Free dog microchipping a success

Council’s first free microchipping initiative held at the Invercargill Dog Park over the weekend has been a great success. A total of 88 dogs were registered for the first time and about 250 dogs received a free microchip.
 
Council’s Compliance Team Leader Kerry Kawe said staff had received a huge response from the public, and feedback from people was really positive.
 
“The day was awesome; people thought it was a great idea and we got good feedback on what the Animal Services team were doing. SPCA was also on hand on the day and helped our staff with the dogs. Due to its success we will probably look at doing it again but not in the near future. We had dogs as old as 12 years coming to be registered. To get all these new dog registrations on the books over two days is a massive feat.
 

Photo courtesy of Invercargill City Council

“My aim is to bring down the cost of registration and if everyone registers their dog this is achievable. Crucially there is also a safety factor as the microchip helps us to locate owners faster. 90% of dogs caught by Animal Services Officers have broken their collars meaning their registration tags are missing. This is when the microchip becomes an asset to locate their owners,” Mr Kawe said.
 
Animal Services staff worked out of the Council’s Consultation Caravan when inserting the microchips. For those who wished to register their dog for the first time, a special rate of $50 applied with no questions asked (dogs needed to be registered to receive a microchip).