(This story has been updated with new information on the microchip serial numbers.)
After a national pet microchip and registration company shut down, pet owners are being encouraged to reregister their pet’s microchip.
The Texas-based microchip and registration company Save This Life went inactive, according to Texas tax records. Calls to the phone number listed on its website lead to an out of service message. Pets listed on Save This Life’s pet registry were delisted from the American Animal Hospital Association’s national database.
Save This Life microchip numbers starts with either 991 or 900164, according to the company’s website. Other companies may also have the same prefix. For example, the California-based microchip company 911PetChip also has microchips that start with 991, according to its CEO Jon Dyer.
But “Pet parents don’t need to over worry — chips can be registered with a new company using the same chip,” Brian Lippai, chief of administrative services with the Ocean County Health Department, wrote in an email. The Ocean County Health Department runs both the Northern and Southern Ocean County Animal Facilities.
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A pet microchip, about the size of a large grain of rice, uses passive radio-frequency identification (RFID). When lost pets are brought to shelters, a scanner can get the information on the microchip and allow the shelter workers to identify the pet owner.
Pet owners can check with their veterinarian, many of whom have scanners and records of the pet’s microchip. Lippai wrote that pet owners can also check the shelter or breeder from which their pet was adopted.
“You can also try your local animal control officer in the township you live in,” Lippai wrote.
While Save This Life has gone dark, the microchip would still work. Lippai wrote that microchips are radio-frequency identification transponders that carry a unique ID. That number can be registered in more than one database.
Lippai shared the American Animal Hospital Association’s Universal Pet Microchip Lookout Tool, which has a list of microchip registration companies.
“The OCHD encourages all cat and dog owners to have your pet microchipped or to make sure you renew your agreement with the company you signed up with,” Lippai said. “Additionally, if you change your address or move, to make sure you update your contact information. This includes if you get a pet already chipped from a previous owner — you will have to contact the company and have your information switched over.”
Olivia Liu is a reporter covering transportation, Red Bank and western Monmouth County. She can be reached at oliu@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Save This Life pet microchip company closes. What should pet owners do?
