A thankful owner is warning other cat owners of the importance of microchips after she was reunited with her missing feline friend Dragon after a long three months – all thanks to his microchip.
The one-week countdown is officially on for cat owners in England to get their cats microchipped before the new law comes into force.
By 10 June 2024, owners found without their cat microchipped will have just 21 days to have one implanted. After the 21 days, owners may then face a fine of up to £500.
PDSA Vet Lynne James warned: “This is the final reminder for cat owners to get their feline friends microchipped. Not only will it soon become law, so it’s no longer down to personal preference, we have always highly recommended all cats are microchipped as soon as they are old enough.
“Just as much as we don’t want to end up with a lost or stray cat, our much-loved pets definitely won’t want to lose us either! Having a microchip, that’s kept up to date and registered on a compliant database, is the best precautionary method all cat owners should take.”
Dragon’s story is the purr-fect reminder of why a simple microchip can save the day!
After three long months of being apart, PDSA vets were able to reunite Dragon with his loving owner, Elizabeth Vasilopoulou, and it was only possible because of his microchip.
Dragon, a one-year-old cat, went missing from his home in March 2022, turning Elizabeth’s world upside down. She said: “Every night we were going out to look for him, calling him and shaking his treats! We had his favourite toy on hand and his carrier with his towel under the table with food inside. But we had no luck. It was awful."
Until one day, Elizabeth received a phone call from the team at New Cross PDSA Pet Hospital, 20 miles away from their home! She was told that Dragon had found by a group of girls, who had been feeding him for a month in their garden. They weren't sure if he was local or not, and so they decided to take him to the vets.
The team at PDSA had located Dragon's microchip details and called Elizabeth immediately. She quickly took his carrier and rushed to go and fetch him and they were finally reunited after exactly three months apart!
Elizabeth said: “We have no idea what happened to him, and we will never know but we are very grateful to have him back.”
Elizabeth explained that when Dragon returned home, he slept for three days straight and just woke up at feeding time but he is back to his original self, happy and adventurous and just celebrated his third birthday - making Elizabeth's life happier again.
Lynne adds: “This is also a good time for owners to check their chips, for all cats already with a microchip, make sure you’ve checked your details are all correct, and check the chip is successfully registered, as an unregistered chip is no use to a lost cat.”
The upcoming PDSA Animal Wellbeing Report revealed the top reasons owners shared why their cats were not microchipped were:
- 21% say it’s because their cat doesn’t go outside
- 17% say it’s because their cat is unlikely to stray
- 16% say it’s not necessary
For more information about cat microchipping, please visit: pdsa.org.uk/microchipping-cats
