Microchipping is the best way to safeguard your cat against loss or theft. Your pet’s unique microchip number is a permanent identification that lasts for the life of your pet, and it is the only legal means you have of identifying your pet should it be lost or stolen.
Microchipping is a simple procedure routinely performed at Crookwell Veterinary Hospital. The microchip is very small (around the size of a rice grain) and it is implanted through a needle, as an injection, underneath the skin between the shoulder blades. Although the pain is minimal, our vets always use local anaesthetic to reduce any pain felt during the procedure.
CVH registers your pet’s microchip details with the NSW Companion Animal Register (a NSW Government database). Visit the NSW Division of Local Government website for more information on microchipping and registration for dogs and cats.
Changes to your registered information
Your local council is responsible for updating the information on the NSW Companion Animals Register. You must notify your local council of changes to information about you or your cat held on the Register.
Microchipping and the law
All NSW local councils require microchipping for:
- All dogs (working dogs are exempt)
- All cats owned after 1 July 1999
- All cats and dogs being purchased or rehomed
- All new pups and kittens – puppies and kittens must be microchipped by 3 months of age and puppies registered with your local council by 6 months of age.
Registration
Registering your cat or dog in NSW is a two-step process:
- Ensure your cat or dog is microchipped by 12 weeks of age or before being sold or given away.
- You must then lifetime-register your cat or dog with your local council before it is six months of age.
This means you can desex your pet before registration, and pay the lower lifetime-registration fee. Entire animals cost $150 to register, and desexed animals $40. The cost for eligible pensioners is $15.