Cat microchipping now mandatory – GOV.UK

All cat homeowners ought to now have their pets microchipped as new laws comes into pressure right this moment (10 June).

House owners should guarantee their cat is microchipped earlier than they attain the age of 20 weeks with their contact particulars saved and saved updated in an accredited pet microchipping database. 

With greater than 9 million pet cats in England, the introduction of necessary microchipping will make it simpler for misplaced or stray pet cats to be reunited with their homeowners and returned residence safely. Microchipping is already obligatory for canine and is confirmed to be the simplest methodology for figuring out misplaced pets, with microchipped canine greater than twice as prone to be reunited with their proprietor.

Microchips are secure and simple to implant with a median value of round £25 for microchipping and registration. Charities and respected cat rescue organisations could possibly microchip your cat for a lowered charge.

The method of microchipping includes the insertion of a chip, usually across the dimension of a grain of rice, underneath the pores and skin of a pet. The microchip has a novel serial quantity that the keeper must register on a database. When an animal is discovered, the microchip might be learn with a scanner and the registered keeper recognized on a database so the pet can shortly be reunited with them.

Owned cats have to be microchipped earlier than reaching 20 weeks of age, with their contact particulars saved and saved updated on a pet microchipping database. This contains cats that often solely keep indoors. 

Microchipping isn’t obligatory free of charge dwelling cats that dwell with little or no human interplay or dependency, equivalent to farm, feral or group cats.

The authorized deadline was confirmed in laws laid in March 2023 giving homeowners overs a yr to adjust to the brand new necessities. Failing to adjust to the regulation might see homeowners obtain a advantageous of as much as £500.