From the letters page of Dog World (22nd February 2013)
I am surprised at the widespread blanket acceptance of the recent compulsory microchipping announcement. It seems everyone from the Kennel Club to the Blue Cross and obviously the Veterinary Association welcomes the proposals with open arms. I found it strange that such a monumental move didn’t bring about any dissenting voices. Maybe, I thought, this was one of those rare cases where everyone was ‘singing from the same hymn sheet’ but, with a bit of research, I discovered this wasn’t the case.
A quick trawl through the internet showed that a growing number of pet owners – genuine, loving pet owners – were expressing serious misgivings about microchipping their pets and it seemed with good reason.
Microchip implants are marketed as a safe and permanent form of identification and are being ‘pushed’ worldwide. In fact, one pharmaceutical giant boasts that scientific studies prove that microchip implants are “totally painless and perfectly tolerated by the animal”. It also goes on to state “microchips are never rejected by the body”.
However, other scientific tests recorded by the British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) seemed to disagree with these findings. Tests on mice and rats showed some animals (ranging from 1% to 10%) developed “aggressive and lethal microchip-induced cancerous growths”.
Now, one could say that rats and mice are physiologically different from dogs and I suppose that is indeed true, but, there have also been several cases of dogs (and cats) developing cancers and tumours at the site of implant. The manufacturers state that such a risk is “negligible” but, what if the dog that developed such conditions was yours?
Given that there are around two million dogs needing microchips in England, even taking the lower range of just 1% (from some tests) of microchipped dogs developing tumours/cancer could mean at least 20,000 dogs will be afflicted. How strange then that EFRA just last week called for further sanctions against dog breeders who they said are causing dogs to be bred with ill health yet they remain strangely silent on the potential problems caused by microchipping? Is government-sanctioned ill health and disease acceptable?
Another point which is often denied or dismissed is the movement of these chips. Some say “it is impossible” but chips have been found to migrate. In some cases, they have been found at the base of dogs’ tails and in their rear legs!
I personally do not like the thought of a foreign object being inserted into my dogs and I’m also confused by the rhetoric of microchipping being the panacea to all of dogdom’s ills. Sadly there is an element in our society that will never toe the line. These people won’t comply to having their dogs chipped and it will not make the slightest bit of difference to those postal and health workers getting attacked and it certainly won’t change the conditions these neglected animals are kept in. Most of the strays found wandering the streets aren’t beloved lost pets; they have been dumped intentionally and, now, when this law is brought in, I predict that abuse and neglect cases will indeed soar. If an animal isn’t chipped, will its owner seek veterinary assistance when it falls ill or will he fear prosecution? Those animals that are now dumped will probably be killed and discarded to avoid detection.
I can’t see microchipping changing any of these problems. In fact, I can see it opening up a vile can of worms. Once again, it will be the majority of law-abiding, true dog lovers who will obediently file to their vets to have their precious charges chipped.
However, before you do so, please do your research – arm yourself with knowledge and ask questions. Assurances from vets do not fill me with confidence considering they are still giving out mixed messages over annual vaccinations! If your dog does have a bad reaction to the microchipping process or if the chip moves, let others know about it. One good thing about the modern age is the speed at which we can share information and experiences.
And, to those who say, “well, at least it’s being offered for free”, I’d reply with, “nothing is free in this world”. Big brother is indeed watching all of us and, once everyone’s details are stored on file, wouldn’t that be a rather good precursor to bringing back the Dog Licence?
UPDATE April 2016: Since this article has been written, over 14,000 people have visited the site which highlights the concern felt by many. Catchup with my latest post on the subject HERE.
Also, read more about microchipping at ChipMeNot UK: http://www.chipmenot.org.uk/default.asp
Great article and very informative. Definitely makes me think twice about micro-chipping. We never get to hear about the negatives of micro-chipping only how important it is to micro-chip our dog. Glad this was questioned and very impressed by the research as supplied by Lee.
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Good day! Do you use Twitter? I’d like to follow you if that would be ok. I’m definitely enjoying your blog and look forward
to new updates.
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What happened to freedom of choice!!! My friend runs a dog rescue and she said when she scans the dogs loads of the dogs micro-chips have moved, some to the middle of the chest, to their elbows and down their shoulders. The bodies defences attacks the micro-chip as it is a foreign body, this in turn can cause a tumour to form because the bodies defences stick to the chip.
