The posting in adoptions about the black lab that was rescued and ultimately reunited with its owner got me thinking about chip implants in dogs. Seeker 4 said there was no chip implant, but Stray Dog’s vet found one with the owner info. I looked at the chip implant info on my two dogs and noted that one has a TROVAN chip, and the other a WATRON chip. I’ve heard that some chip scanners can scan one type of chip but not the other. So if my dogs got lost somehow, could the same thing happen like the black lab where the scanner used by one vet would pick up one chip but not the other ? Is there some kind of universal chip that can be scanned by any scanner ? If yes, what would be the brand name of that chip, so I can ask for that brand for my beagle puppy who needs to be implanted soon. On the other hand, are some vets equipped with one type of scanner that picks up only one type of chip ? Is there an universal scanner that can be used for all chips ? Stray Dog, do you have useful information to share ? Also, my vet charges NT$800 for the chip implant. Is this about right ? Thanks.
[quote=“vw”]Also, my vet charges NT$800 for the chip implant. Is this about right ? Thanks.[/quote]Many vets will implant the chip for free if you have the animal desexed and vaccinated. It’s part of a government program to promote rabies vaccinations and neutering. In other words, the chip isn’t free, but the gov pays for it.
Good question about the scanners, BTW. I too am wondering why seeker4’s vet couldn’t scan the chip, but straydog’s vet could.
There’s no universal chip but there’s a universal reader, but only some vets have them.
This is one example of when a monopoly should be allowed. There are several chips available in Taiwan - AVID and Trovan being the most common, but ISO chips (15 digits) being the most useful for export of the animal to a Western country.
The problem is, of course, that, with the readers being so expensive (NT$15,000 for a stndard reader up to NT$30,000 for a ‘universal’ reader), most vets - and even government shelters - don’t want to buy enough readers to cover ll possibilities. Even the universal reader doesn’t read them all.
It seems to me that manufacturers should be allowed to produce their own chips, of course, but of the same frequency as others so that all can be read by all readers.
My own dogs have AVID chips right now, as that is the most common one in Taiwan, with most vet and shelters having an AVID reader. Should my dogs get lost, they have the best chance of being relocated to me immediately. But when I decide to leave Taiwan, I will have to send a sample AVID chip to my country’s customs office at the airport and check that they can read it. According to my research and talks with DEFRA in the UK, the readers at the airport can read 99.9 percent of all chips. But that 0.1 percent worries me, as it could mean lengthy quarantine or even death for my four-legged family members if the Taiwanese chip just happens to be one of the unreadable ones.
Many people are now buying the ISO chips AnimalsTaiwan sells, as these are standard globally - at least in most developed countries. The problem is, though, that should the dog get lost in Taiwan, ISO chips are the least common and therefore the least likely to be traced by a scanner.
I have considered putting two chips in the dogs and cats, but need to find out the implications of that. I can’t see the harm myself.
Also, while we’re on the point, the Neihu Animal Shelter has readers for most chips, but other dog-catching agencies, particularly outside of Taipei City (Taipei County, for instance) have only one reader, if that, and, according to good sources, most don’t even check anyway. Be careful where you lose your dog - don’t wait for him or her to be returned to you, as you only have ten days in most cases before it is too late.
Want to drastically reduce the chances of your dog running away? Then have him or her desexed - it’s that simple; the majority of dogs run away because their biological urges far outweigh any training.
I’ll post more details as I find them, and this is a great subject to cover on the AnimalsTaiwan website.
Seaan