By ID marking your cat with a chip or tattoo and registering yourself as its owner, you increase the chances of your cat being returned home if it runs away or has an accident. Both ID marking methods have their advantages and disadvantages. If you’re going to travel abroad with your cat, by law it must be chipped.
ID MARKING A CAT WITH AN EAR TATTOO
Ear tattooing with micro-tattooing forceps, is performed by a vet and involves tattooing a combination of letters and/or numbers on a cat’s ear. The ID number can then be used to recognise a cat as yours. The combination is read from starting from the head and out towards the tip of the ear. The advantage of identifying your cat with a tattoo is that anyone can easily trace the owner of a stray cat via The Swedish Kennel Club’s owner register or the the ID register of the SVERAK national association of cat clubs. The disadvantage is that the marking has a poorer durability as the tattoo fades over time.
ID MARKING A CAT WITH A MICROCHIP
Chipping, or microchipping, is a quick and easy procedure that involves inserting a small chip under the cat’s skin. The chip can then be read with the help of a special chip reader available from a vet or the police. A cat can only be chipped after it’s reached six weeks of age. The advantage of chipping is that it usually lasts for the cat’s entire life. Also, if you plan to travel abroad with your cat, it’s a requirement that it be marked with a microchip. The disadvantage is that the chip can only be read by a vet or police officer. Further reading
IS IT THE LAW TO ID MARK YOUR CAT?
It’s not a legal requirement to have your cat ID-marked unless it’s going to travel abroad with you. It if is, then the law says it must have a chip. However, many committed cat enthusiasts are working to make both cat ID marking and registration mandatory in order to raise the status of cats and reduce the problem of strays.
REMEMBER TO REGISTER YOUR OWNERSHIP AFTER ID MARKING YOUR CAT
Many people think that ID marking their cat is enough, but it takes a little more than that. In order for it to be possible to identify your cat as belonging to you, it’s important that you also register as an owner in the Swedish Kennel Club’s owner register and the SVERAK national association of cat clubs’ ID register.
- Register your cat in the Swedish Kennel Club’s owner register
- Register the owner of your cat in the SVERAK national association of cat clubs’ ID register
WHAT TO DO IF YOU FIND A SUSPECTED LOST CAT
If you find a cat that you think seems lost or suspect has run away from home, you can either take the cat to a vet or contact the police on 114 14 to find out where the nearest police station with a chip reader is. If the cat has an ear tattoo and you can decipher the number combination, search for the owner in the Swedish Kennel Club’s owner register or in SVERAK’s ID register.
- Find the owner of a stray cat in the Swedish Kennel Club’s owner register
- Find the owner of a stray cat in SVERAK’s ID register
If the cat’s owner hasn’t registered any owner or the cat’s ID mark is so new that it’s not yet been registered, you will not receive any results. You can then try to find its owner via the police and other forums, such as social media. If you can’t take the cat home while you’re looking for the owner, you can contact an animal shelter in your area that can house it for as long as possible.
