It is not a happy thought that your pet may go missing some day and it is easy to push the whole issue aside in favour of making a cup of tea.  The thing is, when it happens, most of us are ill prepared and a little frozen with panic.

Should this terrible possibility befall you, you would want a practical and to the point guide of what to do – well, look no further!

A little preparation goes a long way – the first few steps are all about having things in place that will help when you need to find your pet

1. Be photo ready

Always make sure you have a current photograph of your pet from which it could be identified.  It is important to have a good close-up showing your darling’s face, but that is not the only photo that will help.  If your pet has specific markings, you would want a photo of that heart shaped spot above it’s tail too.

2. Have your pet microchipped

Microchipping your pet is easy, quick, painless and affordable.

A microchip may just be the thing that reunites you with your pet.  When vets and shelters receive a hurt or lost animal, they check for a microchip.  As soon as a chip is read by the chip reader, you will get an immediate sms to alert you to the fact that your pet has been scanned.  This process does not even rely on any admin or contact action from the vet or shelter.

Microchip providers are running with the times too – there is an app from which you can easily update your own contact particulars or change ownership details.

Scroll to the end of this blog for a helpful factsheet on Identipet – the microchip we use.

Microchipping is such an easy way to love and protect your pet –  SECURE YOUR MICROCHIP APPOINTMENT RIGHT NOW before it gets pushed down to the bottom of your to do list!

Buy your microchip package and we will contact you to set up an appointment – chipping your pet only takes a few minutes and we register your pet on the Identipet database for you.

3. Give your pet a collar with an updated tag

Not everyone who finds your pet has a microchip reader.  A collar carries identification for your animal, but it does more than that.  It is also a sign that this is a valued and loved animal belonging to someone who will be very happy to be reunited with it.  Strangers who see an animal with a collar are more likely to engage with it.

4. Make sure your pet knows its name

This may sound stupid, but sometimes life gets away from us and we just put out food for our pets without interacting with them as much as we would want to.  Suddenly, if you do need to call to your pet, she or he may not be so sure of their name anymore.

Take a moment to think how often you repeat your pet’s name to it and see if you could find a way to do this so that your pet realises you are calling him or her.

Even cats respond to their names.  We knew a cat that came sprinting from halfway across a large farm yard when she heard her name called.  You can strengthen the association with a name if you combine it with the sound of food – think kibbles shaken around in a dish or the clang of the can opener against a tin.

When you realise your pet is missing – act fast!

5. Do a quick search

Tell anyone who is with you and on your property that your pet may be missing – your family and anyone working on your property may have more information.

Co-ordinate a quick search of all the places your pet could be.  Your dog may have gone to the park or to that property where he always wants to bark at the dogs living there.  Your cat may be sleeping on a bed, may have ended up inside a closet or may have been chased into a tree by something that spooked it.  Check the garage or any other store or laundry rooms where someone may accidentally have locked an animal in.

If anyone visited your property since you last saw your pet, contact them – your cat or dog may have gotten into their vehicle without anyone noticing.

6. Get the word out quickly

Decide which channels you can communicate on fastest and send a quick message about your missing pet without wasting much time crafting the perfect message.

This may include:

• A whatsapp to your contacts living, working or moving in your area
• A post on your social media – facebook, instagram or twitter
• A request to the administrators for any whatsapp groups relevant to your area to do a post on your behalf
• Ask your family and your domestic worker or gardener to do the same with any contacts they may have

Your message must at least include:

• A picture of your pet
• Your pet’s name
• A short description of your pet, including breed and age
• Your name and telephone number
• The address or area where your pet was last seen
• The date and time your pet went missing

7. Assemble a task force

You will get more done faster if you use the help you can get and allocate responsibilities.

Ask family, neighbours, domestic workers or friends who are immediately available to help and give each one a job.  Make sure everyone stays in contact in case your pet turns up.

8. Make posters – paper and electronic

A paper poster is a quick way to reach a lot of people.  You should plaster them all over your area, but also further away along main routes.

An electronic poster is effective on social media – now you have the opportunity to incorporate your photo and information into one image.  Do not make it a pdf – that is not immediately visible on whatsapp or in a feed.  Make your electronic poster a photo or jpeg.

