No affair how careful we are with our pets, there'south no question that some are born escape artists. And fifty-fifty the well-nigh docile pets aren't immune to the occasional wander.

According to statistics, one in three pets will go missing at some indicate in their lifetime. If you've ever felt that trauma beginning-hand or the simple thought of it fills yous with dread, one thing is for sure: Y'all know at that place's nada yous wouldn't do to get a lost dog or cat nestled safely dorsum in your arms...fast.

Here's the good news: If your pet is microchipped, the key to a speedy and successful reunion is already in identify. Just in social club to unlock its power, there'south 1 more crucial step yous need to take: register your pet'due south microchip. It's the single most important thing you can do to ensure your pet'south safety render. Luckily, it'due south also the easiest!

And inquiry proves that this one simple pace is absolutely worth the few minutes it takes to complete. Co-ordinate to a 2009 study of 7,700 lost pets, 52% of microchipped dogs and 39% of microchipped cats were successfully reunited with their families.

Unfortunately, of the chipped pets who did not arrive home safely, the study revealed unregistered microchips or those with outdated data were the chief reasons.

Uncomplicated Microchip Registration

Co-ordinate to experts, an estimated xl% of microchipped pets are walking around with unregistered chips. That's like splurging on shiny new tags for your canis familiaris or true cat, but leaving them bare...If someone finds your lost pet, how volition they know how to contact y'all?

While microchip registry sounds similar a no-brainer, even the virtually responsible pet parents sometimes get derailed by pretty mutual scenarios. Such as:

  • Many shelters automatically microchip animals in their intendance. Simply make new pet parents might not realize they need to register the chip.
  • Some people confuse chip registration with needing to obtain a local license for their pet.
  • Even experienced pet parents sometimes forget to annals a fleck in the excitement of welcoming a new family unit fellow member.
  • And what happens if yous misplace your paperwork and can't figure out how to update your registry or whether your pet was e'er chipped to brainstorm with?

No need to worry...or to let these unanswered questions keep you from reuniting with a lost pet one second longer than you have to. In ii easy steps, here's how to ensure your pet'south microchip is properly registered, once and for all.

Step 1: Verify Your Pet's Microchip

If yous're ane of those organizationally-gifted people who can summon their pet's microchip number at a moment'south notice, huzzah! You lot can go on directly to Step 2.

The rest of us may need a bit of assistance. Luckily, yous have plenty of options:

Veterinarian Microchipping DogCall your vet. Even if your files aren't the tidiest, if y'all've ever shared your pet's microchip registry number with your vet, the office should have it on tape. This is the option of first resort for many pet parents. It's convenient, fast, and free!

Contact your breeder, shelter or rescue. No affair where you lot got your pet, it's possible they came to you already microchipped. So don't hesitate to contact a breeder or shelter for your pet's microchip number...even if you're afraid it will make you look similar a bad pet parent. It'due south typically free, and it's much more common than yous remember.

Get your pet scanned. If you yet can't confirm your pet's microchip number, information technology'south time to bring them to a pro. Most veterinarians, animal shelters, and even animal control offices can scan your pet to see if they take a microchip — often free of charge. Be sure to call alee to confirm cost and make sure they use a universal scanner, which reads all frequencies and so it's more probable to detect any chip, regardless of manufacturer.

Pace 2: Register Your Pet's Microchip

One time you've confirmed your microchip number, registering it is free and takes no more than a few minutes. You lot can exercise it yourself on the 24PetWatch Pet Registry Portal or past calling 1-866-597-2424 to piece of work straight with a Pet Registry Specialist.

That'due south it! Once you're done, your pet's unique microchip ID will forever be linked to the data you entered in the registry. Congrats on taking the most important step you can, to assistance ensure your pet makes information technology home to you safely.

Just what does that really hateful? Can you track your pet wherever they go like yous can with some food delivery services? Now that you've registered your pet's microchip, it's of import to understand exactly what they tin — and tin't — do.

How Exercise Microchip Registries Work?

Your pet's microchip is a tiny piece of technology — no larger than a grain of rice — that stores a unique ID number. Think of information technology like a barcode, Microchip Scannerexcept that it resides safely and deeply inside your pet's torso only under the surface of their peel, so it tin never get lost.

