A warning has been issued to cat owners to microchip their cats next month – or risk breaking the law and being fined £500.
From 10 June 2024, a new law comes into force which states that all cats in England must be microchipped and registered on a database by the time they are 20 weeks old. Failure to do so could land landowners with a hefty fine. The legislation also gives local authorities the power to confiscate cats and microchip them, before returning the cats to the owner and handing them the bill.
Once the new law comes into effect, owners without a microchip in their cat will have just 21 days to get one implanted. After the 21 days, owners could face a fine of up to £500. It is estimated that around three million cats in the UK are currently not microchipped.
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Part of the reason the change is being introduced is because it can be difficult for veterinary professionals, animal welfare organizations and local councils to reunite unmicrochipped cats with their owners if they are lost or stolen, a spokesperson for the charity explained. cat charity Cats Matter. .
They added: “Microchipping is a cheap, fairly simple and quick procedure to do and can save owners the pain of never getting their cats back or never having closure if the worst happens, and can save a cat’s life. Unfortunately, we constantly see that victims of road accidents end up being euthanized with simple cuts and bruises, simply because no owner could be located using a microchip. When we say it could be a matter of life and death, we are not kidding.”
The microchipping process involves quickly and painlessly inserting a chip, usually the size of a grain of rice, under the skin. The microchip has a unique serial number that the holder needs to register in a database. When a cat is found, the microchip can be read with a scanner and the registered owner identified in a database so the animal can be quickly reunited with them.
The microchip also ensures that cat owners are notified if their pet is involved in an accident. A Cats Matter spokesperson said: “Even domestic cats can still escape through windows, doors or, of course, carriers on the way to the vet. Our efforts have always been, and will always continue to be, focused first on the well-being of cats, followed by the rights and needs of their owners. We urge all cat owners who have not yet microchipped their cat to make an appointment with their local vet or nearest registered implanter.
“It is vital that people book through a trained and registered implanter to avoid injury or possible complications to their beloved cat. We urge people to act now to avoid heavy fines.”
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