Microchip/Tattoo

[INU]

I am sure this subject has come up before but I need your opinions since my 5 months is getting spayed next week and it's a good chance to get her either/both when she is on anesthesia.

 

She is a smooth/short coat and tattoo would work but the vet told me it will be big (around 2 inch/5 inch on her belly) and I don't know if I want her to have big numbers written all over her stomach. But It is more obvious and I don't think people want to steal dogs with such tattoo.

 

Microchip sounds good to me but I heard some shelters don't even scan when they find dogs. And regular people might just adopt her if they found and fell in love with her. It costs $60 instead of $40 for the tatoo.

 

Any input would be truly appreciated!!!

[Cheri McDonald]

Both of ours are microchipped. The rescue group did the implant and we sent in the 15 bucks each to the database company. Both also have a collar tag with their micro number on it and a phone to call the database company.

 

I think it is good. I do know our shelter checks for microchips if there are no tags.

 

Just a little piece of mind.

[blackeyesue]

Buddy has a tatoo on the inside of his right thigh. It's not that big but big enough so that when he rolls over its very visible. the letters and numbers start at about an inch and taper down slightly. We also got a lifetime license. The dogs here in PA have to be tatood or microchipped in order to get one...

[HKM's Mom]

My dogs are microchipped because they are all rough coats. They also wear collars with ID tags and their microchip tag. I even thought about having tats done and just shaving the area, but how often does the average person look at a strange dogs belly that close?

My past short coat had a microchip and a tattoo that said "MICROCHIPPED" on his tummy. The tat might not have been pretty but it would help me get him home if I ever lost him.

Nice thing about the microchip is that you can change the info if you need to, and it has an emergency contact in case they can't reach you. That is nice for me because I travel, hike a lot with the dogs, and I live alone. I want AC to be able to contact someone else in case something happens to me and I can't speak on my dogs behalf.

Just my input,

Cin

[MrSnappy]

Originally posted by INU:

I am sure this subject has come up before but I need your opinions since my 5 months is getting spayed next week and it's a good chance to get her either/both when she is on anesthesia.

I am a little appalled that your vet would charge you $40.00 for a tattoo! The SPCA clinic does them free of charge here, and most other clinics charge about $10.00 when the dog is going under for something else. I think $40.00 for a simple tattoo is ludicrous. I paid less than that for one of the tattoos on myself!

 

If we have to neuter our rescues, they are tattooed AND microchipped. If they are already neutered, they simply get microchipped alone. I prefer both.

 

My dogs are rough coats, so they are tattooed in their ears. And chipped. At least this way there is a backup - if the chip fails to scan, the tattoo is visible. If the tatoo fades, at least they can be scanned. Nothing leaves our local shelters without being chipped either.

 

RDM

[codypup]

My first dog was tattoed by the local humane society a long time ago before the microchip era. He licked and licked it when he first came home. He licked so much you couldn't read it anymore. If I had a to make a choice now I would choose the microchip.

Did you hear about the people from Florida whose dog disappeared? They found it here in Colorado! A couple vacationing in Florida found it and liked the dog so they took it home to Colorado. Somehow the owners tracked it down to here and the microchip proved their ownership.

[border_collie_crazy]

my dogs are tatooed, but only blairs is on his tummy, the others have ear tatoos, and I havent met a person yet they does not look for an ear tatoo, heck Ripley has a tenency to run off and once he did right before easter holiday, if he were only microchiped he would be gone until after easter cuz the shelter would have to pick him up and scan him, instead the person who found him called the shleter relayed his tatoo # and the shelter contacted us and Ripley was home before we knew he was gone

[Windam]

I volunteer at a humane society and we scan all dogs and cats that come in for microchips. My dogs are chipped as well. The biggest problem is people not updating their information when they move or are on vacation. It's really frustrating to find a microchipped dog only to have all of the listed phone numbers disconnected.

[BigD]

INU - check with your local Humane society to see if they have any programs for microchipping your dog. Ours offers a "chip" program for only $5. They pay the rest.