Include the information you put in your ‘get the quick word out’ message, but now you should consider offering a reward as well.

Include a mention of how much your pet means to you.

We made you a Word Document template that is easy to download and adapt.  You can also find online templates where you can fill in your information and then print your posters.

Download the poster template

9. Get the word out to even more relevant places

Once you have your paper and online posters ready, you can contact more places that may see your pet.

Consider which of these you can contact:

• Animal shelters, SPCA or animal welfare centres
• Veterinary practices in your area
• Your local police
• The control rooms for security companies whose cars may be driving around in your area
• Local dog walkers
• Local delivery services like takeout meal deliveries
• Domestic workers and gardeners working in your area
• Local cycling or running groups
• Local schools
• Local churches
• Garden and cleaning services

Your aim should be to alert anyone out and about in your area who may see your pet or anywhere it may be taken to if found or injured.  You can increase the reach of your message if you convince more people to post your message on their social media and whatsapp groups.

Do not stop at phoning, sending a whatsapp or emailing any of these businesses or groups:

• Once a day, physically visit any shelter, SPCA or welfare organisation where your pet may end up  – they do not necessarily have the time or resources to phone you when your pet is brought in or they may not realise it is your pet
• Go to the offices of all the places you identify and ask to put up your paper poster yourself (take your own thumb tacks, prestik, etc)
• Ask to be placed in contact with the person responsible for the facebook account and send your electronic poster directly to this person
• Ask for the number to which you can send your electronic poster for distribution to groups and employees

Follow up – remember, the squeaky wheel gets the oil.  Also remember to let everyone know when your pet is found.

We added a section to the Bergview Online app with contact information for these type of businesses and groups so that you do not have to trawl the internet and waste valuable time.

Please help us make this a useful resource and let us know of any group or business you think we should list and send us contact detail if you have it.

Download Bergview Online app

10. Make it possible for your pet to come home

If possible, leave a gate open for a missing dog and a window or cat flap open for a missing cat.

If you can not leave the gate open, be sure to check regularly if your pet is sitting in front of it.

Keep calling and making the noises associated with feeding – your pet may still be in the area and could just make its way home if it hears you.

Do not lose hope!

Keep contacting people asking them to post your message again. Keep searching. Keep going back to the places your pet know. Sometimes pets are found weeks after they go missing.

Identipet Factsheet

Who is Identipet?
Identipet has been operating in South Africa since 1989 and supplies the vast majority of the Southern African market of implantable microchips for animal identification.

The NSPCA has partnered with Identipet and acknowledges Identipet as their preferred supplier of microchips, scanners and animal recovery services.

What is an Identipet microchip?

A microchip is a tiny electronic microcircuit sealed into a biocompatible glass tube. The Identipet regular size is 11mm long and 2mm wide, while the Identipet Petite chip, which is suitable for smaller breeds, is 10.3mm long and 1.4mm wide.

Identipet microchips are not tracking devices. They are radio-frequency identification (RFID) implants that provide permanent ID for your pet. Because they use RFID technology, microchips do not require a power source like a GPS. When a microchip scanner is passed over the pet, the microchip gets enough power from the scanner to transmit the microchip’s ID number. Since there’s no battery and no moving parts, there’s nothing to keep charged, wear out, or replace. The microchip will last your pet’s lifetime.

There are NO microchips that are tracking devices, as tracking devices need a power source (battery) which in implantable microchips is not possible.

How is it implanted?

Each microchip is individually packaged in a sterile syringe. This is then a simple injection at the inoculation site (for dogs and cats) between the shoulder blades by a veterinarian.

Is it painful?

No more than any inoculation.

How does it work?
The microchip has an unalterable unique number coded into it. This microchip number is read by means of a scanner. The scanner emits an electro-magnetic wave that instantaneously “excites” the microchip. The microchip responds to the scanner with its number, which can then be read off the scanner’s screen. Only the microchip number appears on the screen, and not the owner and pet details.
The microchip number is totally unique and from a series of 34 billion unique numbers. It is never duplicated, altered or erased. Its uniqueness will stand up in a court of law. Identipet supplies the companion animal world in South Africa with 10 digit (alpha-numeric) microchips and 15 digit microchips.

