Microchips have helped the RSPCA to reunite four missing cats in the north of England this summer as the charity issues a reminder to pet owners that it will be a legal requirement in nine months time.
The pets were all rescued by RSPCA officers in North Yorkshire and County Durham, two of them having survived road traffic accidents.
The animal welfare charity says the incidents highlight just how important microchipping is and it will be mandatory from June 2024 for cats once they reach 20 weeks old.
Six-year-old Oreo had been missing from his home in Brandon, near Durham, for nine months after his owner Emma Sykes and her family had moved to another property about half a mile away. The RSPCA was called out to help after residents had seen the unfamiliar cat in their garden and were concerned that he was not bearing weight on one of his back legs.
After being collected by RSPCA animal collection officer Shane Lynch in May, he was successfully scanned for a microchip, before being reunited with his stunned family. The injury to his left hind leg meant it sadly had to be amputated, but Ms Sykes said her and her daughter Hollie, ten and son James, 12, were over the moonto have him back.
“It’s like he’s had a gap year,” she said. “When we got the call from Shane I thought he was kidding, I just couldn’t believe it. Oreo was always pretty much an indoor cat, but he managed to get out of a window when we were in the process of moving last August and we hadn’t seen him since.
“Apart from the injury to his leg, which was probably caused by an accident with a car, he was in good condition. It was so upsetting when he went missing, the winter months were especially hard, but he’s back in our lives now thanks to his microchip, and that’s the most important thing.”
Kate Preston and her family were reunited with their missing pet, eight-year-old Daisy, after she went missing for over three weeks from their home in Romanby, Northallerton, in July. The cat had been seen by members of the public in a distressed state, and a subsequent veterinary check revealed she had fractured her hip in three places, probably as a result of a road traffic accident.
RSPCA inspector Clare Wilson, who collected Daisy, was able to reunite her because she was microchipped.
Mrs Preson said: “Even though she was found only a few streets away, if it hadn’t been for Daisy’s microchip we would probably never have got her back as she has never been a very adventurous cat and didn’t venture far. It’s lucky she survived at all as we were told she had probably been hit side on by a car. She’s on bed rest now but is putting on a bit of weight and has got her purr back – it’s just lovely to have her home.”
Twelve-year-old Oscar also went missing from his home in Yarm, North Yorkshire, in July.It was an especially worrying time for his owner Nicola Threadgold as her elderly pet needed daily medication for his kidneys. Collected by RSPCA inspector Christine Nisbet, after the charity received a call about a cat who appeared to be struggling to walk, he was scanned for a microchip. To everyone’s surprise, the chip’s details showed that the tabby and white cat lived in a neighbouring property from where he was found.
Sadly Oscar passed away a few weeks later, but Mrs Threadgold said his microchip had ensured he was safely back home with them for the remainder of his life. “When the inspector rang to say she had Oscar in the back of her van I couldn’t believe it, especially as he’d literally been found next door,” she said.
“It was an absolute relief to have him home, the not knowing was awful, especially as he was 12 years old and had medical needs. He was a rescue cat and had been microchipped when we adopted him; he’d had a great life and was very well loved.”
Black and white cat Will was also reunited with his family after becoming trapped on the roof of the Coronation Inn at Acklam Road in Middlesbrough in June. Fire and rescue officers used ladders to reach him before he was scanned by RSPCA officer Gemma Lynch and found to be microchipped. His owners, who lived just over a mile away, had put up posters in the local area and had been searching for him for about nine days.
RSPCA animal collection officer Shane Lynch, said: “It’s wonderful, although a little unusual, for us to be able to reunite four cats in just a matter of weeks – but it’s all thanks to the fact their owners had got them microchipped.
“Success stories like these show just how important these tiny chips can be. It’s disheartening collecting a cat who has strayed or got injured, who you suspect has a loving owner, but if they aren’t microchipped or wearing a collar it makes the job of tracing their family all the more difficult. This new law means that lost cats can be easily identified and reunited with their owners, rather than being handed to rehoming charities who are struggling with overflowing waiting lists.”
Under the legislation, which was announced in March this year, from 10 June 2024 it will be a legal requirement to microchip pet cats once they reach 20 weeks of age. Owners will also be required to keep their contact details up-to-date on a pet microchipping database.
Owners found not to have microchipped their cat will have 21 days to get one implanted or may face a fine of up to £500.
However, data from a survey carried out by the animal welfare charity in May of this year showed that almost half (47%) of adults in England were not aware of the new cat microchipping law¹.
Microchipping is a very easy and painless procedure which involves a tiny microchip being quickly and simply inserted under the animal’s skin and this then gives the pet their own unique code. The microchip can be scanned and matched to the owner’s contact details which are kept on a database. The RSPCA believes the optimum time to microchip a cat is when they are neutered as a kitten at around four-months-old and under anaesthetic.
If an owner moves house or changes their telephone number they must also make sure that they tell the database they are registered with so that they have up-to-date contact details. If the information on that database is old and out-of-date then the chip is useless. Telling your vet does not automatically update the details on the database, but this is something owners can do themselves online.
Whilst the RSPCA is thrilled to see cat microchipping laws being introduced in England, the charity is also hopeful that the Welsh Government will act and introduce compulsory microchipping for cats in Wales too.