 

Also, most vets can scan, so if you dog is picked up and taken to a vet - they can scan for info. If someone tries to steal the dog, a good vet - in THEORY - should scan and check to see if the dog is registered to that person.

 

My dogs are both micro chipped and I know the local H. Society checks all dogs.

 

Heck, use a magic marker and save money! (Just kidding!)

 

Denise

[INU]

Thanks! I think I am going with Microchipping.

 

I checked the humane society website and they offer the chipping for $25 instead of $60.

They also do spaying for $30 instead of $130...

Why so different? I am thinking if they do the surgeries so many every day, they must be used to it and good at it... Or some people pay that extra 135 bucks for after care in case something happenes?

 

I want to do microchipping at the same time as spaying so I can't just do the chipping there and spay at the vet... I don't really want to be cheap if it's worth paying so much more money.

[Julia Hunt]

Originally posted by Windam:

I volunteer at a humane society and we scan all dogs and cats that come in for microchips. My dogs are chipped as well. The biggest problem is people not updating their information when they move or are on vacation. It's really frustrating to find a microchipped dog only to have all of the listed phone numbers disconnected.

My dog is both tattooed (inside thigh) and microchipped. My concern with the microchip is that it might never be checked for.

I have a BC litter due in a few days and I will be microchipping the pups b4 they leave me. My contract requires that i be maintained as the second contact through the Home Again program. Hopefully this means I will be notified if any of my pups ever end up in a shelter (God forbid!) and the owner can't be contacted for some reason.

 

Julia

 

Visit Dot's Page: http://hometown.aol.com/jhunt16723/homepage.html

[juliepoudrier]

Most of my dogs are tattooed. The tatooing was cheaper than microchipping, and it was offered at a clinic I was attending so I was able to get all the dogs done at once. That said, my youngest dog is microchiped, but only because I couldn't find a vet who would do the tatooing for a reasonable price (they all encourage microchipping as being a "better" alternative). Anyway, when I can get her tatooed, she will be. All of mine are tatooed on the inner thigh, letters less than an inch high, and they are easy to read, even on the rough coats.

 

My reasons for choosing tatooing:

*In the area where I live (and I imagine this could hold true for many rural areas) chip readers are not the norm at pounds, etc. If you lose your dog and the dog is taken to a vet it might be checked for a microchip, but there are no guarantees, since the vet I worked for didn't have a chip reader, and the local animal control people certainly did not.

 

*It's much more difficult for someone to claim they didn't see a tatoo than to say they weren't aware the animal was microchipped. North Carolina (where I live) is a "pound seizure" state. This means that unclaimed animals in the pound can be sold to research laboratories. Should I be unlucky enough to lose a dog, I think the dog stands a better chance of not being sold for research if it has an obvious tatoo. (In one place I lived there were rumors--entirely believable--that the animal control guy was actually *stealing* purebred dogs--again, in such a situation, a tatoo is hard to ignore).

 

I am not opposed to microchips, and I think in more urban and/or affluent areas where the local humane societies, vets, etc. are likely to have chip readers and use them, then the chip is a good option.

 

I recognize that the microchip makers provide you with a collar tag as an indicator that the dog is chipped, but those can be lost.

 

For those of you who choose to tatoo, consider having the tatoo placed on a body part that is not easily removed. Unscrupulous people will do bad things, including removing ears that have tattoos. There was a huge scandal a while back where that was the case with racing greyhounds that had been killed and dumped (illegal), but the tattooed ears had been removed so that the owners were untraceable.

 

I'm not trying to be alarmist or anything--I really think the best choice is whichever works best for you. Just be sure to take into consideration your location and the practicality that either method may offer given your location and your resources.

 

As for the question about the low cost spay-neuter through the SPCA, many such organizations can offer spay and neuter for lower cost because they are nonprofits. Others have agreements with vets to do the surgery at cost because it's the right thing to do. So just because the local humane society offers the service for less doesn't mean that your pet will get a lower standard of care.

 

Just my opinion.

 

J.

