10 stray dogs a day will never see their owner again because their microchip details are not up-to-date
We are urging all dog owners in the UK to urgently update their pet’s microchip details as our Stray Dog Survey has revealed that 181 dogs go missing every day.
Our latest research revealed that only one in four people know to contact the local dog warden if they find a stray dog. So, we took to the streets of London with Henry, our very own ‘stray’ dog, as he approached members of the public to help guide him home.
Despite the lowest recorded figure of stray dogs since 1997, thanks to the introduction of compulsory microchipping last year [66,277], we found that 69% of the microchipped stray dogs taken in by Local Authorities were not able to be reunited with their owners as their microchips contained out of date information. Because of this, many of these dogs risked the threat of being put to sleep by local authorities.
We suspect that these dogs may be much loved family pets which have sadly ended up permanently separated from their families because their owner’s had moved house or changed their phone number, and neglected to contact the microchip database to update their contact details on their dog’s microchip.
Read our 2017 Stray Dog Survey, here:
Stray Dog Survey Results 2017 PDF 3.25 MB
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Lee Paris, Dogs Trust Campaigns Officer said:
“This year’s stray dog survey is a double edged sword. Whilst showing the greatest reduction in stray numbers since records began, the findings also demonstrate that owners are failing to follow the law when it comes to ensuring the details on the microchip are up-to-date and that they wear a collar and tag.
“By encouraging people to share this video and check their own dog’s microchip is up-to-date, we hope that we can increase people’s awareness of the issue and continue to reduce the number of stray dogs across the country. If owners ensure their dogs have up-to-date microchip details, a collar and tag and can come back when called, they can avoid their beloved pet becoming another statistic. We want to make sure that dogs and their owners can be reunited as quickly as possible – helping to make sure that, ‘A dog is for life’.”
The regional picture
Nearest Rehoming
Centre |
How many stray dogs were found in 2017? |
Reunited with owners |
Not reunited due to
incorrect details |
Reunited because
of microchips
|
| Merseyside / Manchester |
8,502 |
5,187 |
343 |
1,919 |
| Leeds |
6,147 |
3,555 |
685 |
544 |
| Loughborough / Kenilworth / Evesham / Shrewsbury |
11,953 |
6,967 |
818 |
3,274 |
| Snetterton |
4,139 |
2,385 |
130 |
1,445 |
| Harefield, Basildon |
7,767 |
4,629 |
312 |
2,592 |
| Shoreham / Canterbury |
5,616 |
3,462 |
272 |
766 |
| Ilfracombe / Salisbury |
2,832 |
2,251 |
131 |
234 |
| Glasgow / West Calder |
907 |
581 |
22 |
48 |
| Ballymena |
5,042 |
2,532 |
|
100% |
| Darlington / West Calder |
6,336 |
3,799 |
343 |
780 |