By Dr. Carmen Battaglia
BACKGROUND
Every pet owner, veterinarian and shelter needs a microchip that
can be read by all the scanners in the United States. This is not
surprising when you consider that one in three pets will become
lost during a lifetime, and without proper identification, 90 percent
will never return home. Many organizations that sell microchips
and scanners usually offer call center (recovery) service for which
they charge an enrollment fee. While their goals may vary, most
agree that their goal is to eliminate the sign “LOST PET” from
our neighborhoods. Solving the lost pet problem is a worthy goal
and it should be the shared goal of everyone. To achieve such a
lofty goal we must be clear about the tools that are needed, address
the concerns that have been expressed about microchips and scanners,
and clarify the pet recovery process. There is no question that
there are many types of microchips, scanners and recovery databases
from which to choose. This can be confusing if you are a pet owner
who is thinking about having a pet chipped, or a veterinarian or
shelter wondering about what chip, scanner and recovery database
to use.
In order to make life easier and less confusing, we need to begin
by knowing that each manufacturer makes its own decision about
what kind of microchip and scanner it will produce. Most have produced
scanners that can read several kinds of microchips. Others have
produced scanners that read only the chips of selected manufactures.
Those who limit their scanner’s ability to read all microchips
seriously hamper the ability of veterinarians and shelters to make
recoveries.
MISCONCEPTIONS
Joe Masin, President of Electronic Identification Devices, Ltd.
(EID), a leading supplier of microchips and scanners, has addressed
some misconceptions about the technology. Masin stated that the
AKC CAR microchip, like the AVID and HomeAgain microchips, conforms
to the American Standard and operates at a frequency that can be
read by the scanners at most animal shelters nationwide. The TROVAN
chip distributed by AKC CAR has been part of the United States’ installed
base since 1990. It has been the product of choice for organizations
such as the ASPCA, the Conservation Breeding Specialist Group of
the International Union for the Conser-vation of Nature, the Convention
on International Trade of Endangered Species and major shelters
in San Diego, Los Angeles and New York City, in addition to most
major zoos, to name just a few. In 1993, under the auspices of
the Automatic Identification Manufacturers (AIM) USA, the industry
work group began developing a standard for microchipping practices
in the United States. All three of the major companies then present
in the market: (1) Destron Fearing (precursor of Digital Angel,
which distributes the “HomeAgain” chip offered by Schering
Plough, (2) AVID and (3) TROVAN (EID and Infopet) participated.
The resulting document, entitled “AIM USA Companion Animal
Electronic ID User Requirements” was published on February,
24, 1995. It explicitly stipulated that scanners be able to “reliably
read the three transponder types being injected into companion
animals in the United States as of October 1, 1993: the Trovan
ID-100, the Destron TX1400L and the AVID ITI-125S.”
Masin went on to say that “the operating frequency of the
three microchip types distributed in the United States, HomeAgain
(Destron), AVID, AKC CAR (TROVAN), is not the critical issue for
determining microchip readability. All three operate at 125 kHz,
in other words, they can be excited at that frequency. Additionally,
all three brands can also be excited at 128 kHz.” The reason
that some American standard microchips cannot be detected by certain
scanners is the result of a business decision by individual manufacturers
to limit their scanners. These business decisions needlessly created
dislocations in the marketplace. The scanners in question fall
short of full adherence to what all the manufacturers had agreed
to in the AIM USA Companion Animal Electronic ID User Requirements,
which was to ensure that readers capable of reading all the chips
in the U.S. market would be made available to users .
MICROCHIPS
All microchips operate in a band, or range, of frequencies. They
are activated when they enter an EM field emitted by a scanner
within that band. For example, the Trovan microchip used by AKC
CAR can operate at a range from 124.0 kHz to 132 kHz. All American
standard microchips will be activated when excited by a scanner
within that band (124 kHz, 125 kHz, 126 kHz, 127 kHz, 128 kHz,
etc). To distinguish microchips by frequency is not a meaningful
differentiator. If a scanner emits a field within this range, it
will activate the microchip. Below is a handy list that is useful
in deciphering what you should know about microchips. There are
encrypted and unencrypted microchips and scanners that can read
them.
• AVID encrypted chip. The AVID scanner,
Trovan (AKC CAR) scanner and iMAX Black Label scanner will read
most AVID encrypted chips. Newer HomeAgain scanners may also
read this chip. Many of the other scanners cannot read this chip.
The AVID encryption scheme was designed so that the chip could
not be read by all scanners.
