The simple one-time procedure to install a microchip will prove to be highly beneficial in case your pet gets lost.
A microchip is the size of a grain of rice that contains a unique identification number linking you and your pet. Inserting the microchip under your pet's skin is quick, sterile and no more painful than a routine vaccination.
Animals can be taken to Animal Services or to most veterinarian offices to check and see if a pet has a microchip.
Microchips are especially helpful when a pet's tag is worn and illegible, and for cats clever enough to remove their collar.
Bring your pet into the Wellness Clinic at the Pet Adoption and Protection Center to have the microchip inserted as appointments are not necessary.
Related FAQs
Pet owners may visit the Wellness Clinic at the Pet Adoption and Protection Center to have a microchip inserted in your dog or cat.
A microchip with basic pet owner contact registration information costs $15 and includes:
Pet owner’s name and address
Up to two contact telephone numbers
Email address
Pets must be a minimum of eight weeks old in order to receive a microchip implant or the pet owner can ask a private veterinarian to insert a microchip.
The microchip is not a GPS device and cannot track your pet if it gets lost. Your pet’s microchip does not store full contact information; it stores a number that connects to your contact information on the microchip registry.
How to check to see if a dog or cat has an active microchip:
You can take your dog or cat to be scanned for a microchip ID number at any veterinary office or at the Wellness Clinic at the Animal Services Pet Adoption and Protection Center.
If you have a record of the microchip ID number, visit the microchip brand’s online registry.
If you have the ID number but do not know the brand microchip company, you can enter the ID number into the American Animal Hospital Association’s universal registry.
Pet owners who receive a microchip for their pet at Miami-Dade Animal Services should visit www.foundanimals.org or call 1 866-597-2424 to update microchip information. This is a free service provided through Found Animals Registry that pet owners can update as often as needed. In addition to basic contact information, pet owners are able to include photos of their pet and additional information such as current medication or preferred veterinary practice, through this site. All pet owners are encouraged to register microchips through this national database regardless of the brand of chip that may have been initially placed.
If a microchip was not placed at Miami-Dade Animal Services, it is recommend seeking microchip information via the following site: www.aaha.org . From this site, pet owners will be able to determine the brand of microchip their pet has and update information accordingly.
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