Many dogs ID is still in the breeders name as the owner has not filled the ID in or given a false address to the breeder or the breeder has lost or not kept the details of the owner, only dogs that are in dog rescues will be scanned, dogs that are stolen will never be scanned.
They say they are micro-chiping because it costing the government 57 million for strays, well how much will it cost to pay loads of enforcement officers to enforce micro-chipping. I think it will open a costly can or worms. People will also sue the government, if these chips move and also cause tumours to their pets.
If a owner when located by the ID chip does not want the dog back, what does the dog rescue do then, find it a new home for the dog in question, so how does that save money in those circumstances.
If a dog is stolen and is micro-chipped the dog can be scanned and the micro-chip can be removed by some unscuptulous people. Or never have it scanned.
Most dogs in rescues are dogs that have been dumped, so how will a micro-chip help those dogs, if their owners do not want them back, costs will still be incured by the rescue.
People should have a choice and not be forced into micro-chipping their dogs if they do not want it done. Ask yourself would you like it done to you? maybe when our turn comes to be micro-chipped and I believe it will in time, would you like a choice or not? Search ‘micro-chipping humans’ and read up, from what I have read they have already started micro-chipping humans in the hand between the thumb and first finger.
No thanks my dogs are not a tin of beans and neither am I thanks is my reply to micro-chipping!!!!!
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Hi i agree with you Joanne, its now 2016, and the gov are implementing a law from April that every dog has to to be chipped by april this year.. and I am astounded that people are just complying.. our greyhound is 11, and has an ear tatoo a collar with phone number which is her ID… she is never let off the lead, a proper house dog.. Ive done my research and we all agree ‘ not to chip’.. even had a letter from the vet stating chipping is compulsosry… Do these people ever do research?.. I stopped the vaccinations, as she had them all her life when in kennels as a racer.. she was ill when we adopted her, looked after her and made her what she is today, a happy healthy dog.. she does not need more vaccinations.. or chipping.. I hope many more owners come out and say.. ‘ I am not complying’.. Yes, eye scanning and body scanning at airports… next will be chipping everybody – We should have control of our own body and our animals…
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Its about money! Someone inside government is getting a pay off per chip! Plus they get your information to sell in the future.
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You can read about how microchips became mandated in the UK and just what a fraud has been perpetrated on the people there and their pets, on my website. It was the Betrayal of Dogs Trust https://chipmenot.info/pet-microchip-information/#betrayat
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Sorry, misspelling in link https://chipmenot.info/pet-microchip-information/#betrayal
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can micro chips cause your dog to get SEL its an auto immune disease? my dog died last year in november at age 8 from SEL, he had a micro chip inserted from age 3?
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It can also be over vaccinations… check out my page:
Don’t over vaccinate your dog! https://www.facebook.com/DRRobbPTP/videos/1924756617553426/
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Microchips are known to raise inflammatory markers. People who monitor them in dogs they enter competitions with say the markers go up high initially, then drop back down as the chip encapsulates, but never return to baseline. They cause pets pain, illness and exploitation. Find out more https://chipmenot.info
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I had a microchipped dog who got to the age of 17, and might have lived even longer had I not gone along with ‘expert opinion’ and had him chipped as a pup. Rather than die of natural causes I had to make the terrible decision of ending his life as he was starting to have fits as a result of a brain tumour.
I’m commenting here because I’ve just heard about the plans to make chipping compulsory. When I did it it was because the Battersea Dogs’ Home where he came from recommended it. In all the time he was around, *never once* did that chip get scanned for information. He did sometimes go walkabout, and always came back to me by means of people phoning the phone number on his collar.
Why don’t they just make it compulsory for all dogs to have a valid telephone number on display? Far less invasive.
Pets are like members of the family – are members of the family! Imagine microchipping your children / spouse!
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Your “evidence” is soundly refuted by the British Small Animal Veterinary Association. In fact, their research found adverse impacts in two of 3.7 million implants. Of course, you only see what you want so see. The mice you offer as proof are bred to be predisposed to tumors.
