THUNDER BAY - Pet owners across the city were taking an important step in ensuring that if a four-legged member of the family ever goes missing, reuniting with it will just be a scan away.
The city of Thunder Bay, along with Friends of the Animals, held the annual Chip-A-Thon on Saturday, with more than 100 pet owners taking advantage of the reduced price to get their pets micro-chipped.
“Microchipping is very important,” said Jody Kondrat, supervisor with the city of Thunder Bay Animal Services. “It’s permanent identification. In Thunder Bay, microchipping is a not a legal requirement, but pet licenses are. If we pick up your animal, we will scan it, and if it has a microchip we will be able to reunite that pet with its owner.”
Typically microchipping costs between $50 and $60, but on Saturday a pet could be chipped for $35 and every additional pet chipped for $30.
“It‘s a very quick, typically painless procedure performed by a veterinarian,” Kondrat said. “The microchip is small, usually the size of a tiny grain of rice and implanted between the shoulder blades. It’s quick, they might feel a bit of a pin prick.”
Dave Brouwer said he wanted to take advantage of the Chip-A-Thon because his two dogs, Athena, a collie mix, and Shelby, a Siberian husky, like to roam the country side at his home in Nolalu.
“It was important to us because Shelby is a really good looking dog in my opinion and I’m always concerned about her going missing,” he said. “We live out in the country, so it’s a little more comforting knowing they are chipped so if they are ever found, they can be returned.”
Brouwer said Shelby has gotten off her leash before and disappeared, though she usually comes back within a day or two.
“It’s still nerve wracking during that time,” he said. “It’s a lot better now. If Shelby goes missing, it’s easier to identify who she is because we don’t like putting a collar on her because she can get hung up.”
Kondrat said there have been a number of cases of dogs and cats being microchipped and returned to their owners, sometimes even getting dropped off right at the owner’s front door.
“If an animal service officer picks up a dog or a cat on the street, if it’s safe to do so, they will scan the animal in the vehicle,” she said. “If it does have a microchip and the animal has not been to our facility before, they will give it a free ride home essentially. We’ve had a lot of owners be reunited with their pets.”
For those worried about how their dog or cat might feel about it, a little pin-prick is probably better than never seeing you again.
And your pet may even surprise you. Brouwer was certainly surprised by how brave Shelby was when she was up for her microchipping.
“Shelby really surprised me,” he said. “When she gets her nails cut she can be a little whiney.”
