Plan for microchips in pets gets thumbs up from rights groups

 Animal welfare activist S Shashi Kumar says the move would make it easier to enforce animal welfare laws and penalties for animal cruelty and abandonment.

The government has revealed plans to make it compulsory for pet dogs to have implanted microchips and identification cards and be licensed by local authorities. (Envato Elements pic)

PETALING JAYA:

 Animal welfare groups have welcomed Putrajaya’s plan to require the use of microchips implanted in pets, saying the move will help promote responsible pet ownership and make it easier to trace abandoned pets.

Global Human Rights Federation president S Shashi Kumar said the move would discourage owners from dumping their unwanted pets, as the microchips would make it easier for authorities to enforce animal welfare laws, including fines and penalties for pet abandonment and cruelty.

“When people know their pets are traceable and that dumping them has consequences, they are more likely to take responsibility, such as planning for care, rehoming pets responsibly, or surrendering them through legal channels,” Shashi told FMT.

A microchipping database would provide authorities with valuable data on how many pets exist in a particular area, how many are abandoned over time and patterns of ownership.

Choong Koon Yean, from Independent Aid for Protection and Welfare of Animals Penang, said pet abandonment remains one of the biggest challenges undermining efforts to control the stray population, including trap-neuter-release programmes.

“We have spoken to farm owners and irresponsible families who say they will not neuter their animals. Some even say, without hesitation, that they will simply throw away the puppies, and ask us: ‘What can you do?’

“The painful truth is that there is very little we can do as we are not enforcement authorities, and without microchipping or any form of registration, there is no way to prove ownership or hold anyone accountable,” said the activist.

Shashi also said the use of microchips should have been introduced much earlier, as it would have prevented unnecessary cruelty, abuse and deaths of stray animals.

“Many pets have been accidentally lost by their owners, only to be caught by local councils and put down. These cases could have been easily avoided with microchipping, allowing animals to be traced back to their owners,” he added.

On Feb 12, agriculture and food security minister Mohamad Sabu said the government plans to make it compulsory for pet dogs to have implanted microchips and identification cards, and be licensed by local authorities. - FMT