Chloe showed no pain with her chip. She did scratch at it for a little but she cried more during her Bortatella.

I agree with you 100%. Sadly I know how it feels to loose a pet. My beautiful 4 year old Rhodesian Ridgeback named Shadow got out of the house on January 19th 2005. I will never forget that day it was one of the worse days of my life. My sister in law was visiting and left the door open. Shadow was an indoor dog even thought he was a big dog. He rarely went out and when he did it was with me. I found out that he was gone when I got home from school it was too late it had been hours since he got out. I looked everywhere for him and went to the pound which I hope I never have to again since its too depressing for me. Just remembering all of this makes me teary. Loosing Shadow was a tragedy. He meant the world to me and to this day I still wonder if he is okay. I just got my first Yorkie a couple of days ago now. His name is Lex and is the first puppy I have had since Shadow. On the first conversation I had with my breeder we talked about micro shipping because I was still a little reluctant of putting a foreign object into Lex's body. Which was the same reason Shadow was never micro shipping. I always ask myself what if I had micro shipped Shadow. Knowing Lex is micro shipped puts my mind at ease. I only hope I never have to go looking for him.

Sorry that you lost Shadow. It's hard losing them and if there is one small thing I can do to never ever have to deal with that again then it's worth the few seconds of discomfort she will have. I will have them do it while she is under because quite frankly the girl is prissy and is so not about pain ;0)

Actually, if it is inserted correctly, the chip IS in the muscle. It will migrate to other areas if it is not inserted correctly, as then it is free floating. You should not be able to feel the chip. If you can feel it, it wasn't inserted correctly. I have chipped many, many dogs and puppies. It is just like shots, in that it hurts some and others act like they didn't even feel it. Those that do hurt, it is only for a moment (again, if done correctly and swiftly). Perhaps you have had an intramuscular shot? If done correctly, it is a bit painful for the moment, but not too bad.

I feel the benefits outweigh the risks.

thank you so much for this post!

my babies are due to be spayed and neutered soon (within the next few weeks) and if i decided on microchipping, i wanted to do it at the same time (so they are not in pain when it is inserted) ... i am really struggling with the pros and cons and have yet to make a final decision ...

thank you to everyone for the feedback and points of view!

I refuse to get Diesel microchipped. He is always with me and is not a runner even when there is a female in heat around. I take 2 steps and he takes 3. The main reason ...
When my daughter was little I had to watch her like a hawk to keep her safe. Diesel is no different. I would have never dreamed of doing something like this to my daughter and I would never do it to Diesel. I am very old fashioned despite my age and to me this is almost inhumane. I have looked around for a new pup and to be honest if and when I get a new pup I prob won't be able to avoid it. Doesn't mean I have to like it.

Someone on here said their dog's migrated and is near their trachea now and the vet will monitor it. From what I read it was just placed under the skin according to the Q&A on the manufacturers site. Gonna check it again. Maybe I misread.

why do you think it's inhumane? i got mine chipped when they went in for spaying and they were under so i don't think the felt anything..

My lulu was a never runner...trained to be walked off leash and would come back to me on the drop of a dime. She got away from me on New Years Eve in our fenced yard and got out and got hit by a car. If she hadn't gotten hit by the car the speed she was running I might not have caught up with her. I think back now and I realize if she had gone unscathed and I had lost her I would have no real way of identifying her legally in order to get her back from someone.

Right now that my heart still hurts my head tells me that the best advantage is any advantage I can give myself.

Beth thank you for sharing with us... i was straddling the fence on the microchipping... but i think i will get it done when i take Belle in to get spayed...

i remember reading somewhere though that all scanners don't work on all chips... is this still true??

They are now making and giving the universal scanners as a way to get the vets to use their chips. Before I think the universal scanners were more expensive so I guess it caused a decline in the amount of chips being inserted. They are trying to be more marketable and competitive I think.

i'm glad to hear that, i think so far, the advantages outweigh the risks... thanks OP for starting this topic... :D

3 of my 4 are chipped! and within the next month star will be getting it done too! with everything that happens today you can never be too careful! esp. with star only being 2 1/2 lbs.. i would think she's be the biggest target if someone was going to steal one.. most people think parker is a shiz tzu b/c they don't know what a biewer is. my dogs didn't show any pain when it was done

Lulu was a tiny girl and Zoey will be as well. The popularity of the breed in general makes them a huge target and the small ones are doubly targeted because they will do their best to get way more money for them.

I personally don't have any of mine chipped and don't think I will be doing it.

I just don't feel comfortable imbedding a microchip in any of my dogs, regardless of the benefits.