HAVE YOUR SAY: Microchips for dogs to be made compulsory

10:00am Wednesday 6th February 2013 in News

HAVE YOUR SAY: Microchips for dogs to be made compulsory HAVE YOUR SAY: Microchips for dogs to be made compulsory

Animals charities, vets and union leaders welcomed moves to make it compulsory for all dogs in England to be microchipped.

The Government said the idea would help reunite owners with lost or stolen pets as well as improving the welfare of dogs.

Ministers also announced plans to extend legal protection over dog attacks to cover incidents on private property.

The change will be a boost for postmen and women, health visitors and others who call at private addresses but have not been covered by the law if they are bitten by a dog.

Environment Secretary Owen Paterson said: ''It's ludicrous that in a nation of dog lovers, thousands of dogs are roaming the streets or stuck in kennels because the owner cannot be tracked down.

''I am determined to put an end to this and ease the pressure on charities and councils to find new homes for these dogs.

''Microchipping is a simple solution that gives peace of mind to owners. It makes it easier to get their pet back if it strays and easier to trace if it's stolen.

''The generous support of Dogs Trust will mean that this valuable service can be offered for free to pet owners across the country.''

Around 110,000 stray dogs are picked up by police, local authorities and animal welfare charities each year, with around half unable to be reunited with their owner because they cannot be identified.

Around 6,000 dogs are put down each year, while strays cost the taxpayer and welfare charities £57 million a year.

Thousands of postal workers and hundreds of telecoms engineers are attacked by dogs every year, mainly on private property such as gardens, drives and private roads.

The RSPCA gave a cautious welcome to the news, but warned more preventative measures were needed to improve animal welfare.

David Bowles, head of public affairs, said: ''Compulsory microchipping and extending the law to cover private property as well as public spaces is a welcome move.

''However, on their own we don't believe they will make owners more responsible or ensure fewer dogs bite people or other animals.''

Comments(19)

jobsworthwatch says...
10:20am Wed 6 Feb 13

Micro chip the owners too so that dogs can be matched to their owners.

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Cerdicjute says...
10:30am Wed 6 Feb 13

Excellent. The long awaited curbs against inappropriate dog ownership begin. Let's now re-introduce licences as well. Say £500 a pooch? And compulsory insurance.

Perhaps all dogs who bark after ten thirty and wake up my children could be turned into slippers as well?

Disgusting, smelly, noisy and largely pointless animals.

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stevobath says...
10:33am Wed 6 Feb 13

I agree with chipping, although I cannot see that it will make any difference in respect to dog attacks.

Also.I think a small charge should be made say £10.This money could be used by the various dog charities.
Just like to add that my dog cost £27 to be chipped!

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Net Turner says...
10:40am Wed 6 Feb 13

I also think they should bring in by law to insure your dog and take your dog to a training class. I do agree with the chipping as I have with my dog and cat. It's called common sense. There are so many owners who can not control their dog and have no insurance as well. And there are so many who doesn't have their dog chipped.

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Hessenford says...
10:43am Wed 6 Feb 13

stevobath wrote:
I agree with chipping, although I cannot see that it will make any difference in respect to dog attacks.

Also.I think a small charge should be made say £10.This money could be used by the various dog charities.
Just like to add that my dog cost £27 to be chipped!
Cant see the point of chipping, it wont reduce random dog attacks.
Don't agree with a small charge of £10 for charities, it's always been a voluntary act to donate to charities, I don't see why anyone should be forced to donate.

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stormhuntr says...
11:05am Wed 6 Feb 13

finally making chipping compulsary, allthough I dont think it should be given free .. the reson for this is because that it would then wean out the people who cant afford to own a dog and paying the bills for a dog, IE leaveing only responsible dog owners, Both my dogs are chipped and wear a pet ID tag I see so many without even a ID tag.

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stormhuntr says...
11:07am Wed 6 Feb 13

too add.. they should have park wardens carrying microchip scanners to do random stop checks to check if dogs are ID'd otherwise how else will it be enforced.. if people think that they COULD get randomly stop checked then they would 'hopefully' make sure theyre pet was chipped .. like car tax mot and insurance

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Lord Spring says...
11:14am Wed 6 Feb 13

jobsworthwatch wrote:
Micro chip the owners too so that dogs can be matched to their owners.
Some owners have a barcode tattooed on their neck.

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Hessenford says...
11:22am Wed 6 Feb 13

stormhuntr wrote:
too add.. they should have park wardens carrying microchip scanners to do random stop checks to check if dogs are ID'd otherwise how else will it be enforced.. if people think that they COULD get randomly stop checked then they would 'hopefully' make sure theyre pet was chipped .. like car tax mot and insurance
Still cant see the point unless everyone in the uk is issued with a scanner, if anyone in involved in a random dog attack what good will a microchip be to them.

