BOGUS MICROCHIP DATABASE:- On acquiring ownership of my Bobby dog I wanted to get his microchip details registered into my name. The link I was given by his previous owner & the UK rescue he came from was for a website called “uk pet chip registry” where they had both registered their details for his microchip when he was in their ownership. I paid the £15 details update fee by PayPal as instructed & it updated to my name straight away.
I was then made aware that this may be a scam. On asking my vet to check his chip & access the database they use in the event of a found animal being taken to them to check for a chip to trace the owner, it turned out there was no record of his chip number being registered on the DEFRA approved UK database. He is originally from Greece but the lady who had him brought over & then the UK rescue he was surrendered to, both believed they had changed his chip details to theirs.
From speaking to a lady at “identibase” & doing some digging, it turns out this “uk pet chip registry” is an American based company who take your £15 for you to change your details. It does indeed update your details but on their website only. It is of no use whatsoever in the event of your pet being lost or stolen as it is not a company included on the UK Database that vets etc use. It is just a website. My vets & the lady at “indentibase” told me they are well aware of this, it’s been going on for some time & that many people are mistakenly thinking their pet will be traced back to them through their chip because they “registered” it.
Apparently “uk pet chip registry” pay Google a vast sum to be the first site that appears when you type “register or change my pets microchip” in the Google search bar, (it’s true, I’ve tried).
I have seen quite a few posts on various pages such as “dog found, chipped but sadly not registered”. I couldn’t understand how or why people would have their pet chipped but not register it. Maybe people are thinking that they have registered it to a company that will be contacted to obtain their details to return their pet to them but in fact have just registered on this website?
Please, please check your pets microchip appears on the UK DEFRA approved register. I did this by ringing the Central Database number given to me by my vet
01904 487 459
They will ask you for your chip number & check that it appears. Bobby’s didn’t. He is not registered with any legitimate company that appears on the database �.
I would assume that anyone who has had their pet chipped at their vets or it was originally done by a reputable breeder before they purchased the dog, that it will be registered properly. For those who have done it or changed their details themselves through an internet search, please double check that your pet can be traced back to you.
Thank you for taking the time to read this & please share so that in the awful event that your pet is lost, stolen, involved in an RTA etc, they can be traced to you and are not unknowingly “unregistered”.
I have opened a PayPal dispute to try & get my £15 back as advised by “identibase”. Apparently most people who have been duped have had their money returned to them via PayPal.
Emma Louise
Michelle Neville-Cooper
Defra are aware but say there is nothing they can do to get Google to take the advert taken down because they operate overseas?!?
This is really important as dogs and cats registered on this site will have microchips that read as unregistered. Dogs are legally rehomed or put to sleep if no owner is found in 7 days:- http://chng.it/pKPKg255