There are many different microchip manufacturers, only information technology doesn't matter who made the chip inside your pet. Some microchips operate on dissimilar frequencies, just a universal scanner tin read them all. Even then, the merely thing a scan will reveal is the microchip'south unique ID number.

That's why registering the chip is so important. When a lost pet is constitute and scanned, a shelter can quickly search that ID number in a database to find out where that pet is registered, so alert the registry that the pet has been found. If the microchip is registered properly, that registry so alerts the pet parent on file to arrange the happy reunion!

What microchips don't do is track your pet'south location 24/7 so you lot tin can find them the minute they go missing. They also don't store whatever private data. And they're best used in improver to — not instead of — standard pet ID tags.

How To Become The Nigh Out Of Your Microchip Registry

Hopefully, by now, there'south no dubiety in your mind but how important it is to properly annals your pet'due south microchip. Simply when a pet is missing, you want to brand certain you lot have the best possible run a risk of reuniting with them.

According to Dana Rayman, Manager of the 24PetWatch Call Center, here'southward how to get even more than out of your microchip registry and improve your odds of a successful reunion.

Free Microchip Registry

"When you annals your microchip with 24PetWatch, you go free access to the online portal and lost pet recovery services. That ways when your pet goes missing, you can accept firsthand action and become our Lost Pet Recovery Squad on the example, instead of but worrying or hoping for the best," said Rayman.

Here's how that works:

  • The infinitesimal you realize your pet is missing, you tin can report your lost pet at any time of the day or nighttime.
  • The Lost Pet Recovery Squad volition then search for your pet's microchip ID in their nationwide database of found pets.

If they get a hit, they'll notify you using the contact information you lot included in your registry. (Fifty-fifty more reason to make certain that info is ever updated!)

Pet Protection Services Membership

However, finding a lost pet is seldom simple, and well-nigh pet parents desire to do everything in their ability to reunite with their lost pets as apace as possible. That's why 24PetWatch offers enhanced Pet Protection Services as role of an Annual Membership ($29.95/yr) or Lifetime Membership ($94.95).

"A Pet Protection Membership is the equivalent of 911 for pet parents," says Rayman. "Instead of self-service reporting and updates if there'due south a hitting in the database, you lot become instant, live admission to a Lost Pet Recovery Specialist who can not only expedite your search, but also provide additional support and ideas to assistance you become your pet dorsum faster."

Here's how that works:

  • Experienced Recovery Experts are on call 24 hours a twenty-four hours, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, set to speak with y'all straight the minute you report your pet missing.
  • In addition to searching their database in existent time, Recovery Experts besides achieve out to local facilities and shelters and so they can exist on the lookout for your pet.
  • They provide tried-and-true suggestions, like placing your pet'due south bed outside your door to assistance them olfactory property their way habitation, and even help y'all create a custom Lost Pet poster.
  • Best of all, with DirectConnect, Recovery Experts have the ability to instantly connect y'all directly with the facility or finder who has your pet the second they are found to suit a safe, happy reunion.

"The all-time part of working straight with our members is that at that place's no delay," said Rayman. "If we get a call at 4:00 AM saying someone found your pet, you can bet nosotros're waking yous up to give you the good news."

"Membership also gives you unlimited updates to your registry information, so it's easy to keep it up to date. And you can even add trusted friends and family as contacts. That'due south primal if we can't accomplish you or if your number has inverse; We'll call your secondary contacts until we observe someone who can get your pet correct abroad."

Woman Hugging Her Dog Lifetime Pet Protection Membership offers a range of boosted benefits, including a $25 PetCo coupon, sectional discounts, and year-long access to a 24/7 Vet Hotline and 24PetMedAlert®.

But the biggest do good of registering with 24PetWatch is the extensive network of shelters and facilities that piece of work with the company as a long-continuing leader in the field of lost pet recovery. Thanks to that partnership, over 90% of pets adopted from shelters are already chipped and registered to their pet parents through 24PetWatch, said Rayman.

"On boilerplate, we're reuniting between 3,000-4,000 pets with their parents each month...most of them through DirectConnect. And there's zilch like hearing the relief in someone's voice when they know we're about to connect them to someone who has their pet, prophylactic and sound."


Click for more information on registering your microchip or Pet Protection Service Membership, or call a 24PetWatch representative at i-866-597-2424.

Karen Vitale is a long-time author, creator and animal lover whose work has been featured everywhere from Disney Studios to The Smithsonian Institutions.​