Millions of pets are lost every year. Many of them are surrendered to animal welfare organizations, but only few of them (an estimated 14% for dogs; 4% for cats) are ever reunited with their owners. The major reason for the failure to get them back home is the inability to identify the pets.

More and more pet owners are turning to microchips to solve the problem. Micro-chipping is a very simple process, no more difficult or invasive than giving the pet an injection. It’s no bigger than a grain of rice, and is implanted in the fleshy area near the shoulder blades. Like tags on cattle, the microchip identifies the pet so the correct owner is known. The process costs about $20.

After an animal is implanted with the microchip, they get a collar tag bearing their registration number and phone number. Persons who find the pets can call the phone number and give the registration number to learn the identity of the registered owner. Or, they can bring the pet to a veterinarian or animal shelter, and they take care of scanning for microchips to find out who the owner is and arranging for a reunion of the pet and its owner.

But there have been recent reports that show microchips or RFID implants can cause malignant tumors.

The studies, conducted on mice, were done in France and German over a 9-year period. The French study found that 4% of over 1,200 mice developed tumors due to micro-chip implants under their skin; the German study detected cancers in 1% of over 4,200 mice. Another study published in 1998 showed that of 177 mice studied, about 10% (17) got cancer.

The FDA insists that in their evaluation, microchips are safe for use in animals. Some other veterinarians also stand by the safety record of RFID implants that have been used in their clinics. In one instance, an animal hospital said that their clinic has already used 10 million implants and only 4 dogs developed cancer (although it was not certain whether the cancers were caused by the implants).

To some others, the peace of mind and benefits brought by microchips outweighs the risks.

Anybody who has ever lost a pet surely knows the personal heartache, and the anxiety caused in the pet. Microchips are a good way of ensuring that if ever they lose their way, the pets have a chance to be returned safely.