County uses high-tech pet retrieval system
Two years ago, the Multnomah County Animal Shelter in Troutdale, Ore., faced grim statistics regarding lost dogs and cats. The shelter reunited only about 45 percent of dogs and 2 percent of cats with their owners each year. Of the 10,000 dogs and cats Multnomah found each year, about 1,000 dogs and 900 cats were euthanized.
To lower those numbers, the county is using a new microchipping system from Union, N.J.-based Schering-Plough Animal Health to identify lost dogs and cats and help reunite more pets and owners. The technology also saves the shelter costs in caring for lost animals.
“Since the use of microchipping, we have definitely increased the number of pets reunited with owners,” says John Rowtan, community information specialist for Multnomah County Animal Control. “It’s been especially noticeable with cats, and the numbers should continue to go up as more pets are microchipped.”
The pet-retrieval system involves injecting a small microchip under the skin between the shoulder blades of a dog or cat, much the same way a vaccine is administered. The chip, which is about the size of a grain of rice, is coded with a unique, 10-digit number registered with the American Kennel Club (AKC), Raleigh, N.C., as part of its Companion Animal Recovery Program.
When a lost pet arrives at the shelter, a hand-held scanner, similar to scanners used in grocery stores, is passed over the animal’s shoulder blades. If a chip is found, the pet’s number can be read on the scanner. The shelter then notifies the AKC, which contacts the pet’s owner.
Pets with the microchip system also are given a bright yellow collar tag imprinted with their identification number and AKC’s toll-free number. Often, the tag alone can be used to locate the owner, but the microchip serves as backup in case the tag is removed.
In addition to reuniting pets and owners, the microchipping system helps Multnomah County cut animal care costs. It costs about $52 daily to care for each animal in a shelter (not including special veterinary care), whereas microchipping is offered at the Multnomah shelter for less than $14 per animal. “If we get pets back to their owners in minutes or hours instead of holding them for three days, we don’t have to pay to feed them or house and care for them,” Rowtan says.
Scanners are used at about 6,000 community shelters and 7,000 veterinary clinics nationwide. The microchipping system has reunited more than 10,000 pets with their owners since its introduction in 1996. The AKC recovery program has more than 250,000 pets enrolled in its national database and is open 24 hours a day. For information, contact the AKC at (800) 252-7894 or e-mail [email protected]