What is the Identipet Microchip System?
The Identipet microchip system is both unique and comprehensive and now offers you the powerful Rapid Alert™ and Pet Rescuer Network™ benefits:

• Rapid Alert™ – you are immediately notified by SMS when your lost pet is scanned at a vet, welfare organisation or other scanning facility that is part of our Pet Rescuer Network.
• Trace Back™ – Identipet microchips are registered to your vet at the time of delivery so the microchip is traceable to your pet at all times.
• Pet Rescuer Network™ –  If your pet goes missing you can be reassured that we have thousands of registered Pet Rescuers in suburbs around South Africa, who will be alerted to the emergency if they live within a 5km radius of where you indicate that your pet went missing. The notification will include a poster and select contact details chosen by you.  We are constantly building this network.

Tell me about the App

Using your mobile device, the Identipet mobile app ensures a highly secure connection that:

• ensures easy communication
• allows you to register new pets
• securely transfer ownership of pets
• mark your pet as deceased
• receive your certificate of ownership by email at the click of a button
• report your pet as lost to our powerful Pet Rescuer Network
• locate emergency vet near to where you and your pet are in real time
• link your pet’s microchip to your regular vet for added peace of mind
• enables you to keep photographs of your pet and their vaccination cards on your mobile device

What happens after my pet is microchipped?

Each microchip is packaged with a four-part registration form. The veterinarian completes the form with the owner and animal details. The veterinarian, the owner, Identipet, and the breed society keep copies of the form. Registration onto the Identipet National Animal Database can be done online here, or quickly and easily by downloading our world class app which is available on the South African App Store and Google Play.

Who holds the database?
Identipet loads the information sent back to them onto the Identipet National Animal Database – the largest animal database in Africa. 
Vets, SPCAs, Animal Welfare Societies etc. can access this database information from the Identipet office (011 957 3455/6 or a/h 0829573455), and also via the Identipet App and internet at https://amla.org.za/.

What happens if my pet is lost?

Most lost animals are taken to a vet or SPCA. The animal is scanned for a microchip, and the Identipet Database is contacted. Owner information is shared with the registered Vet practice or welfare organization in order to make contact with the relevant owner.

How well does the Identipet system work?

Brilliantly! Identipet annually reunites several thousand lost or stolen animals with their owners. Data provided by the SPCA shows that the average time that it takes to re-home a lost pet (that has been microchipped) animal is two hours, compared with several days for an unidentified animal, if that animal is not adopted it may eventually be euthanased.

Who can scan my lost pet?

Hundreds of users of the Identipet system, with over 2000 scanners countrywide. Most vets in the large centers (and many in the smaller centers) are equipped to scan all lost, abandoned or stolen animals. All branches of the SPCA, as well as Animal Welfare Organisations are supplied with Identipet-scanners to assist them in the identification of lost, strayed, stolen, abandoned and adopted pets.

Can the microchip migrate?
Identipet FDB-b microchips do not migrate once inserted thanks to our patented BioBond™ technology of an antimigration cap .

What animals can be microchipped?
Any animal. From fingerling fish to rhino and elephants.

What does the microchip cost?

The microchip and insertion can cost anywhere between R150 to R450 depending on the practice or welfare conducting the insertion. Your pet is then identifiable for life. The microchip never “wears” out. Your pet will always have an identity. It is the ultimate act of love that you can give your pet.

Is there an Annual Identipet Service Fee?
There is no annual fee for any pets with an Identipet microchip, irrespective of the year that the animal had the microchip inserted. The only payment will be to the vet or welfare who conduct the insertion of the microchip.

My pet was microchipped abroad. Can you register him/her onto the Identipet National Animal Database?
The Identipet National Animal Database can store ALL manufacturer’s microchips (local and international). Registering your pet on the Identipet National Animal Database is a free service and can be done by completing this form.

If my pet dies must I notify Identipet?

Please call or send an email notifying Identipet that your pet is deceased. They will then amend the database.

(Content: https://identipet.com/faq/)