mandatory

Microchipping has been mandatory for dogs in the UK for a year now, yet amazingly, some owners still haven’t had their dogs microchipped. This means that should the dog be stolen or get lost, its chances of being reunited with its owner are vastly reduced.

Time and time again we see dogs who have made it back home, sometimes after being missing for extended periods of time, all thanks to that tiny microchip. Yet shockingly, Battersea Dogs & Cats Home is finding that half the stray dogs who end up in its care do not have a microchip.

On the day the new microchipping law comes into force, Battersea Dogs & Cats Home Ambassador Paul O’Grady is urging pet owners to microchip their dogs, after new Battersea research reveals only one in five lost dogs have an up to date chip, making many stray dogs’ chances of being reunited with their owners less likely.

Worrying figures from Local Authorities showed in Battersea’s new report Microchipping Where it Matters Most, the vast majority of stray dogs (80%) either don’t have microchips, or the chips are rendered useless because of out of date contact details.