Keep your Dog
Our family just adopted a new dog, "Max". The children are already very attached to him. The trouble is, he is very friendly and will approach and play with anybody. What is the best way to identify him if he gets lost?
Congratulations on your new pet! It sounds like you have a happy puppy! First of all, it would be best to prevent him from just "running off to play" with the neighbors. Sometimes the dog may want to run over to play with the neighbor or another animal. While doing so, he could get hit by a car. Max should stay in the house or in a fenced-in yard when not directly supervised. When outside, he should be on a leash so that he can't suddenly run off if something or somebody catches his eye. Invisible fencing is also an option for people who don't want a traditional fence in their yard. To identify Max, I would recommend he always wear a collar with his address and phone number marked on it or on a tag attached to the collar. I would also recommend having Max microchipped as a form of permanent identification if he should lose or slip out of his collar. If Max should happen to get lost or escape, most animal shelters have microchip scanners to check all animals that are picked up or brought in. Microchip identification for your pet involves having your veterinarian insert a small chip (about the size of a grain of rice) under the skin of the shoulder blade. This is a very simple, relatively painless procedure. The chip is inserted under the skin through a syringe in the same manner as a vaccine (although the needle is slightly larger). All microchips are inserted over the shoulder blades of pets so that scanning for chips can be done consistently no matter where in the country you are. The microchip contains a specific code that is unique to each pet. This code is registered with the microchip manufacturer by the owner for a small fee after the chip is inserted. This code number is then kept in a 24 hour central computer database so that if a pet is found, the company can be contacted and the pet reunited with the owner. The microchips are sterile and inert so they will cause no harm to the pet; they can even be used in puppies or kittens/cats. The chips will also last for the life of the pet.
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