CEBU, Philippines — Cebu City goes techy and modern.
The Cebu City government, through the Department of Veterinary Medicine and Fisheries, adopts the widely-used microchipping of dogs and cats to minimize the growing number of stray pets.
This is the first in Cebu province.
At a media forum in Cebu City on Wednesday, City veterinarian Dr. Alice Utlang, DVMF head, said since this method was introduced on the last week of August more than 100 owners have their pets placed with microchips.
This procedure, wherein a microchip will be implanted under the skin particularly at the back of the pet’s neck, would cost one P200.
She said microchipping has been popular around the globe and has piloted in some areas in Luzon such as Makati and Quezon.
But in special cases here, responsible pet owners, said Utlang, are granted free of charge especially if they could hardly afford and so the government will subsidize.
The pet would not feel pain since the chip itself is very small just like the size of a grain of rice.
Utlang said through this strategy, the city can have a profile of all pets that are inputted in their information system as the microchip serves as permanent means of electrical identification and each carries a unique number.
She said the city’s legislature is already drafting an ordinance to formally institutionalize this method and soon, making it a mandatory policy.
One of its significant features, she said, is that the owner will be reminded via text message of their pet’s approaching scheduled vaccination.
She added that the city also can identify owners whose pets may have bitten another person but disclosure of information is in accordance with the privacy act.
Utlang urged owners to have their dogs and cats microchipped since there are high chances of them to be reclaimed when lost.
She said the city has an estimate of more than 100,000 pet owners here. Some of them could have also availed of the microchipping from a private veterinary firm.
Dr. Mary Rose Vincoy, provincial veterinarian of Cebu, said only Cebu City, for now, has initiated this program.
She said the Cebu province has no plan yet of implementing such because of the large population it is taking charge of.
According to law, cities are mandated to designate its own veterinarian.
Vincoy said first class municipalities are also required to create a veterinary office but only a few have complied.
She appealed to all the municipal governments to enact a measure that could allow them to hire a permanent position for a veterinarian so each town and city could focus in pushing for effective pro-animal initiatives such as microchipping. — MBG (FREEMAN)