Microchipping

cat microchipping
Microchipping is not a legal requirement for cats in Ireland. However, at Just Cats we can not recommend this enough. 
1 in 3 cats will get lost. Without ID 90% won’t return home. A collar or ID tag can go missing or fall off, but a microchip will never fall out. Don’t lose your best friend!

How does microchipping work?

Microchipping is the simplest, least invasive, and most effective method of reuniting cats with their owners if they go missing. If you can imagine what a vaccine looks like? Well, a microchipping tool looks very similar except it has a little chip inside the needle (about the size of a grain of rice) and the needle is a little bigger. The needle is inserted under the skin between your cats’ shoulder blades and the chip is expelled. This chip has its own unique number that is linked to a database containing the owners contact details such as address, name, and telephone number. Owners will get a registration form to go home with as well as your cats new unique microchip number. It is so important that owners register their details on the database as soon as they can. We will show you exactly how to do this on the day of your cats microchipping. 

If your cat goes missing and is handed in to a veterinary practice anywhere in Ireland, the first thing they will do is use what is called a microchip scanner to see if there is a chip. If there is, their unique number will come up and the screen. Once we enter that number into the database all of their owners’ details will come up on the screen. Owners will then be contacted and their little one will be reunited with them safely. 

We have reunited many cats with their owners because they are microchipped so we cannot recommend it enough.

When should I get my cat microchipped?

We strongly advise microchipping at the time of neutering as the needle is big and this way, your cat will not feel a thing. However, if your cat is already neutered and not microchipped and this is something you are considering that is completely fine. We can do this during a consultation visit our nurses, it only lasts a second and lots of treats, love and cuddles will definitely detract form any potential discomfort.