Owner claimouts and Microchip owner information

Posted: Jan 26, 2022

Imagine this scenario: a stray dog comes into PHS, we scan it for a microchip and find one. We look up the information on the microchip, and get the owner information. Attempt to contact the owner with no success (number not in service, no answer, and no voicemail, etc.). Another person comes in, looking for their dog, wanting to claim it out, however they are not the registered owner of the dog per the microchip. Without speaking to the registered owner and confirming they have rehomed the dog, we cannot legally claim the dog out to anyone else. 
This is why it is very important, especially for animals that are microchipped, to get owner information updated when they are rehomed. This is a relatively easy process, either through your pet’s microchip company or through PHS if you had your pet microchipped through us.
Our hope is that owners would be understanding that we take these extra steps to confirm ownership before handing an animal over to someone else.