The Sandhu family was passing out hugs of gratitude the night they were reunited with their beloved pet, Cheeto. He was lost approximately 2 years ago and was brought into Fresno Humane Animal Services. Cheeto was scanned for a microchip and his owners were alerted by Fresno Humane that he had been found! Cheeto, the Sandhu Family and everyone at Fresno Humane would like to remind you about the happiness found thanks to the decision to microchip. Microchips bring hope of happy reunions. Pets found without ID have little hope of reuniting with their beloved families. Pets found with microchips usually get to go home the same day leaving room in animal shelters for dogs and cats that need our help. Fresno Humane offers microchips for $20 at our Vaccine Clinics.

How does a microchip work?

Microchips last the lifetime of your pet and are about the size of a grain of rice. The scanner uses radio frequency to show a unique chip # when your pet is scanned by an animal shelter, veterinarian's office or animal rescue. That number is given to the microchip company and the owners are contacted. This is a safe, easy way to reunite dogs with owners.

There are however some key factors that are crucial to this reunion process:

#1 Always update the microchip company when you move or change your phone numbers

#2 Have a back up person's info when possible and update their info as needed

#3 If you found a lost pet, always have it checked for a microchip before keeping it or giving it away. It's fast and easy to scan for a microchip at your local animal shelter, veterinarian and rescue group and there is no charge to do so!

Cheers to Happy Reunions and may there be many more!

Toodles,

Amanda Allen, Community Outreach Coordinator