Protect Your Pet
From the Website:
Last Chance for Animals/Dealing Dogs
DON’T leave companion animals unattended in your yard. It only takes a minute for someone to steal your pet.
DON’T allow your pet to be visible from the street.
DON’T leave your dog tied up outside restaurants or stores.
DON’T leave any animal unattended in your car, even if it is “just for a minute.”
DON’T use “free to good home” ads to place companion animals. These ads are often answered by Class “B” dealers. Contact a rescue group for assistance in conducting your own adoption.
DO spay and neuter your companion animals. This reduces your animal’s desire to stray and reduces the risk of your companion animal being stolen for breeding purposes.
DO provide your companion animals with collars, ID tags, and licenses. Speak with your veterinarian about backup forms of identifications, including tattooing and microchipping.
DO keep recent photos and written descriptions of your companion animals on hand at all times.
DO keep dogs and cats indoors, especially when you’re not home.
DO know where your animals are at all times. Treat your companion animals as you would a small child.
DO educate family, friends, and neighbors about pet theft
Properly Identifying Your Pet
A good dog collar with an ID tag is the first line of defense against pet theft; however, a collar can break or be pulled off. In addition to a collar, dogs should have permanent identification. Microchipping and/or tattooing your pet are excellent ways to ensure their safety.
Additionally, if your pet ends up at a research or medical facility, the researchers are required by law to look for any tattoos, and, if one is found, they must trace the pet back to the owner.
Microchips
A microchip is a permanent radio-frequency identification (RFID) chip implanted under the animal’s skin and read by a chip scanner or wand. Implantation is done with an injector that places the chip under the loose skin over the animal’s shoulder.
The advantages are obvious -- the process is quick and no more painful than a vaccination, the number is unique and the owners name and address are available on regional or national data bases so a dog can be returned quickly and safely.
The chip identification number is stored in a tiny transponder that can be read through the animal's skin by a scanner emitting low-frequency radio waves. The frequency is picked up by a tiny antenna in the transponder, and the number is retrieved, decoded and displayed in the scanner readout window.
There are two major companies that produce and register microchips: HomeAgain and AVID. For more information on microchipping, visit www.HomeAgainID.com and www.AvidMicrochip.com.
Spaying and Neutering Your Pet
Spaying or neutering your animal might actually help keep her out of a research lab. Animals that aren’t spayed or neutered often stray from home when looking to mate. Many strays end up in pounds or shelters, which, depending on the state laws, might in turn sell the animal to a research lab through a practice called “pound seizure.”
