As a holistic pet care professional and animal rescuer, this is a topic I am approached with very often. My views on this may come as a surprise. As many of you know, I preach and take pride in the practice of being a responsible dog owner. I also have micro chipped a few of my dogs over the years, both personal pets and rescues that I have fostered. So, I am not a stranger to the process. I will preface everything with this: I understand why people micro chip their pets. And, on the flip side, I just cannot understand why people micro chip their pets. Am I confusing you yet? I will get right to the point. I think injecting a foreign object into our dog's body is one of the most invasive and unhealthy things we can do as it relates to their well being. I am going to guess I have your attention now. I know that all of my rescue friends are just about to go berserk on me. But, I just can't fathom that someone thought this was a good idea. After all, there are other, safer options. The health risk associated with micro chips are well documented. Tumors growing around the chips over time, lesions and necrotic tissue at or near the injection site are among the most common side effects of this horrible procedure.
The purpose promoted for this is what; so I can locate my dog if she gets lost? It is NO GUARANTEE. And I love the people who say: "Well what if my dog gets stolen"?. Really? You really think the scumbag who stole your dog is going to report it to any one? With collars, ID tags and even tattooing, there are much better options. And, I am no fan of tattooing either, it's just a better alternative. But, the most fool proof, lock down, secure of never having to worry about "losing" your dog is a multi-part solution. First and most important: DO NOT THINK IT CAN'T HAPPEN TO YOU - never underestimate an animal being an animal. The most responsible owners in the world are not immune from a pet getting away from them. I'll write a separate blog about responsible pet ownership. Then, having identification of some sort on your pet is most effective. And, not that I have to say, but spaying and neutering your pets will decrease their chances of "bolting", unless of course you have a small terrier - LOL... Seriously though, micro chipping has more risks associated with it then reward, period!
Rescue folks out there are cringing as they read this. And, I get it, I do. We want to make sure our dogs can be tracked. I understand why we want to chip our rescue dogs. But, at the end of the day, it is still too risky, especially when there are alternatives. Chipping a dog isn't guaranteeing that you placed the dog in the right home. The most in depth adoption process isn't even 100% guarantee. And I'll do a blog post on placing dogs too. But, proper identification, follow ups to families; these are things we can do to keep tabs on the dogs we place. Remember, if you think you didn't place a dog properly, a chip isn't going to help you figure that out. This is such an in depth topic. But, I did want to get some thoughts out there...
Micro chipping is really a tough one for me. The holistic practitioner in me say; NO WAY!. The rescuer in me says: I get it and understand why people do it. When the dust settles, I just have a hard time injecting a foreign object in to any dog in my care that could potentially cause health problems, especially when the purpose of the foreign object doesn't guarantee anything.. I will revisit this more in a future blog. But, for now, these are some superficial thoughts of mine...
Here's an article I found in the subject too - https://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/microchips-pet/
The purpose promoted for this is what; so I can locate my dog if she gets lost? It is NO GUARANTEE. And I love the people who say: "Well what if my dog gets stolen"?. Really? You really think the scumbag who stole your dog is going to report it to any one? With collars, ID tags and even tattooing, there are much better options. And, I am no fan of tattooing either, it's just a better alternative. But, the most fool proof, lock down, secure of never having to worry about "losing" your dog is a multi-part solution. First and most important: DO NOT THINK IT CAN'T HAPPEN TO YOU - never underestimate an animal being an animal. The most responsible owners in the world are not immune from a pet getting away from them. I'll write a separate blog about responsible pet ownership. Then, having identification of some sort on your pet is most effective. And, not that I have to say, but spaying and neutering your pets will decrease their chances of "bolting", unless of course you have a small terrier - LOL... Seriously though, micro chipping has more risks associated with it then reward, period!
Rescue folks out there are cringing as they read this. And, I get it, I do. We want to make sure our dogs can be tracked. I understand why we want to chip our rescue dogs. But, at the end of the day, it is still too risky, especially when there are alternatives. Chipping a dog isn't guaranteeing that you placed the dog in the right home. The most in depth adoption process isn't even 100% guarantee. And I'll do a blog post on placing dogs too. But, proper identification, follow ups to families; these are things we can do to keep tabs on the dogs we place. Remember, if you think you didn't place a dog properly, a chip isn't going to help you figure that out. This is such an in depth topic. But, I did want to get some thoughts out there...
Micro chipping is really a tough one for me. The holistic practitioner in me say; NO WAY!. The rescuer in me says: I get it and understand why people do it. When the dust settles, I just have a hard time injecting a foreign object in to any dog in my care that could potentially cause health problems, especially when the purpose of the foreign object doesn't guarantee anything.. I will revisit this more in a future blog. But, for now, these are some superficial thoughts of mine...
Here's an article I found in the subject too - https://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/microchips-pet/
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