Check the Chip Day 2025: 8 Facts Veterinary Teams Should Know about Pet Microchipping
Each year on August 15, Check the Chip Day reminds veterinary teams and pet owners to verify their pet’s microchip registry information and check for proper chip functioning. AVMA and AAHA established the observance day to raise awareness about the importance of microchipping and keeping registrations up to date as an essential preventive care service.
Check The Chip Day provides veterinary clinics with an opportunity to connect with clients over this vital service. In honor of the day, the Shepherd team is sharing facts and best practices every veterinary professional should know about microchipping.
1. Microchips are the gold standard in permanent identification
Microchipping provides pets with identification that can’t fall off, wear down, or be intentionally removed. An implanted chip provides lifelong identification that cannot be easily altered or misplaced, making it a critical tool for pet safety. Chip implantation is a one-time service, but it offers lifelong protection from loss or separation, placing it in a similar importance category as spay and neuter surgeries.
2. Microchip registrations require updating
A common pitfall of pet microchipping is failure to register or update the contact information associated with a chip. Remind clients to check with their microchip company after a move, change in phone number, or transfer of pets. A chip with outdated information will not provide the same protection as one that is associated with an accurate home phone number or address.
3. Microchipped pets make it home more often
According to 2009 AVMA research, microchipped dogs who got lost were more than twice as likely to be reunited with their owners than those without chips, and microchipped cats were reunited 20 times more often than their unchipped counterparts. A more recent analysis of 17 Human Animal Support Services (HASS) shelters found that pets with microchips had more than a threefold increase in the chances of reunion with their owners.
4. Unregistered chips are a problem
Microchips work only when they’re registered immediately after implantation, and unfortunately, many lack this registration. Shelter experts estimate that 40% of pet microchips are unregistered or registered to the wrong person or group, meaning a significant portion of chipped pets are still not returned to their owners. Registering chips at placement and reminding clients to update their contact info is the best defense against this issue.
5. Software integrations can automate registration
With cloud-based veterinary software like Shepherd, microchipping is seamlessly integrated into workflows. Third-party integrations with PetLink, HomeAgain, and AKC Reunite automatically register microchips when you enter the number in your software, helping to eliminate the risk of missed registrations and enhancing the effectiveness of the chips.
6. Microchips simplify emergency response efforts
Shelters, rescues, veterinary clinics, and animal emergency response teams use microchips to quickly identify pets during large-scale disasters. Chipping pets who live in a disaster-prone area can mean the difference between a same-day reunion and a pet spending days, weeks, or longer in a shelter. Remind pet owners to add “update microchip information” to their storm season preparation checklist.
7. Check the Chip Day is the ideal time to educate clients about pet microchipping
Use August 15 as an opportunity to remind clients to check their pet’s microchip registration information. Use an email newsletter, SMS marketing, or social media campaign to share simple instructions on how to update microchip information or schedule a visit for chip implantation and registration.
8. Microchipping fits easily into everyday care
Make microchips part of your standard recommendations during spay or neuter procedures, puppy and kitten wellness visits, new patient exams, or any time a pet undergoes anesthesia. Even for pets adopted later in life, pet microchipping can lead to better pet health and client satisfaction.
Celebrate Check The Chip Day with Shepherd
Check the Chip Day is an opportunity to enhance pet safety and reinforce client education. Shepherd makes microchipping easy with integrations and automations that automatically register pets, preventing protection gaps.
Contact us to schedule a demo and see our microchip integrations in action, or visit our website to learn how our veterinarian-designed software can elevate your practice’s workflows.
