# Pet MicroChip



## Viper (Aug 18, 2010)

My Puppy has a chip inserted when we bought her. I found a few registries for these chips (my chip was distributed by AKC CAR) but wow.. what range in prices. lostmypet.com (recommended from who I purchased my puppy) at $49/yr or $99/yr for the amber alert edition. I found others too but decided on AKC CAR for $19.95 one time fee. Not sure would need an amber alert since every pet shelter and vet in my area would be called by my wife and myself anyway.

What do you guys and gals think of the microchip and more so the microchip registries such as AKC CAR, Lostmypet.com and Homeagain.com? I think anything more than AKC CAR or comparables that charge a one time fee may just be bordering a ripoff.


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## chowder (Sep 7, 2008)

Both of my dogs are with AKC . Chelsy was done 12 years ago with Home Again and they let me switch her to AKC at no charge so I think maybe they are affiliated . They seemed to already have her in their files. I liked the one time, lifetime fee and it was included with the cost of putting in the microchip. Also with AKC I got a metal tag with the ID number engraved on it and the phone number for the dogs collar so whoever finds the dog knows they are microchipped. Sometimes microchips have been know to 'wander' from the injection site so I got the tag as backup.

If your pet was already microchipped, check with whoever did it and find out if registering was included in the fee. I know it was included in my fee and it was for my son's dog at his rescue place.


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## bdb5853 (May 21, 2010)

Be aware that AKC (Home Again) will send you reminder emails after a year that say things like "your microchip registration is about to expire! Renew today!" But if you read the fine print, once the dog is in the database - it is there for the life of the dog. If you renew yearly you are getting "extras" like a poison hotline, some insurance if your dog gets hurt when lost, etc. 

I thought that was pretty deceiving the way they send out the emails like that and scare people into renewing, thinking that their dog won't be in the database unless they do.  

You have to search really hard through the FAQ and way into the website to find out that your one time fee covers lifetime registration. But it does.


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## chowder (Sep 7, 2008)

Hmmm, I've never gotten an email from AKC once they've been registered. Chelsy's been with them for 12 years and Rocky's has been for 2. I've had other dogs with them for many years. Maybe it's something new they've started. I'll be sure and watch out for that. It might be going to my spam filters, too.


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## bdb5853 (May 21, 2010)

chowder said:


> Hmmm, I've never gotten an email from AKC once they've been registered. Chelsy's been with them for 12 years and Rocky's has been for 2. I've had other dogs with them for many years. Maybe it's something new they've started. I'll be sure and watch out for that. It might be going to my spam filters, too.


Home Again sent me a bunch of emails. Probably 5 or 6 a few days apart when his chip anniversary date approached. Each one had the alarmist tone "RENEW NOW". It was very annoying. I wrote Home Again and specifically confirmed that I didn't have to 'renew' each year and they said no, but I wouldn't get the lost pet insurance or the poison control hotline, etc. I wish I'd kept the emails so I could repost them here. They were obnoxious.


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## 1605 (May 27, 2009)

The thing that people seem to forget is to UPDATE THEIR INFORMATION with the AKC (or whomever their chip is registered to). 

We help with the GSP rescue locally here in Tampa. The last time we had to check on a dog at the Shelter to make sure it was in fact a GSP, the dog was chipped, but the contact information for the Owner was out of date. Unfortunately, that meant that the dog was eventually adopted out without any contact with the Owner. And, while it was certainly a good home it was going to, the original Owners would never have been notified that their dog had been found.

FYI, our dog is chipped and it is registered with AKC and his vet.


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