Moore County Kennel Club of North Carolina, Inc.

an American Kennel Club licensed all-breed club

NEWS RELEASE                         

PREPARE YOUR PET FOR THE UNEXPECTED:

MOORE COUNTY KENNEL CLUB OF NORTH CAROLINA, INC. INTRODUCES PET OWNERS TO A UNIQUE AND PERMANENT FORM OF PET I.D.

 õ                         More than 55% of American households share their lives with either a  dog or cat  

õ                             Each year eight to ten million pets are lost, many during an evacuation  or emergency

õ                             AKC-CAR is the largest direct-to-owner database of microchipped pets in the United States

õ                             Over 85,000 lost pets have been reunited with their owners through the AKC-CAR program

 (Pinehurst, NC) – Yesterday and today, a microchip clinic was held at the Pinehurst Harness Track & Polo Field, where a veterinarian identified 46 pets with a HomeAgain® microchip.  Why?  Tags alone can get lost or be removed and microchipping is an easy way to permanently I.D. your pet.

With the tragic events of September 11, 2001, dog clubs are reminding pet owners of actions they can take now to ensure their pet’s safety and security before a disaster strikes.  Amid emergency evacuations and last-minute chaos, beloved pets can accidentally be separated from their families causing emotional stress and heartache for thousands of pet owners.

To help keep this from happening and to increase the chance pets can be reunited with their owners, The Moore County Kennel Club of North Carolina and the American Kennel Club’s Companion Animal Recovery program (AKC-CAR) are providing pet owners with a more permanent way to I.D. their pets.  The joint effort is an initiative to get pets (1) microchipped with a HomeAgain® microchip, (2) enrolled in the AKC-CAR program, and (3) visibly identified with a yellow tag attached to their collars. 

“We want to make sure every pet that is separated from its owner can be reunited with that family,” said Dr. Carmen Battaglia, President and CEO of AKC-CAR. “It is so easy to have one’s pet microchipped and enrolled in the database, it would be heartbreaking to let that be the one thing to keep a pet and its owner apart.”

CHIP YOUR PET – If you missed today’s microchip clinic, you can still take advantage of this proven technology.  Ask your veterinarian to microchip your pet.  The tiny rice-sized I.D. is encoded with a unique and unalterable number and implanted just under the skin in the scruff of the neck.  The process is simple and only takes a few seconds.  The “chip” can later be detected and read by a scanner used by shelters, veterinarians, and other agencies.

ENROLL YOUR PET – Your veterinarian will provide you with an AKC-CAR enrollment form at the time the “chip” is implanted.  You should immediately fill out the form to enroll in AKC-CAR’s 24-hour recovery service.  If you do not take this step, AKC-CAR will have no way of contacting you when your pet is reported found.  In addition, it is very important that you keep the information that is saved in the database current.  If you should later move, get a new telephone number, or change veterinarians, please notify AKC-CAR immediately at 1-800-252-7894.

USE THE YELLOW TAG – Your pet will receive a yellow collar tag with the HomeAgain® microchip, also linking your pet to AKC-CAR.  This special I.D. tag serves as a supplement to the microchip and can speed up the recovery process.  When your pet is found, animal shelters, veterinarians and rescue groups will first look for visible I.D. and call the toll-free number on the tag.  If there is no tag, they will scan your pet for a microchip and alert AKC-CAR who will then contact the owner.  The benefit of keeping the yellow tag on your pet’s collar is that even neighbors can identify the pet and call AKC-CAR’s toll-free hotline any time of day.

Nearly 1.5 million pets are enrolled in AKC-CAR, which is the largest direct-to-owner database of microchipped pets in the United States.  The program maintains the secure database and a trained staff provides recovery services 24-hours-a-day, 365-days-a-year.  To date, more than 85,000 pets nationwide have been recovered and reunited with their owners through AKC-CAR.

 “Our goal is to reunite pets and their owners and eliminate the ‘lost pet’ signs you see in parks, newspapers and communities,” continued Dr. Battaglia.  “To eliminate those signs, we want microchipped pets to keep their yellow tags on at all times.”

About the AKC-CAR Program

The American Kennel Club formed the CAR program as a not-for-profit affiliate in 1995 as a public service to help reunite pet owners with their pets.  For a nominal fee, pet owners voluntarily enroll in the recovery service by providing their contact information, an alternate contact in case they cannot be reached, and a description of their pet with the microchip I.D. number. 

Partnering with Schering-Plough Animal Health (SPAH), CAR works with veterinarians, animal shelters and other organizations to assist in the identification process and to help rid neighborhoods of “Lost Pet” signs.  For more information, visit the AKC-CAR website at www.akccar.org, call 1-800-252-7894 or email found@akc.org.

Editors Note: If you would like to schedule an interview with Dr. Carmen L. Battaglia, President and CEO of the AKC Companion Animal Recovery program, please contact Marta Lewis at AKC-CAR at 919-816-3831 or email aml@akc.org.