Replies

Before I retired we had two different scanners and ran them over animals upon examination and recorded them on the record. We just documented the chip. Microchips are sold indiscriminately and many animals with microchips have never had the registration completed so it is a dead end. If a stray was brought in then we'd give the finder the chip registry and let them do the legwork. Universities using animals for research are diligent and if a chip is found they try to find if it had been lost or stolen. I was involved in a animal “scam” years ago where a man was stealing dogs everywhere and selling them at “First Monday” to a dog dealer that sold to universities for research. One of the first microchipped animals from our area was found at UC Davis, over 2000 miles away. The thief kept the rabies tags in a coffee can and when his place was raided the LE brought us the tags and we identified the dogs to which they were given. There were hundreds of them. He was charged with a misdemeanor. Vets are under no obligation to research the microchip's registry, only to document if one were to be found.