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Your statistics are incorrect. The early voluntary data showed 391 adverse events out of 3.7 million. The more recent mandatory reporting for the mandatory implant of 8.5 million dogs in the UK shows 5,169 total and 4,390 dogs as of the end of 2018, with 95% of the dog population implanted. This corresponds to a rate of approximately 1 in 1,000 adverse events including chip failure, migration, abnormal mass and tumor formation, infection, rejection and death. https://chipmenot.info/pet-microchip-information/#background
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Thank you for making more information,regarding the real and drastic ill effects of micro chipping pets,available to the public. Sarah,life-long responsible pet owner.
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My God I’m so nervous reading all of these comments I went just yesterday to have my toy poodle microchipped and he is 8years old. My mother thought it would be helpful since he has been “lost” several times and a few of those time he was actually taken to a nearby vet. After getting his chip yesterday when we returned home he seemed extremely tired so I figured it was from standing in line outside for 2 hours without water. Well he remained in that “tired/sleepy” stage the whole day….the only reason i wouldn’t say he seemed lethargic is because he didn’t seem weakend and had all of his energy when it was time to go walking or beg for food. Well last night around 1 am he started throwing up which he doesn’t throw up often and he vomitted 3 times. I was so worried so I called our vet who said he may just be tired or overwhelmed from the day’s activities so to give him plants of fluids and not food for about 8 hours. Smh I’m so scared and definitely wish I had done deeper research only God knows what I would do if I lost my KoKo. I will be calling PetShotz (where he got the chip at) and see what side effects are normal or not normal. If this continues today I will be taking him to the Vet ASAP. If there anyway to have it removed? Thank You all for the great info!
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I am pretty angry at the moment, We had our pet dog at the vet recently and the vet discovered that the micro chip was not working or had moved. She suggested that we redo. Not realising that there are issues over this procedure we went along with it. This was roughly 2 months ago. The problem now is we have a dog who is crying out in pain and can be quite distressed. His mood has changed to being withdrawn. I believe that there is a problem with the position of the chip and that it is adversely affecting his health. I do not believe now that it is correct to be having animals microchipped when there is a clear risk of health problems. Would we do this to humans…..lets do it to these stupid politicians who clearly do not give a sh..t. This need looked at after all we are meant to not inflict harm on animals ! Yet the law will be forcing us to do so.
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I have been working with animals for 27 years, microchips are common.I can’t say I’ve ever heard of any problems connecting the two.
Whith the rise of animals being stolen and returned because of the chip, your comments are a tad concerning.
There are risks walking down the road with your dog, slip his collar and getting hit by a truck, should we stop walking our dogs?
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I had my beautiful dog microchipped on Wednesday,Thursday he was lethargic but appitite ok, by Thursday evening he had lost all use of his limbs & was totally imobile & had to be carried everywhere. First thing Friday we were back at the vets asking what had gone wrong & they said they would keep him in for observation. On Saturday they also said they X rayed his neck & point of entry of chip & it was fine but they felt my dog had a brain tumour & should be put to sleep! I didn’t have the money to afford to get him an MRI scan so had to trust the vets.
I truly believe the chip was inserted badly into a place that caused paralysis & the so called tumour was one big cover up.
I loved my dog so much I feel like I’ve killed him.
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The people who killed your dog are the ones promoting these harmful products. They lie about the safety and efficacy of their products. There are massive propaganda campaigns to convince people to harm their pets. It is all about data collection, public wealth extraction and the normalization of their invasive, harmful, disgusting technology. There is so much money behind this, it is not about the pets, they are going after the human market. But there is already a plethora of information that the technology is a FAIL. Tell people what you know and keep talking until they listen. Find out more chipmenot.info
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No free democratic government should enforce any legislation on its citizens and deprive them of freedom of choice. While they are making a lot of money by using fear as an incentive to do so. Where does this path lead us in the future? Microchipping human beings to prevent crimes such as kidnapping ect?
Where was our public vote on this law being passed?
