Microchipping Puppy

 

Microchipping your puppy.

 

There are lot of microchips on the market now days. But it is not easy to choose the right one. I would like to share my personal experience when I was choosing the right microchips for my dogs and puppies.

There are several things to consider:

 

1.  The right operating frequency and how the chip is registered. Not every microchip is read by a universal scanner. Majority of them are usually read, so it is a very important question to ask your vet.  I personally prefer AKC chips, because they are read by the majority of the scanners on the market.

Also, once the scanner is read, then the registration ownership becomes next.

 

When a breeder or a vet buys the microchip and not register it, and then the chip is sold to the consumer , and consumer does not register it, then if someone is looking for a lost pet- the manufacturer can possibly shed some light where the chip was sold. However, it is a long and time consuming process to get this information. Some shelters, which is a lot of them , have a policy not to go further than registration, and if the chip is not registered- then it is bad news.

I did not know any of that and that was very alarming when I found out. So, since then I have started to implant AKC microchips and enroll the puppies into “Lost and Found” registry of AKC.  I put my name as a secondary contact, when the chip is registered. That insures that I will be contacted, in case the owner can not be located.

 

2. A sterile Unit. Sterility is very important. There are companies out there, whose chips sterility is questionable. Also, ask questions about where the chips were manufactured. remember, the chip goes into your pup’s skin.

 

3. Very important . Anti-migration protection. A lot of chips move, after being implanted. So it has to be some sort of protection which guarantees that chip stays in place. According to my vet, he implants only AKC chips- they do not travel.