Microchip company closes...is your pet at risk?

Early in 2025, veterinarians, shelters, and rescues across the country started noting a delayed response time from the Save This Life Microchip Company.  This Texas based company had been providing microchips for more than 12 years and closed its operation without notice. Businesses closing is not news, but for the thousands of pet parents whose pets have these microchips inserted, there is a very real possibility of a delayed reunion or even a failure to bring the pet back home due to this situation.

Boston getting nail trim and microchip

Microchips are small devices, about the grain of rice, that emit an electronic signal in the presence of a microchip scanner.  This signal transmits a unique identification code to the scanner and that code (the pet’s ID) can be found in the manufacturer’s database.

With the closure of Save This Life, that database is now inaccessible to anyone trying to get a pet back home to their family.

Thankfully, there is a solution.  Pet parents who are concerned about their pet’s registration status can visit the American Animal Hospital Association Microchip Lookup page.  Typing in your pet’s microchip number determine if this chip came from Save This Life or from another company. Don’t know your pet’s chip number…ask your veterinarian or veterinary team to scan your pet!

If your pet has a one of these chips, consider re-registering them with a different company.   Some examples include Home Again, AVID, PetLink, and AKC Reunite.  There will be a registration charge, but you can rest easy knowing that you have just made it easier to get your pet back home.

Microchipping event

Experts estimate that 1 in 3 pets are lost or stolen at some point in their lifetime and more than 10 million pets are lost or stolen each year in the US. Dogs without microchips only make it back home at 22% of the time…a microchip increases those chances to over 52%.  Cats without microchips get home 1.8% of the time compared to 38.5% of cats with microchips.

Sadly, more than 58% of pets with microchips are not registered properly.  This can delay or even prevent your pet from being reunited with you. Ask your veterinary team if you have questions about this company's closure, if you need your pet's microchip number, or if you need to schedule an appointment to get your pet "chipped". You can visit our Noah's Social sites to find QR codes that will help you determine if you need to re-register your pet's microchip.

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