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I had my dog chipped and within an hour and half she was totally paralysed, being sick, breathing really fast it was awful to see. In less than five hours she lost her life.. The vet told me she had a heart problem which I didn’t have a clue about and her heart just gave up, just wondering has anyone else experienced this with their pet
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So sorry for your loss. There is such an event reported in the UK Adverse events. A woman took a healthy dog to be microchipped under mandate and he died on the way home within an hour. I have the adverse event summaries posted at https://chipmenot.info/pet-microchip-information/#background
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Are dog owners in the UK aware that the new law has yet to be “rubber stamped”? There is currently a 5 YEAR monitoring period been undertaken. All chip problems N|EED to be reported , either by your vet, or they can in fact be reported by the owner. HERE IS THE LINK TO THE FORM FOR REPORTING CHIP ISSUES. https://www.vmd.defra.gov.uk/microchipeventreporting/
Please pass this around, tell everyone you know, Especially those who have got a puppy chipped under the new rules. UK dog owners need to report issues such as chip migration, chip failure and health problems which their vet links to chip insertion, such as tumors or cancer at the insertion or migration site. If as the dog owners in the UK we dont give this feedback then in 2011 they will simply presume no issues have been raised, the law is rubber stamped and we are stuck with it! Don’t let this happen by default, simply because UK dog owners are not aware to report issues their dogs have.
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I have gotten the Adverse Event reports from Defra and posted them on my website at https://chipmenot.info They look to be about 10X the original estimates. There is also an elevation in the shelter death at The Dogs Trust, who were major promoters of the mandate.
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Hi there,
I have only heard of very few cases in which this situation has happened. If your dog has a microchip put in by a professional vet there shouldn’t be a problem. I’ve read articles on the subject that say that it is absolutely harmless.
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My Westie had a microchip inserted by a professional vet and it moved and a tumour formed. Luckily it was benign, but still, it shouldn’t have happened
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The people who say pet microchips are harmless are either ignorant or liars. Pet microchips cause them pain, illness and exploitation. You can find out more at https://chipmenot.info
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Can the chips be taken out removed
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My dogs were all microchipped before I got them and I can assure you they do move I have smooth coat breeds with no undercoat and you can feel the different areas the chips move too. I would never put anything into my dogs bodies ever.
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Almost nine years ago, I got my best friend and began researching on micro-chipping as I heard it was the thing to do. I’m so glad I did my research as I found the cons outweighed the pros. My dog is not micro-chipped, nor will he ever be. I saw a post on Facebook about a lost dog and so many said to get the dog micro-chipped, I’m not an argumentative person, but I did throw it out there that those people should do their homework as there are negative side effects. Thank you for this article as it reaffirmed what I was talking about.
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Hello my name Katie . This micro chip had taken the life of my darling dog. Now with my girl dog. Was taken under false accusations. Keeped in council pound out side these cold condition. No one is helping me. No one hearing my cry
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Katie… please, know we all feel for you & know… that anyone reading your note… will save their pet from suffering from this micro-chipping & I want to thank you… I just saw this posting! Please, let’s be a spoke person for your dog! you can open your own page on Facebook about micro-chipping!! Let’s pass the law for no more micro-chipping!! Also, everyone… check my page on over vaccination! that is a problem too: Don’t over vaccinate your dog!
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God gave our pets a unique identifier. Yes, their loving noses. Each dog and cat has a nose print as unique as our fingerprints. Todays technology of fingerprint and facial recognition systems could surely be used to track and identify our pets. You can register you pets face for free. The Petco Foundation sponsors https://findingrover.com . There is another at Pip My Pet http://www.petrecognition.com/
So why are they being injected with harmful electronic devices, imbedded in their tissues? Why are people being forced to do this to their pets? Why are we being told these devices are safe, do not hurt out pets or have benefits that exceed the harm?
Ask the $10 Billion medical microchip industry why they promote lies and persist with false advertising to get pet owners to go along. Here are some of the lies:
Big Lie # 1 – A microchip is the size of a grain of rice. Some will say approximately and they will give you a picture, where that is clearly not true. There is a common graphic showing one to be 11.5 mm, but other specifications will give them as 13 mm. Half an inch is 12.7 mm.
Big Lie #2 – A microchip is injected subcutaneously (beneath the skin) and your pet feels little pain. Maybe that was true at one time, but the application was failing due to migration, so the technique was developed for injecting them into the subcutaneous tissues. Multiply that microchip by 20X and implant that in your flesh between YOUR shoulder blades and tell me how good THAT is. Our pets are literally stabbed in the back. Sticking this in a small animal is cruel.
Big Lie #3 – Microchips are passive devices that only activate by a scanner. Yes a scanner will activate them and so will a lot of other electromagnetic waves. So just how much EMF does your pet get zinged with, here? The chip sends a signal of a specific frequency, but the antenna is not a discriminating receiver. Better do an EMF survey of your home and keep your pet away.