• Unencrypted Destron protocol chip (sold by HomeAgain, Banfield,
Allflex and 24 PetWatch). This chip can be read by the AVID,
Trovan (AKC CAR), HomeAgain, and IMAX Black Label scanners.
• Trovan protocol chip (sold by AKC CAR). This chip can be
read by the Trovan, HomeAgain, iMAX Black Label and some AVID
scanners
• FDX-B (or “ISO”) chip (sold by CrystalTag, Banfield
and Bayer). This chip can be read by the iMAX Black Label and
the Home Again World scanner. It can be detected by the AKC CAR reader.
The readers are limited to detection only, because there are
unresolved issues concerning the legality of sale of this transponder in the
United States.
The ISO chip, which is most widely used in Europe, is produced
by most manufacturers in the chip business. It is not widely used
in the United States because of the unresolved patent issues and
IP litigation that is currently underway in United States courts.
ISO standards are open standards, and the particular standard on
which this chip is based allows for chips which are programmable
in the field. There are also compliant chips that are reprogrammable
in the animal. Some are sold blank, allowing the purchaser to determine
a numbering sequence of their own or code duplication. The reality
today is that nobody is in a position to prevent code duplication
of ISO chips. To date, only the read-only version is available
via retail channels in the United States. This is likely to change
once a significant installed base of readers is in place. Programmable
FDX-B chips are already available via the internet.
SCANNERS
There are many kinds of scanners available in the marketplace
for consumers to use. Some are manufactured to only read certain
brands of chips while ignoring others. These should be considered
inferior because they have been selectively programmed (limited
or restricted) in an effort to restrict competition and protect
that manufacturer’s
brand. This limitation is the result of business decisions made
by the manufacturer. Generally speaking, the consumer does not
need to be an expert in order to decide which chip or scanner to
use. The fundamental question every consumer should ask when selecting
a scanner is whether that scanner can read the installed base of
microchips in the United States (Trovan, AVID and Destron, whose
street names are AKC CAR ID system, AVID and HomeAgain).
There are four criteria to consider when evaluating scanners.
(1) Which chip protocols does the scanner support?
(2) How fast does it read (speed)?
(3) What is the read range (distance)?
(4) What is the read area?
It is not enough for a manufacturer to claim that their reader
reads protocols A, B and C. Read speed, read distance and read
area taken together determine whether the reader will detect a
chip or miss it. The read range and read area may be different
for different microchip protocols.
Read speed is the amount of time it takes for the scanner to cycle
through all of the protocols supported, find a chip, read all of
the coded information on the chip and display the ID number. The
more protocols that are supported, the slower the reader will read.
The FDX-B system, because of the nature of the FDX-B technology,
is slower than the American standard systems, and its inclusion
in readers decreases the performance of the reader with respect
to all systems.
Read range is how far away, in inches, the chip can be from the
scanner and still be detected. If the range is too short, the result
is a “no read.”
Read area is the coverage of the reader: the size of the footprint
for detecting a microchip. If it is too small, and the operator
is waving or moving the reader quickly, the chip may pass out of
the field before the reader has a chance to detect it. The result
is a “no read.”
Some readers are better performers than others. What determines
the quality of a given scanner is its performance on the four criteria
above. Consumers should be sure to purchase scanners that perform
well on all counts.
One of the most often overlooked topics regarding scanners is how
to use them properly. Most function best when they are moved slowly
over the area where the chip has been implanted. How the scanner
is held and moved will determine its effectiveness. A quick swipe
over the pet can cause many scanners to miss the chip because it
takes time for each scanner to read and interpret the codes that
are used by each microchip manufacturer. Below is a handy chart
to help decipher the chips each scanner will read.
To illustrate how to use and interpret Table 1, one scanner will
be used to make the point. Notice that the AKC CAR scanner, called
the ID System (Trovan) reads the chips manufactured by AVID, HomeAgain,
Crystal Tag and Trovan. It detects the ISO chip sold by Banfield
and Bayer.
Scanners work by emitting an EM field and activating microchips
in that field, which in turn causes the chip to emit a signal back
to the scanner. The scanner decodes the signal it has received
and displays a series of numbers and letters (i.e. 000619FF91).
We call these numbers and letters the microchip number, or ID number.
This is the number used by shelters and veterinarians when contacting
a call center for the owner’s information. Think of it as
the pet’s social security number. For shelters and animal
control in particular it is critical that scanners read all microchip
protocols in the United States installed base. The AVID mini-tracker,
to the detriment of vets, shelters, pet owners and American pets,
will read only the Destron protocol and AVID encrypted protocol.
