O'Reilly just published Ubiquitous Findable Objects, an article that delves into the promise and peril of tagging products, possessions, people, and pets.
Which brings me to the subject (or object) of this post, our six month old Sheltie puppy, Knowsy. We're trying to decide whether or not to have her tagged with a subdermal RFID implant.
On one hand, it may help us find Knowsy, if she got lost, and was somehow separated from her collar. On the other hand, the procedure involves a big needle, and the implant could cause problems if she ever needs an MRI scan.
To chip or not to chip. That is the question. What do you think? Thanks!
I'm certainly no veterinarian, but I did work in a health department actually catching dogs for 2 summers in college, and the dogs we picked up with chips were way more likely to have their owners contacted.
Of course, the interface for getting this information from the company that holds it after you scanned the dog was a disaster, requiring phone calls during normal business hours and etc. But that's another matter altogether, and since this was mid-90's, it's surely got to be web-based and way better by now.