 
The sad truth. It's a fact; many times despite our best efforts, pets get lost. They could have slipped out a torn screen window, ran out the door when a child left it open, jumped over the fence chasing a squirrel, the meter reader left the fence gate open, your home was robbed or a natural disaster occurred such as an earthquake, tornado or flood and your pet was left behind to fend for itself. Only 2% of cats, 17% of dogs and less than 1% of rabbits are ever reunited with their owners! Let's say Fluffy was found and taken to the local shelter but had no collar or ID tag. Many people mistakenly think there is a minimum 3 day holding period. Sadly, cats and rabbits are normally considered wild animals and can be euthanized as soon as they enter the building! To give your beloved pet a fighting chance at being returned to you, have your cat or rabbit microchipped! All animal control agencies have scanners and use them routinely whenever a pet enters a shelter. Check with your local animal control office and inquire about your animals rights or visit our PET LAW pages for more information. 
What is a microchip? A microchip is a tiny device about the size of a grain of rice that emits radio signals. Each chip has a unique code number that links it to the owners contact information. It is normally injected into the base of the neck or shoulder by a licensed veterinarian, just as a vaccine would be administered. It is virtually painless and requires no batteries. It is only activated when read by a special scanner that nearly every shelter or animal control agency or veterinarian has on hand. Though scanners are fairly expensive, many rescue organizations have them as well and are happy to scan your pet free of charge. 
Registration. Your pets chip will have to be registered (normally a small fee is incurred) to add your contact information and the special code number to a lost pet database. THIS IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT! Many animals are adopted with microchips already implanted but it is up to the new owner to file the registration papers with the microchip company. A microchip without registration is USELESS and only endangers your pet if lost and then found with no one to call home! Your pet could end up re-adopted or worse, euthanized. 
Tag Day - Every Day! Help shelters to help you be reunited with your animal companion by using a combination of collar and ID tag along with a microchip! We are happy to provide any low income, senior or disabled pet owner with an instant ID tag and 2 wallet size emergency cards free of charge. Just contact us! Catnip and Carrots uses only  microchips with PREPAID registration fees. All our cats AND rabbits are microchipped prior to adoption. We have a universal scanner that reads all brands and radio frequencies and we would be happy to scan your pet to verify the correct ID number. | 
