DRD 1812]

i think i have a smell-o-monitor or something....


haha! That would be an interesting thing to have. Imagine some pigs from a barn walking across the screen or something. Oh or cut grass, then I would be sneezing because of it. :D