Big Lie #4 – The risk of Microchips causing cancer is small. The reporting on tumors is deceptive because all they count are the tumors that grow on the microchips. They need to compare cancer rates in chipped and free animals. What, no data? Or does it just not fit the big money narrative?
Most horrible, because the most frequently reported adverse condition reported, that they cannot dismiss is migration of the chip, they have developed polymer chips that “bond” with your pets connective tissue. And here, I thought it was me that my pet was supposed to bond with. These chips are now approved for animals, but not humans. So your pet is their test subject for human use.
The application of these devices should be very limited and not normalized for general application. The multinational corporations promoting this are doing animal studies on our pets to build a case to force them on us. They are disengaged freaks and sociopaths. Say no to microchips for pets.
Get more facts: http://www.chipmenot.org.uk/articles/microchipping_lies_legislation_and_lawsuits.html
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Plastic Pet Microchip Health Alert
With effectively no regulations to protect our pets, would pet microchip manufacturers distribute risky, unconventional products to implant in pets? Well, actually they have done just that.
Pet microchips are conventionally sealed in glass and considered inert. However, migration problems were an obstacle to their successful use for tracking systems. So they introduced partial plastic coatings and implanted them more aggressively into the subcutaneous tissue under the guise of “anti-migration technology”. The increased risk to our pets was barely noticed. Now there is a chip that is entirely plastic. Take a look at Datamars Plastic Microchip that they appear to have started distributing about 4 years ago: https://www.pet.datamars.com/portfolio-items/t-sl-slim-polymer-microchip-usa/?portfolioCats=63
Are there safe bio-polymers? Ask how safe. Can manufacturers sell pet microchips that are made from plastic that is a health risk? Absolutely.
Plastics are generally polymers, produced from a carbon based (organic) monomer using a catalyst. The catalyst can be organic molecule such as a peroxide, or it can be organometallic containing such things as titanium, vanadium and chromium that stay residual in the product. The polymer can have a broad distribution of molecular weights, all the way down to molecules that are extractable. Polymers also can contain additives for color, as stabilizers or to enhance other properties. After production, the polymer can change over time. Additives, extractables and catalyst residuals can migrate to the surface, changing the composition of the plastic as it gives off these chemicals.
Pets having microchips with transponders starting 981 (Datamars) implanted since around 2014 may have plastic microchips. Datamars (PetLink) may have distributed these plastic microchips through Banfield, Microfindr, Mayer resQ, Found Animals or Crystal Tag.
Pets with these microchips should be monitored for symptoms of inflammatory disease. Adverse event reports can be made to the FDA Veterinary and can be made by pet owners as well as veterinarians. Details on how to, here: https://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/SafetyHealth/ReportaProblem/ucm055305.htm
Form here: https://www.fda.gov/downloads/AboutFDA/ReportsManualsForms/Forms/AnimalDrugForms/UCM048817.pdf
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After adopting a cat that had been spayed and implanted with a plastic microchip at the age of 15 weeks (yes she has problems from it), I found out more and posted some of the latest information about pet microchips at https://chipmenot.info
I would appreciate it if you would promote this website.
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Thank you Rachel for your comment.
I’ve been shocked by the amount of people who have contacted me with stories of these chips migrating to the tail and legs, a number of cat’s also seem to suffer terrible reactions to these things.
We have also been told that ‘the cancers the tested lab rats/mice suffered from’ (when these things were being tested) ‘shouldnt bother us…as rats and mice are totally different to dogs and cats’. They are also completely different to humans but that doesnt stop them being exploited in human drug trials. If they are so vastly different why are they used?
Of course this side of the story isnt presented and we are now told that ‘migration’ isnt a bad thing and does no harm. I do wonder if the increase in ‘cancers’ has been caused by these foreign bodies.
I suppose we wont ever know, too much money has been invested in this procedure.
I’ve always pushed to one side the conspiracy theorists who say that having our pets chipped will accustom us to accept being chipped. I thought, what a ridiculous thing to spout…but now I learn that over in the States, access to ‘Obama care’ rests on citizens being ‘identified’.
Worrying times ahead?
The only thing we can do is ‘spread the word’ and awaken people…
All the best to you.
Lee
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We can do more we can report these issues here https://www.vmd.defra.gov.uk/microchipeventreporting/
Take part in the 5 year monitoring of the new chip law and get the data to where it needs to be.
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