Microchip tags for pets
March 20, 2004 | 12:00am
There’s now a better way for pet lovers to establish ownership of their furry friends using the latest micro-chip based on radio frequency identification (RFID) technology.
The Pet iChip (Animal ID Management System) is a microchip as small as a rice grain that can be implanted underneath the skin of dogs, cats, birds, fish, reptiles and livestock so they can be tagged more securely. Only authorized veterinarians can implant the microchips using a hypodermic needle just like an ordinary vaccination process. The microchip technology is one of the more advanced and comprehensive system that brings together the veterinary profession and IT.
The microchip has no battery and is permanently encoded with a number that is both unique worldwide as well as permanent. It is made up of a transceiver with decoder, an antenna or coil, a transponder programmed with unique 15-digit numeric identification code, enclosed in a bio-compatible substance to prevent tissue rejection or allergy; and guaranteed not to degenerate over time. It’s a permanent way of identifying animal companions.
"It is a painless procedure," assures Dr. Kyle Lucero, technical services officer, Animal ID and Management System (AIMS) of Plaridel Products and Services, Inc., local distributor of the Pet iChip. "The only considerations before the implant are that animals are physically fit and with no underlying diseases," he adds.
Because the microchip is placed just under the skin and not internally, microchip reading is completely safe as well. Puppies that are three months old can already be implanted with a microchip, but Lucero says the ideal is six months.
The RFID-based microchip serves as a lasting, fool-proof and tamper-proof identification of all animal species for purposes of ownership establishment, research, animal monitoring and retrieval, clinical diagnosis, and disease control and prevention.
Once an RFID scanner is activated and passed over the animal, the scanner emits a low-frequency magnetic field that automatically powers up the microchip allowing it to transmit its number. In addition to merely recording basic information about the pet, the microchips can be used to store data on the pet’s pedigree, owner information, progeny and in the future even the pet’s individual health records.
Destron Technologies from the US is the manufacturer of the Pet iChip. Plaridel launched Pet iChip in the country last year and has since administered it to some 500 pedigreed dogs, Lucero says. He adds that putting microchip tags on animals is becoming more accepted as more countries now require pets to be tagged more securely than just the use of tattoos or collar tags before they are allowed to enter or be transported in their countries.
Lucero says they recently launched a newer model of the Pet iChip with Bio-Thermo. Aside from its identification feature, the Bio-Thermo microchip has an added temperature sensing feature so veterinarians don’t have to use rectal thermometers on animals that have been implanted with this chip.
Lucero says the Bio-Thermo is priced at P850 and covers the basic registration fee, database registration, basic pedigree listing in the Pet iChip Web site and enrollment in the Pet Retrieval Program. Lucero says pet owners can buy additional Web pages if they want to have more information about their pets online. To date, Plaridel keeps a record of about 300 pedigreed dogs in the country that have been microchipped. The records of these mutts are accessible in the Pet iChip database. Individual animal records are viewable online with the prior consent of the pet owner. Plaridel claims that the use of microchip on animals can bring order and structure to the local pet industry by providing for a national database registry, effectively computerizing records and simplifying information access.
Although Plaridel mainly markets the Pet iChip to dog owners and breeders, Lucero says they are also interested to see more cats and other pets to use the RFID-tag and be part of the Pet iChip Website. The site also features a link called Pet Marketplace where members can post information on animals they want to sell.
Meanwhile, the company claims they also offer pet retrieval services to members through its network of partners — pet shops, breeders — who now number about 3,000 nationwide.
BrandSpace Articles
<
>