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rayc says...
11:30am Wed 6 Feb 13

This is similar to the number plate regulations. The normal honest motorist is inconvenienced whilst those wanting false plates still get them made up.
It will be the same with dogs, the Police will not have the resources to enforce it and Council's will only do so if they can see a profit from the fines.

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hamworthygirl says...
11:57am Wed 6 Feb 13

Cerdicjute wrote:
Excellent. The long awaited curbs against inappropriate dog ownership begin. Let's now re-introduce licences as well. Say £500 a pooch? And compulsory insurance.

Perhaps all dogs who bark after ten thirty and wake up my children could be turned into slippers as well?

Disgusting, smelly, noisy and largely pointless animals.
I hope thats a tongue in cheek remark? if not can we have licences for children also. Ive seem some rather noisy ones as well who cause a lot noise and mess when they run round the streets unattended by their owners/parents. Before i get abuse i have had children and now grankids and dogs,my grandchildren are well behaved as is my dog.

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speedy231278 says...
12:12pm Wed 6 Feb 13

"The goverment is also expected to announced a change in the law to close a loophole which prevents police from taking action against the owners of dogs that attack people on private property."

Why? If you're not trespassing on private property, there's zero chance of the owner's dog attacking you.

Another case of the criminal having more rights than anyone else!

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kingstonpaul says...
12:53pm Wed 6 Feb 13

So, how precisely will this legislation help monitor the lumpen neanderthals with their trophy dogs? These are not the kinds of folks who'd bother with this kind of thing.

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kingstonpaul says...
12:54pm Wed 6 Feb 13

So, how precisely will this legislation help monitor the lumpen neanderthals with their trophy dogs? These are not the kinds of folks who'd bother with this kind of thing.

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Blah01 says...
2:13pm Wed 6 Feb 13

hamworthygirl wrote:
Cerdicjute wrote:
Excellent. The long awaited curbs against inappropriate dog ownership begin. Let's now re-introduce licences as well. Say £500 a pooch? And compulsory insurance.

Perhaps all dogs who bark after ten thirty and wake up my children could be turned into slippers as well?

Disgusting, smelly, noisy and largely pointless animals.
I hope thats a tongue in cheek remark? if not can we have licences for children also. Ive seem some rather noisy ones as well who cause a lot noise and mess when they run round the streets unattended by their owners/parents. Before i get abuse i have had children and now grankids and dogs,my grandchildren are well behaved as is my dog.
Completely agree.

This wont make any difference, and wont make tracing owners any easier. I work in the veterinary industry and scan no end of stray pets that the owner hasn't kept the chip details up to date, or never got round to sending off the registration papers.

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Letcommonsenseprevail says...
5:15pm Wed 6 Feb 13

Hessenford wrote:
stevobath wrote:
I agree with chipping, although I cannot see that it will make any difference in respect to dog attacks.

Also.I think a small charge should be made say £10.This money could be used by the various dog charities.
Just like to add that my dog cost £27 to be chipped!
Cant see the point of chipping, it wont reduce random dog attacks.
Don't agree with a small charge of £10 for charities, it's always been a voluntary act to donate to charities, I don't see why anyone should be forced to donate.
I don't think chipping is intended to stop random dog attacks. The chips aren't that advanced yet.

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mumble says...
10:28pm Wed 6 Feb 13

Surely it would be pretty blinking obvious whose dog it is if post men and women, health workers and others are bitten whilst calling at a private address. An identichip would be redundant in that situation.
Unless there is any prospect of random scanning of dogs in public, the same irresponsible owners won't bother, and the single Bournemouth dog warden with a scanner is not really much of a deterrent.
Responsible dog owners will already have an identichip, tag and insurance, and in most cases a well controlled dog.
As stated by the poster above, id chips are useless unless contact details of the owner are kept up to date, it tends to be the thing people forget when they move, or change mobile phones.
As most id chip companies charge a minimum of £10.00 to change an address - many people don't bother and just update the tag on the collar.
If a loose dog who carries out an attack is microchipped, there is nothing to stop the owner when contacted saying "He was mine mate, but I sold him to a bloke in a pub last week".

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elite50 says...
11:00am Thu 7 Feb 13

A great idea!
They could also implant a small explosive device so that if a postman etc. was attacked they could press a button and "boom", problem solved.
I gotta get me one of those, walking would be a pleasure again!

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ragj195 says...
10:41pm Thu 7 Feb 13

speedy231278 wrote:
"The goverment is also expected to announced a change in the law to close a loophole which prevents police from taking action against the owners of dogs that attack people on private property."

Why? If you're not trespassing on private property, there's zero chance of the owner's dog attacking you.

Another case of the criminal having more rights than anyone else!
You don't have to be a criminal to be attacked by a dog on private land.

If a child gets attacked by a dog in a friends back garden this change will allow the police to act on it.

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