The next time Fluffy or Spot get loose, their owner might have an easier time finding them if they get their pet chip through the city’s animal control department.
Making a presentation to the Green River City Council Tuesday night, Kim Wilkins, one of the city’s animal control officers, said the chips would help them re-unite pets to their owners. The chips are about half the size of a rice grain and are injected using a syringe. Wilkins said animals don’t feel the injection, as the chips are placed under the skin. The chips can be injected into dogs, cats and ferrets.
Lydia Holmes, another animal control officer, said the chips would especially help with cats the officers find.
“You pick up a black cat -- there are 50 people who own black cats,” Wilkins said.
If a loose pet is picked up by animal control, they could scan the chip and identify the owner much easier. In 2015, the animal shelter had 245 animals admitted, a number that could drop with the utilization of the pet chips.
Animal control plans to sell the chips for $20 per animal and said the service shouldn’t impact local veterinarian services.
Wilkins said pet owners who opt to have their animals chipped would also be eligible to purchase insurance on the animal through a third-party company.
The insurance includes vet bill assistance if a pet is injured while lost, lost pet alerts to local shelters and veterinarians, travel assistance for a pet that traveled more than 500 miles away from home, lost pet posters and Google ID number search services.
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