Only 6 months until compulsory microchipping comes into force
Abstract
With only 6 months to go until the microchipping of dogs becomes compulsory, it's time to take another look at the legislation and veterinary nurse's role in the lead up to April 2016.
According to Defra, approximately 80% of all dogs are already microchipped and registered on a database. Despite this high figure, research conducted by Blue Cross in April this year revealed that almost half the dog owners questioned in a recent survey did not know it will be compulsory by law for all dogs to be microchipped by April 2016.
The major challenge of the new legislation continues to be awareness amongst dog owners. So what can veterinary nurses do to help?
The Microchipping of Dogs Regulations for England were announced in October 2014, and outlined the responsibilities of breeders and dog owners once microchipping becomes compulsory in England from 6 April 2016.
Wales have just announced (20th October, 2015) their regulations and the Microchipping of Dogs (Wales) Regulations 2015 will come into force on 6 April 2016 to coincide with England and will require all dogs over 8 weeks old to be microchipped, and the keeper's details registered on an approved database.
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