[MiaP]

Mia has a microchip but that's because I was vain and didn't want my baby to have a visible tattoo. Now that I've read Julie's post and live in a fairly rural area it makes me second guess my original choice. About 20 years ago in Michigan there was a similiar scandal where the animal control officers were going to people's homes and stealing their dogs, then calling the owners after they'd had the dogs a few days to come and pick up the "missing" dogs. Of course the owner's had to pay an arm and a leg to get their dogs back. I know that is completely off subject but I had to throw it in there....

 

Anyway, I don't think it really matters either way as long as the dog has something that traces back to it's owner.

 

Gimmie Sue and Mia

[BigD]

INU - I don't know how your local shelter does their spay program, but ours does not physically do the surgery there. You go and buy a certificate that costs $20 or $30 or whatever. You then take that certificate to the vet of your choice. They will take care of the animal and you will be billed. So if there are complications - you will get the bill for it. But you can be assured your dog is cared for if you trust your vet.

 

We only paid $10 for a neuter cert for our rescue. But we had to pay anesthesia and other costs. Just not for the procedure itself. So don't expect to only pay $30. Talk to your vet fist.

 

Also, for a chip - it can be done at anytime. They don't need to be under anesthesia for it. It's like a big shot. You can do the microchip at anytime. And the Humane society can usually do that for you.

 

RE: chip vs. tattoo. For Hawaii where all vets have a scanner and there is only 1 humane society, the chip is your best bet. But I agree on the rural thinking. Anyone can take off a collar, but they can't claim they didn't see a tattoo. I like the person with the "microchipped" tattoo. Good idea.

 

Denise

[Keegan's Mom]

Inu,

 

Good thing you checked around. Our vet only charged $15 to put the microchip in during the visit for spay/neuter. All of our animals have them. However, Julie makes a good point...since I live in a big city, I feel comfortable with my decision. You may want to consider where you live and the technology there.

 

Rachel

Keegan's Mom

[Betsy]

Another note on the debate:

 

My late cat Gabbi was microchipped, we had adopted her from the local shelter where they chip all animals that are adopted out. Unbeknownst to me, she was hit and killed by a car and picked up by the shelter. It is shelter policy to scan all animals brought in, dead or alive. But because she was so messed up from the accident, the chip had moved and they didn't find it. When I went in to file a missing animal report, I took her picture with me and one of the ladies recognized her. At my request, they searched really hard for the microchip to verify it was her (they wouldn't let me see her she was so mangled). The very small silver lining was I knew for sure what happened and I didn't have to wonder and search anymore. The bad part was, had I not gone in there, they would not have found the chip.

 

Just something else to consider.

[MrSnappy]

Originally posted by Betsy:

Another note on the debate:

 

But because she was so messed up from the accident, the chip had moved and they didn't find it.

But also consider that when a deceased animal is in that condition, it is awfully hard to read the tattoo as well.

 

There are no perfect answers, but I feel safer having both myself.

 

As for why Humane Societies are less expensive than most regular vets - I don't know about everywhere else, but here it's for two reasons

 

1) The Humane Society is actively involved in spay/neuter campaigns and aggressively promotes neutering

 

2) They are not trying to make the same profit margin that private practice vets are making.

 

On that subject, in the last ten years a series of private clinics has opened here that offers neuters at a price competitive to the HS. This royally cheezed off the other private practice veterinarians who felt their business was being undercut and there was a large campaign to undermine these clinics. I was thoroughly disgusted by the whole thing.

 

RDM

[Northof49]

Hi RDM -

 

For your little gal I would personally go with a microchip, with the microchip information also on a tag on her collar.

 

I don't know what you are planning on using for a tatoo - the problem is being able to identify the tatoo.

 

I have had 8 calls over the last 4 months from across Canada with people trying to identify the tatoos that are on dogs they have found, and no one has been able to identify any of them. They don't correlate with CBCA or the Canadian Kennel Club. Some SPCA's tatoo dogs that are adopted out through their organizations, but those didn't match up either with the local SPCAs.

 

Tatoos aren't much good if the person finding your dog can't identify the tatoo and get the dog back to you. That's why we microchip all of our rescues.

[LeeH]

I am about to chip all of mine.. even all 14 pups.

