Finding Your Lost Animal – Microchip for Pets Lookup Registry

A microchip for pets

Passing on a little information about a universal lookup tool at Pet Microchip Lookup sponsored by the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA).

What the Universal Lookup Tool Is and Is Not

The AAHA Universal Pet Microchip Lookup Tool is not a  registry—it is an internet-based application to assist in the identification of those registries on which a particular chip is registered, or otherwise provide the chip’s manufacturer. The tool works by searching the databases of participating companies. As you can see, the list is lengthy. There can be some confusion around what microchip for pets your dog or cat has. It will not return pet owner information contained in the registries’ databases, instead it will identify which registries should be contacted when a lost pet is scanned and a chip number is identified.)

If you do not have access to the chip number, then the best place to start is the veterinarian where your pet received the chip. They will know what company chip they used and they will most likely have a record of that number.

The American Animal Hospital Association does not maintain a database of microchip for pets of its own. To register or update contact information for a microchip, pet owners should contact their pet recovery service. AAHA is unable to assist pet owners with their microchip registration and/or problems.

You might not be aware that there are many companies providing microchips.

Participating Microchipping and Pet Recovery Services on PetMicroChipLookup.org

Currently, these companies are incorporated into the tool:

  • 24PetWatch Pet Protection Services
  • 911PetChip & Free Pet Chip Registry
  • ACA MARRS
  • AKC Reunite
  • American Association of Pet Parents
  • AniCare Systems
  • aZoo.me Identification
  • BC Pet Registry
  • BeKind PetFind
  • BuddyID™
  • EIDAP
  • Emili
  • Fi
  • Findpet – free pet registry
  • Found Animals
  • Furreka
  • Global Pet Security
  • HomeAgain
  • Homeward Bound Pet
  • Identrac Inc.
  • Insight Microchips
  • International Pet Registry/International Equine Registry
  • Lost My Pet
  • Microchip I.D. Solutions
  • Microchip4Solutions Inc.
  • Mooka Pet ID
  • Nanochip ID Inc.
  • National Animal Identification Center
  • Peeva
  • PetKey
  • PetLink
  • Pets Home Today
  • Petstablished
  • Save This Life
  • SmartTag
  • uPet

If your pet is lost and discovered by a finder, then the lost animal can be scanned for the chip and it can be entered into this large database search to see with which company it was registered. The owner information is not available – the home registry of the microchip must be contacted so that that home registry can notify the pet owner. It may seem a drawn out process, but in this age of protecting information privacy, it does not put unnecessary information onto the internet.

akc microchip scanner

Example of a microchip scanner

Microchip for pets are not a tracking device, just a unique ID number. To read the device, it is “turned on” for a few seconds at a time by a handheld scanner that is passed over the implant area. Only the microchip ID number appears when the microchip is scanned, and then the registry can be searched to get your enrollment information linked to the ID number.

Veterinarians and shelters have these scanners and use them to help lost pets all of the time.

Veterinarians also check the microchip for pets during annual wellness exams to make sure all is working properly and secondly to start a conversation about whether or not your information is up to date on your pet’s microchip enrollment record.

If you are traveling outside of the United States with your pet, a microchip is required.

The system works! Pet Recovery Services at HomeAgain reunites more than 10,000 lost pets with their families each month and has brought more than two million lost pets home (and growing!).

Check our related articles for an infographic that has some interesting statistics about the lost and the found pets.

If you are interested in getting a microchip for pets, we can do that for you. Give FCVC a call at 970-587-5140.

Related articles that may interest you – Why Microchip Your Pet? and After the microchip & Pet GPS trackers

From: AAHA and PetMicrochipLookup.org