Consumers should not be misled by manufacturers who make statements
about microchip frequencies being the limiting factor. Too often
these claims are used to deflect the real issues which are the
limitations of their scanners. When manufacturers restrict their
scanners to disregard a competitive chip in order to protect their
brand and their sales they do a disservice to the community they
claim to support.
Those interested in purchasing a scanner should be guided by the
following:
1. Demand a scanner that is not restricted by microchip
brand or protocol. Ask if the scanner will read all American
Standard microchips. The best scanners will read the following
chips: AKC CAR ID system – by
Trovan, HomeAgain by Destron, AVID by AVID.
2. If a salesperson offers a scanner that does not read all American
Standard microchips, don’t buy it. Veterinarians, shelters
and breeders are entitled to scanners that can read all American
Standard microchips.
For readers to be used in animal control organizations, shelters,
and by rescue organizations, some additional factors are important:
3. Ask about read range. Some scanners need to be very near and
almost touch the pet in order to detect the microchip.
4. Ask about read area.
5. Ask about the scanners speed. How long (milliseconds) does it
take to read the microchip number? Some are quicker to respond
than others.
Because performance enhancing technology is more
costly, there may be a trade-off between read range and read area
on the one hand and scanner cost on the other. While a veterinary
practitioner may not require top notch performance with respect
to read range and read area, it is critical if an animal’s
life is at stake. Because of the need for multi-system scanners
in the United States, several companies have distributed scanners
to not-for-profit shelters and organizations involved in disaster
response. AKC CAR has been a leader in this field. Since 1995 AKC
CAR has contributed to the donation of over 23,000 scanners to
not-for-profit organizations.
DATABASES AND RECOVERY CENTERS
Organizations that purport to be in the pet recovery business should
be concerned about protecting the infrastructure. This means that
pets already micro chipped should be detected by new readers going
out to shelters and first responders. It also means that pet recovery
services must be efficient and effective. The free exchange of
data for recovery purposes between the industry leaders and the
recovery centers should be their stated objective. There should
be no such thing as competition for recoveries or competition between
recovery centers.
Many organizations and manufacturers have established their recovery
service (database/call center) as a for-profit business. Their
purpose is to find profit in the names and addresses in their database.
Some sell this information to insurance and credit card companies.
Other call centers limit their services to their own microchips,
require annual fees or charge fees to update owner information.
When shelters and veterinarians scan a lost pet for a microchip
or find a pet with a tattoo or collar tag they should be able to
call a 24/7 worldwide 800 number. In 2007, one organization, the
AKC CAR ID System™ introduced a low-priced microchip system
which incorporated an Amber Alert feature to their recovery program.
By combining a microchip technology with an Amber Alert, AKC CAR
has expanded the meaning of recovery. This new combined service
has raised the standard of what can be expedited. This difference
has caught the attention of veterinarians, breeders and shelters.
Here are some of the key measures that are often used to evaluate
the effectiveness and functionality of a database/call center and
their recovery services.
1. Business hours. Are they open 24/7
with live operators?
2. Do they enroll tattoo numbers and collar tags?
3. Enrollment Service. How long does it take? What is the wait
time before an operator answers?
4. Forms of Identification. Do they enroll the chips of all manufacturers
or just their own?
5. Languages. Do they respond in English and Spanish?
6. Inquiries. Do they provide free services and assistance to other
databases as part of their recovery service?
7. Updates of owner information. Do they charge a one-time fee
to enroll pets or do they have annual fees or additional update
costs?
8. Do they offer an “Amber Alert” as part of their
enrollment and recovery service?
9. Follow-up. Do they call back when numbers are busy?
9. Data sharing. Are they proactive in the recovery process? Do
they share information with other call centers or do they mine
the data for profit and limit their response efforts?
10. On-line enrollments. Can owners enroll their microchip and
pet information on-line?
The decision to buy scanners should be based on their performance,
quality and price. The decision to buy chips should be based on
price since quality is not the issue. The decision to enroll the
microchip in a database should be based on cost and services provided.
See the list of questions above for guidance.
About the Author:
Carmen L. Battaglia holds a Ph.D. and Masters Degree from Florida
State University. As an AKC judge, researcher and writer, he has
been a leader in promoting better ways to breed dogs. An author
of many articles and several books, he is also a popular guest
on TV and radio talk shows including several appearances on Animal
Planet. Those interested in learning more about his articles and
seminars should visit the website http://www.breedingbetterdogs
.com
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