New Zealand Dog News

Reviewing the dog news in New Zealand with editors comments. Someone needs to keep reviewing how our dogs are doing in society.

June 21, 2006

Dogs can feel insertion of microchips: breeder

by LISA ZWARTS

Claims that microchipping of dogs is completely painless and problem free are not entirely true according to Makikihi dog breeder Averil Ross.

With the dog microchipping law coming into force in two weeks Mrs Ross was unhappy she will have to microchip more of her dogs. Mrs Ross's border collie, Quest, was microchipped when he was three months old before he was imported from Australia.

Within three months the microchip had moved from the back of his neck to the middle of his rib cage-a distance of about 30cm.

Quest was microchipped as a means of identification after he was DNA tested. The testing was necessary to check if the dogs had any genetic problems, Mrs Ross said, but she would not have her dogs microchipped if she did not have too.

Mrs Ross believes the microchip possibly caused Quest pain. "Some days he is fine and some days he is not." Mrs Ross had a bichon frise puppy microchipped at the request of its new owner recently. "When the chip was inserted it came back out and when the vet inserted the second chip the puppy just screamed. It was awful."

Veterinary surgeon Katrina Crowe said she had not seen any negative effects of microchips in dogs but it was not uncommon for microchips to move.

"The chips are inserted in the subcutaneous layer of the skin, the fatty layer. "This layer is mobile and moves with the dog. "Once the body forms a capsule of scar tissue around the chip it usually stops travelling."

The newer microchips had devices to stop them from travelling, she said.

If microchips are not inserted correctly, they could cause problems, especially if they were inserted in more reactive tissue-like muscle, she said.

"It is pretty hard to insert a chip incorrectly, though." But they do!

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