The Kennel Club is urging dog owners to make sure their microchip details are up to date in time for the fireworks season.
With Diwali and fireworks night coming up, the Kennel Club is warning pet owners to be extra vigilant following statistics that show that 71% of owners’ details on microchipping databases are inaccurate.
Petlog, run by the Kennel Club, is one of the largest databases for microchipped animals and one of the only databases where users can ensure the money spent on microchipping goes back into dogs.
To give even greater peace of mind, the Kennel Club has the Petlog Premium upgrade which offers pet owners a comprehensive range of lost and found services, which ensures they maintain accurate contact details, so if the worst happens and their pet goes missing, they can go to the Petlog website and alert local authorised agents to help with their search.
Since compulsory microchipping was introduced in April 2016, approximately 90% of dogs are now microchipped, but statistics show that only 29% of dogs have microchips with accurate contact details, meaning that should a pet go missing on nights such as fireworks night and is subsequently found and scanned, the reunification process won’t work.
What dog owners also aren’t aware of is that it is now a legal requirement to ensure that contact details are kept up to date.
Jacquie Easton, Kennel Club Chief Operations Officer said: “Dogs can react very badly to the unfamiliar sights, sounds and even smells that are common on fireworks night – research shows that 40% of dogs are scared of fireworks. The experience can be terrifying for dogs and result in them behaving unpredictably which can put their safety at risk.
“It is a good time of the year to ensure that owners’ microchip details are up to date and by registering with Petlog owners can be reassured that their money is put back into rescue and welfare organisations, which are being supported by the provision of free services to help them rehoming process.”
For more information on microchipping and Petlog you can go to www.petlog.org.uk.
