Radar was tattooed when I got him, I didn't have it done. His breeders in Canada had it done. I'm gonna have all my dogs microchipped tho. None are yet but they all will be before the summer is up. My dogs just don't leave the house or yard LOL...my gates are always locked with a pad lock and they don't run out the door. They are never let out in the back yard unless we are home...but......to be on the safe side they will all be microchipped very soon :)

No, I'm not talking about that tattooing. I'm talking about getting tattoos on a dog like people get. I saw an article about it not too long ago.

I have no problem with tattoos for identification.:)

Have not seen that but I would agree with you!

I can speak from experience....I had a specials quality pointed bitch stolen from me 12 years ago. She was shown by a handler in NY. Shortly after that, she was stolen. I have a hunch how, why and who did it. It's a long sad story and still to this day KILLS me to think about what her life was like. I'll never know anything for sure. She WAS microchiped, but it wouldn't have done any good unless a Vet for some reason would have used the identifyer on her when someone brought her in. The chip doesn't do a lot of good unless the Vets and Pounds use the devises to identify everydog that comes in. However....I would tatoo and microship every dog I had from now on just to be extra safe.
Having a dog stolen is torture.

This was my girl that was stolen:(

Wow, she was beautiful. I am sorry that happened to you. It is ashamed that those type people are involved in dogs. Was she taken by a stranger?

We trusted someone to show our poodle and we never got him back. There was no internet and no DNA. It took a few years to find him and we could never prove anything. Sad part was the person that took him was suppose to be a friend. I have lots of pictures of this person handling our dogs. After all these years, it still hurts that we lost our dog and our friend. The pictures are put away in an album in the closet. I don't look at them very often.

Well, actually now that I look at the date, it was more like 16 years ago. I was just out of college by 2 years and had finished my first male, then the breeder sold me my first beautiful girl out of a specials breeding from her top male (at the time he was one of the best). I was living in a "cheap" 4 plex in a good part of town. I sold pet supplies for a distributor and had to travel. My "then" boyfriend would watch my dogs when I would choose to leave them at home at my apartment while I was away for 2 nights. Many times I would travel with them, but sometimes I just needed to leave them home. So, the first time it happened, my champion male disappeared for 24 hours. He was taken from near our front door step where I had an x-pen out. I went all over the neighborhood looking of course and never found my Bogie that day until that night after dark he came up to my door and barked. He smelled like syrup. I was so so so so so happy. About two weeks later, the same thing happened again and both times it was when my boyfriend was watching them. Both times I was out of town and they knew that as my little red car was gone and the boyfriend was there. I know it wasn't my boyfriend. The people that lived below me at the time were very strange and I think drugs was involved. After it happened with my bitch the second time, I never got her back. These people whom lived in the apartment under me, did not like my boyfriend and maybe not me. They had inquired after it happened about reward money etc. I just can't tell you how many times I wish I could do all of that over again! She was just beginning her wonderful show career and had already proven to be a fast finisher and exceptional dog. She wasn't anywhere near full coat and was already taking many points. Just sickening.

I'm sorry that you lost your poodle! I know how awful it is and helpless feeling it is.

do you have a link to this? I have been looking for a GPS microchip but cannot find one anywhere. all I find are the collars, which I think are pointless. If someone steals the dog, all they have to do is throw the collar in the garbage and you are on a wild goose chase. we are wanting to microchip, but wonder how effective it is. I just have to wonder how many vets actually scan a dog when someone "gets a new dog". I just wish there were a more fool proof way of identifying and helping to recover lost/stolen dogs. I think a GPS chip would be great...but can't seem to find one.

Home Again's website does not say anything about a GPS chip either :confused:

I have been told that city pounds and The Humane Society scans every dog that comes through their facilities. I will look at my paperwork and see if there is any information. I think I have the name right. I am almost positive it is Home Again.

I am so sorry that this happened. I can't imagine how I'd feel not knowing where one of my babies are. It makes you doubley sick to loose one with such potential. I can't imagine losing Connor, he has my heart and I wnat to see him accomplish our goals.

Yes, it was torture for years...and is still hard to think about it. When I got the call at 11pm from my boyfriend at the time, I was 3 1/2 hours away from my home. It was late and I knew that by the time I got home at 2 am, there would be nothing I could do about it at that hour of the morning anyway. I came home the next day, and could find nothing! I never knew what happened to her and the life she had. That was the hardest part. If the Vets don't Scan automatically the chips do NO good. But, if the dog is tatooed with our names on them, that at least cannot be missed as easily!

I say put all the ID on the dog as possible!

P.S. the boyfriend didn't last after that...I just wasn't able to forgive him for not watching her more closely while she was out to go potty. And especially when it happened to my male first and then again.

I have never heard of a GPS microchip. I do know that Home Again (both of my dogs are microchipped through them) offers an additional program that is $14/yr which, in the event your dog becomes lost, they send out the equivalent of an Amber Alert to vets in the area and other owners with microchipped dogs who have elected to be rescuers.

The alerts look like this:

I recently tried to rally support to alter the microchip protocol at vets offices. I would really like to see the AKC and microchip companies lobby vets to scan and verify the ownership of each dog at routiene vet visits (as a standard protocol). With purebred thefts on the rise I think this is a necessity.

Especially being a Yorkie owner I think that the majority of us realize that if ever our dogs go missing or are stolen the chance that someone will actually give them back is very slim.

I was almost positive Dr Tart sad that it was Home Again. Guy's tag only has a serial number not a system name. I will try to find my brochures.

i recently purchased a HOME AGIN scanner on E-Bay. I love it and all my dogs are microchipped. I had them chipped at the vet andhe uses Home Again. The number is all that is on the paper but when you scan them, it tells the name of the chip. My two older girls have AVIS chips and while the scanner I have doesn't show the number it lets me know it is an AVIS chip.

WOW I can not even imagine having one of mine taken from me.
I am so sorry you girls had to go through that, that is so sad.
I am always so nervous, especially at the crowded shows!