What does a Micro-chip mean to you or your valued family pet in North Carolina? I will tell you now, not much.

Most of us live in a world with rose colored glasses, we think for the most part that the rest of the people around us are living the most honest life they can. One would even think in a North Carolina Animal Shelter that before we give an animal the “ needle of death ” that all attempts have been made to reunite this animal with their previous owner. Sorry to disappoint you but that is just not the case in most North Carolina Animal Shelters or even your local Veterinarians Offices.

Believe it or not but most North Carolina County Animal Shelters, Animal Control Officers and even you own local Veterinarian Office does not own or have on hand a microchip scanner.

We hear all the time, please microchip your family pet in case it’s gets lost, but what good does it due to microchip your family pet if those who are most likely to be in possession of your lost pet ( i.e. a local NC County Animal Shelter) doesn’t even have a microchip scanner on hand, their truck or at the main Shelter?

Until we join hands and voice our concerns to the NC General Assembly this will not change. What can you do today as just an individual citizen? Email, write, fax or even call your local State Legislators and tell them to amend the current law (130A-192) and require all NC Shelters to have no less than 1 microchip scanner on hand at all times and change the wording of “ may scan ” to all employees must be required to scan all animals prior to intake along with a second scan prior to euthanasia.

 

It’s the least we can do to try and bring positive change into our Sheltering System, after all most microchip scanner companies will provide a “ free” scanner for their use. So why do we not have a microchip scanner present at all North Carolina Animal Shelters to help cut down on the useless euthanize rate but to also reunite families with their long lost family pet? In North Carolina we are simply just “ Too Quick to Kill ” and it’s time we stop looking for excuses to kill. Every life has value and it’s not ours too choose without every precaution being made that we have tired our best to reunite an animal with this owner.

 

North Carolina General Statute 130A-192:

 

(a) The Animal Control Officer shall canvass the county to determine if there are any animals not wearing the required rabies vaccination tag. If an animal required to wear a tag is found not wearing one, the Animal Control Officer shall check to see if the owner's identification can be found on the animal. If the animal is wearing an owner identification tag with information enabling the owner of the animal to be contacted, or if the Animal Control Officer otherwise knows who the owner is, the Animal Control Officer shall notify the owner in writing to have the animal vaccinated against rabies and to produce the required rabies vaccination certificate to the Animal Control Officer within three days of the notification. If the animal is not wearing an owner identification tag and the Animal Control Officer does not otherwise know who the owner is, the Animal Control Officer may impound the animal. The duration of the impoundment of these animals shall be established by the county board of commissioners, but the duration shall not be less than 72 hours. During the impoundment period, the Animal Control Officer shall make a reasonable effort to locate the owner of the animal. If the Animal Control Officer has access at no cost or at a reasonable cost to a microchip scanning device, the Animal Control Officer may scan the animal and utilize any information that may be available through a microchip to locate the owner of the animal, if possible. If the animal is not reclaimed by its owner during the impoundment period, the animal shall be disposed of in one of the following manners: returned to the owner; adopted as a pet by a new owner; sold to institutions within this State registered by the United States Department of Agriculture pursuant to the Federal Animal Welfare Act, as amended; or put to death by a procedure approved by rules adopted by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services or, in the absence of such rules, by a procedure approved by the American Veterinary Medical Association, the Humane Society of the United States or of the American Humane Association.

 

How to contact your North Carolina General Assembly Members:

http://www.ncleg.net/representation/WhoRepresentsMe.html