Every third week of April is National Pet ID Week. So PetArmor® wants to help educate people on pet identification to help ensure that your dog or cat has every chance to be returned safely if they get out.

What is a pet ID?

Unlike pet parents, a pet’s ID is not a card they keep in their wallet. Where would they put something like that anyways?

A pet ID comes in many shapes and sizes. Probably the most common form of a pet ID is a collar with a tag. On the tag is where people can find the pet’s name and pet parent contact information if something were to happen. This form of identification would be found around their necks and is an easy way to easily get in contact with the pet parent, as long as the information remains up-to-date.

Another form of pet identification is the microchip. This is a safe, metal-free way to protect your pet. It is a microchip that is about the size of a grain of rice that a veterinarian injects, similar to a vaccine. With this chip, pet parents can store important pet and contact information in case their pet gets lost.

Having a microchipped ID on your pet is a cheap, easy, and safe way to prevent tragedy. In fact, dogs that are microchipped are twice as likely to be returned to their pet parents. And cats? They’re 20 times more likely to be returned. Pet IDs are a vital link in the chain of steps that gets your pet back to you if they get lost. It’s advised that pet parents have both the pet tag and microchip for the best chances of a safe return if their pet roams away from home.

Even if you think your pet would never run away from home or try to escape, things do happen. They can get spooked, scared, or stressed by a situation or action to make them want to leave. What happens when a windstorm blows open the gate? Or, if the back gate didn’t properly close? Sometimes that urge to get away can overcome even the most disciplined dog’s training.

How You Can Keep Your Pet Safe

Here are some helpful tips to consider when protecting your pet from running away from home:

• Make sure you update your pet’s ID tag or microchip information to reflect any changes made to your contact information or if you have moved from your current location.
• Have a current and easily visible picture of your pet should they become lost — it’s helpful for flyers, newspapers or Craigslist ads, etc.
• Keep a list of nearby animal shelters, ER vets, and humane societies handy, as well as your local animal control agencies.
• When your dog is vaccinated against rabies by your veterinarian, you will get an ID tag that is linked to your record at that hospital. This is another piece of identification that can lead them back to you — and assures the folks finding your dog that the dog is current on his rabies shots should they bite anyone.
• Cats need ID, too, even indoor ones! Try a specially made breakaway collar that has a mechanism in it that’s released if the collar gets caught on furniture, fencing, or other objects is safest and prevents choking.