[ PET OHANA ]
COURTESY OF HAWAIIAN HUMANE SOCIETY
Picasso was lost for about three weeks but found his way back home thanks to a Good Samaritan who had him scanned for a microchip ID.
Keeping track of pets
Let's say you find a little brown dog wandering lost and alone on a sidewalk, and you take it home for its safety. You introduce it to the family, and it seems to fit right in. "Can we keep it?" you wonder.
Meanwhile, another family is sad about their missing little brown dog, who slipped out the door and has not returned. "Where could it be? Is it safe? What should we do?"
On Oahu the Hawaiian Humane Society is the lost-and-found center for all pets. Thousands of animals find their way back home each year thanks to staff efforts, but our cherished companion animals depend on the general population to help them get back home by making a lost or found report as soon as possible. Call 946-2187, ext. 285, to make your report. Someone is available to help 24 hours a day.
As many people know from experience, animals have an uncanny ability to leap, slide and climb out of their home or yard -- and out of their collars. Many an anxious owner has spent hours scouring the neighborhood, posting signs and calling the humane society for news of their missing pet. Fortunately, microchip identification technology is reducing the long hours spent on lost-and-found cat and dog searches.
SOME OF THE nicest stories heard at the humane society are of lost animals reunited with their owners. Many pets are found in their own neighborhoods and are returned in a few minutes. Humane officers on the road can scan the pet for a microchip, discover its identity and return the animal home without a trip to the shelter.
Here's how it works: A microchip ID, about the size of a grain of rice and encased in medical-grade glass, is injected under the fleshy skin between the animal's shoulder blades. Each microchip ID has a unique combination of letters and numbers that can be read with a hand-held scanning device.
When a stray animal is found by a humane officer, most veterinarians or brought to the shelter, he or she will be scanned and the code checked against the database of pet owners that is kept at the Hawaiian Humane Society. There is no charge to list your information in this database. As long as the information is current, the pet owner can be contacted and the animal returned home immediately.
This month, the society has a special $5 promotion that helps people and their pets stay together. This permanent form of identification is implanted in a few seconds and is a wonderful, low-cost way to ensure your companion animal can be identified in an emergency situation.
Microchip IDs are available all year long from most veterinarians for about $20. Through Sept. 30, 19 veterinarians are helping to offer the microchip IDs for just $5. Call for an appointment at any of these clinics:
>> Aina Haina Pet Hospital, 373-2111
>> Animal Clinic Inc., 734-0255
>> Blue Cross Animal Hospital, 593-2532
>> The Cat Clinic, 732-8884
>> Cat/Bird Vet Mobile Hospital, 623-5466
>> Companion Animal Hospital, 262-8141
>> East Honolulu Pet Hospital, 396-3333
>> Family Vet Clinic, 484-9070
>> Feather and Fur Clinic, 254-1548
>> Hawaii Kai Veterinary Clinic, 395-2302
>> Island Veterinary Care, 944-0003
>> Kalihi Pet Clinic, Inc., 841-6313
>> Kokua Pet Clinic, 843-8382
>> Makai Animal Clinic, 262-9621
>> Newtown Vet Clinic, 488-3667
>> The Pet Doctor, 733-8828
>> Wahiawa Animal Hospital, 621-7000
>> Waianae Veterinary Clinic, 696-4161
>> Waipahu-Leeward Veterinary Clinic, 671-4095
Have you moved?
If you already have microchip IDs for your pets, make sure the identification information is correct in the Oahu database. If you have moved or changed phone numbers since the chip was implanted, call the humane society during business hours to update your information, 946-2187, ext. 0.
Lost & Found help
The humane society's Web site offers tips regarding lost and found dogs, including forms that can be printed and faxed to the shelter. Go to www.hawaiianhumane.org and choose "Lost & Found" from the menu at the top of the page. Reports can be made 24 hours daily at 946-2187, ext. 285.
Click for online
calendars and events.
