4 July 2013

Is your puppy registered?

| Barcham
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Strike a pose

A little message from the Government and Miss Julie Angove about registering your dogs.

We hear at the RiotACT are very pro-dog-stories, and pro-anything-that-gives-us-an-excuse-to-post-puppy-photos-stories.

“People often forget to update personal details when circumstances in life change. I’d like to remind dog owners of the need to update their microchip and registration details when they change residence, change ownership to someone else or their dog passes away. It is also important for people to register their dogs with DAS when they move to Canberra,” Ms Angove said.

“Once a dog is registered it must wear its registration tag or a tag that displays the registration number. This ensures that pets can be returned home quickly and easily if found lost.

“Recently, a kelpie named Indy was impounded at DAS after being found roaming on a sporting field. Luckily, Indy was registered and microchipped with current information so Rangers were able to contact her owner who collected her two hours later. If Indy wasn’t registered and microchipped, the Rangers may have had difficulty in finding her owners, causing much more stress on Indy and the owner.

“To update a dog’s registration information, email dogcontrol@act.gov.au or find the forms to register at Canberra Connect shopfronts, Domestic Animal Services and www.canberraconnect.act.gov.au.

“Microchip information is not managed by the ACT Government and needs to be updated by the company that provided the microchip. The company’s contact details are on the documentation provided at the time the dog was microchipped, but can also be found through the vet if needed.

“Anyone looking for their lost dog should contact DAS by phoning 13 22 81 or visiting the Impounded Dogs page at www.tams.act.gov.au to see if their dog is currently being held at the Mugga Lane facility.”

Ms Angove also reminded people of the rules surrounding walking dogs in public places.

“Not everyone is comfortable with other people’s dogs, so be mindful to keep dogs on leash in public areas.

“People who wish to take their dogs off the leash can do so in any of the five off-leash enclosed dog parks located in Belconnen (Diddams Close), Greenway (Mortimer Lewis Drive), Yarralumla (Weston Park), Forde (Amy Ackman Drive), and Casey (Springbank Rise), and in various other parts of Canberra marked as dog off leash areas,” Ms Angove said.

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Madam Cholet said :

The animal services run by this government leave a lot to be desired…

Similar problem, but a white fox terrier on Galloway St, Isabella Plains. I ran over their dog for the second time last night. I’m not the only one that has hit it. The dogs limp just went from intermittent to permanent.

thatsnotme said :

Firstly, thank you for being the type of person who will go out of their way to help a lost dog.

Next time though, I’d suggest your first port of call is the closest vet to you. They will have a microchip reader, and can check out whether the dog is chipped or not. My wife picked up a dog from off the street recently – no tag on the collar. Took it down to the local vet, they confirmed it was chipped, but couldn’t give me more details – I guess because of the issues with databases mentioned previously. All I had to do was leave some details though, leave the dog with the vet, and they took over contacting the owners. Much easier than a trip to the RSPCA!

The reason I drove to the RSPCA was because it was late afternoon and I wanted to get there before they closed in case I had to leave the dogs there as I wouldn’t have been able to keep them overnight. And I absolutely did not want them to end up at the pound. One was a limping wolfhound who stole my heart the moment she looked at me. It was quite hilarious getting her into our small car.

Watson said :

BimboGeek said :

And at the very least a name and number tag so any random can phone and say, “Hi I’ve found George wandering around the shops” (or brought Buster home out of the rain or whatever). We don’t all have microchip readers but most of us have a phone.

This.

It is a hassle to have to take the dog somewhere to have its microchip read. I once drove all the way from Watson to the RSPCA to drop off 2 dogs that had been wandering around at the shops for 24 hours only to discover that one of them did have a microchip with an address around the corner of the shops. So I took them back and delivered them home. Would’ve been much easier if they would’ve had a name tag with contact details or a registration tag so I could’ve got Canberra Connect to contact the owner for me.

Microchips should really only be a last resort safety measure – in case your dog loses its collar or whatever.

Firstly, thank you for being the type of person who will go out of their way to help a lost dog.

Next time though, I’d suggest your first port of call is the closest vet to you. They will have a microchip reader, and can check out whether the dog is chipped or not. My wife picked up a dog from off the street recently – no tag on the collar. Took it down to the local vet, they confirmed it was chipped, but couldn’t give me more details – I guess because of the issues with databases mentioned previously. All I had to do was leave some details though, leave the dog with the vet, and they took over contacting the owners. Much easier than a trip to the RSPCA!

BimboGeek said :

And at the very least a name and number tag so any random can phone and say, “Hi I’ve found George wandering around the shops” (or brought Buster home out of the rain or whatever). We don’t all have microchip readers but most of us have a phone.

This.

It is a hassle to have to take the dog somewhere to have its microchip read. I once drove all the way from Watson to the RSPCA to drop off 2 dogs that had been wandering around at the shops for 24 hours only to discover that one of them did have a microchip with an address around the corner of the shops. So I took them back and delivered them home. Would’ve been much easier if they would’ve had a name tag with contact details or a registration tag so I could’ve got Canberra Connect to contact the owner for me.

Microchips should really only be a last resort safety measure – in case your dog loses its collar or whatever.

Madam Cholet said :

The animal services run by this government leave a lot to be desired. I tried to get support when we had a barking dog next door. Took them six months to actually respond. And even then they didn’t really do anything. No one came to monitor it at ‘barking time’, probably as they knock off at 5, just like the parking people who don’t care about illegal parking after hours.

I had the same problem with a neglected dog in the ‘hood. A neighbour has video of it attacking a child when it got loose but Domestic Animal Services said that video evidence was onlt acceptable when they took the video.
Unless the dog is a problem between 9 – 5 they are not interested.

Madam Cholet7:19 am 05 Jul 13

The animal services run by this government leave a lot to be desired. I tried to get support when we had a barking dog next door. Took them six months to actually respond. And even then they didn’t really do anything. No one came to monitor it at ‘barking time’, probably as they knock off at 5, just like the parking people who don’t care about illegal parking after hours.

And at the very least a name and number tag so any random can phone and say, “Hi I’ve found George wandering around the shops” (or brought Buster home out of the rain or whatever). We don’t all have microchip readers but most of us have a phone.

p1 said :

I am very surprised to hear that there is no central database of pet microchips.

Even more surprising considering that TAMS keep a register of dog names.

That puppy looks too intelligent.

p1 said :

“Microchip information is not managed by the ACT Government and needs to be updated by the company that provided the microchip. The company’s contact details are on the documentation provided at the time the dog was microchipped, but can also be found through the vet if needed.

I found this part interesting. I am very surprised to hear that there is no central database of pet microchips.

Me too, very strange

I’ll bet Ms Angove can’t supply the numbers of all the dog owners who have been fined for not having their dogs registered and microchipped.

“Microchip information is not managed by the ACT Government and needs to be updated by the company that provided the microchip. The company’s contact details are on the documentation provided at the time the dog was microchipped, but can also be found through the vet if needed.

I found this part interesting. I am very surprised to hear that there is no central database of pet microchips.

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