Microchips

An owner brought her two American bulldogs in to be microchipped.  Although I have seen the yellow tags on dog collars before, I have never microchipped my own pets.

www.hyndburnstraydogsinneed.org

A microchip is a small chip that is inserted underneath the scruff of the dgg, in between the shoulder blades.  To microchip a dog, we first scan the pet's back and shoulder region for any microchips that could have been placed there previously.  Many breeders often will microchip their puppies to ensure their return home if ever lost, so checking for any unknown chips will ensure the microchip reading will be as accurate as possible.   Next, we place the microchip gun right in the area of the skin where we want the chip to sit, and lastly, we insert it.  Most dogs do not experience any pain during the process.  Once placed, the microchip is instantly able to be detected.  

Veterinarians will then double check to make sure the microchip is working by scanning the area where the chip was inserted.  When the bar code comes up, vets know that the microchip is working well. 

Owners must fill out some paper work to ensure that the microchip number and the dog's information is entered into the database.  If your dog ever gets lost, scanning the microchip will tell anyone all of your pet's information.