Many of the dogs and cats that end up on death row are strays picked up by animal control or brought in by a concerned citizen who found them on streets. Thousands of animals are euthanized every day in shelters for a variety of reasons, including for space and overcrowding. Being unable to find a stray dog or cat’s owner is one of the many reasons they end up on euthanasia lists and a contributing factor to the overcrowding problems shelters and rescues are currently struggling with.

The overwhelming majority of animals show up to a shelter with no owner tags – which could have been lost while they were on the streets, if they had them to begin with – and no microchip. The odds of reuniting a lost pets with their owner is fairly slim when there’s so little information to go off of.

A 2009 study in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association showed that stray dogs were 2.5 times more likely to be returned to their owner if they were microchipped vs not (chipped 52.2% vs non 21.9%) and stray cats were a whopping 21.5 times more likely to be returned to their owner if they were microchipped (chipped 38.5% vs non 1.8%).

Linda Lord, the lead author of the study, says, on average, only 1.8% of all stray dogs and cats had microchips. While good statistics are hard to come by, veterinary experts estimate microchips are used between 5 and 8 percent of animals in the US.

While rescuing animals from euthanasia is our mission, we want to help make sure they don’t end up there to begin with. In the Central Iowa area, the costs to microchip your pet can be over $100 for the vet visit and microchip. On top of that, most microchip companies require annual renewal and registration, amounting to another $20+ per year. That adds up quickly, especially those adopting young puppies or kittens!

With many having to tighten their belts and prioritize their spending, we want to remove as many barriers as we can to make sure everyone has the chance to be reunited with their pets. To ensure everyone has the opportunity to have their pet microchipped, we will microchip your cat or dog for $0.00! Free will donations are appreciated but not required.