[MrSnappy]

Originally posted by Northof49:

Hi RDM -

Hi Northof49 I think you meant INU.

 

I have had 8 calls over the last 4 months from across Canada with people trying to identify the tatoos that are on dogs they have found, and no one has been able to identify any of them. They don't correlate with CBCA or the Canadian Kennel Club. Some SPCA's tatoo dogs that are adopted out through their organizations, but those didn't match up either with the local SPCAs.

You probably know this already, but every veterinarian in the province has a unique tattoo prefix connected to their clinic. If you contact your Veterinary Association, they can tell you what clinic is associated with that tattoo and the vet will have the owner's information on file. Assuming the tattoos you are talking about are veterinary tattoos of course.

 

My cat was missing for 6 weeks and it was her tattoo that reunited us.

 

RDM

[Spike's Bitch]

Spike was chipped & neutered by the Dogs Trust (the UK's finest dog charity) before I got him, but you guys have got me wondering if I should get him tattooed as well.

 

I'm thinking of a nice tasteful naked lady on his belly - with a speech bubble saying 'Read My Chip, Punk'....

 

Liz & the Captain xxx

[AK dog doc]

Finn is chipped and tattooed. The tat is externally visible, but there is no national registry. The chip has a national registry, but isn't externally visible. I figure that way I'm covering my bases as best I can. (Naturally he also has a collar with tags, but as mentioned that might come off.) Finn is unlikely to disappear on his own, since he's good on recall and never out unsupervised - but the best laid plans, and all that. Even the most meticulous management can have a freak occurance, and who knows... I had to kennel him while I was out of town for Thanksgiving, and God knows we've heard some horror stories about escapees from Kennels.

 

As for the diff in the cost of SPCA surgery vs. your usual vet - I can only say what I've seen up here, but it appears the SPCA doesn't monitor as well during surgery, I don't believe they have as complete a facility in case of complications (since it's a mobile unit, they will have limitations we don't) and there is zero follow-up - no call-backs to check how the patient is doing, no rechecks, etc. I've gone in more than once on emergency to treat a post-op SPCA patient, which ends up costing the owner at least $100 more than if we'd done it - because if I go in on emergency to see one of OUR spays (which, I will say, is exceedingly rare), I don't charge the emergency fee. Plus if there's a complication before release, we can hospitalize overnight, which the mobile unit cannot. However, I don't know what the situation is in other areas, so that may just be local. In more developed areas, they may have a different set-up.

[Northof49]

RDM - of course I meant INU - everyone is allowed to have a blonde moment or several a day I swear Cori is going to be the death of me yet. I don't know which one of us won't see New Years Eve

 

The thing is, if your dog is lost somewhere other than your hometown, you've got problems. With the dogs that I have been phoned about, the people connected with every possible vet clinic, etc etc in their area, with no luck with the tatoos, SPCAs or any other dog organization. They had all phoned kennel clubs, kenneling and grooming establishments, to no avail. So the tatoos that people were relying on to help get their dogs back to them in the event they got lost, didn't work.

[Deb]

Ours carry chips and tattoos. They also wear their rabies tags and county dog liscences, too. The latter has provided tremendous at garnering comments from other handlers at SDTs about tag noise "scaring the sheep" and that I should take them off the collar when I work / compete my dogs.

 

My reasoning for leaving them on is to provide back-up methods for getting my K9's and I back together should we ever be seperated for whatever reason while traveling.

 

To humor those folks who are troubled by jangling tags (and I trully respect and appreciate those folks!) I found a tag "silencer" I use at SDT's and clinics. It's a little bag that velcros's over the tags and collar ring. Best of both worlds...

[BaileysMom]

My Bailey is microchipped. It was done at the humane society for about ten dollars. All of shelters scan here and I was also told by the humane society that all of the police cars also have the scanners. My boyfriends husky is an escape artist and the microchip has helped him to be returned home on the one occassion that he got away from us. They also wear the tag on their collars. And I know that this doesn't happen very often, but I have heard of dogs having the tattoo scraped off by sick individuals. There is a lot of animal cruelty here in Tucson.