06/02/13 Pets Chipped - RSPCA, Stretton, BurtonChris Sandland and Alfie - 3 Year Old Mastiff Cross at the RSPCA in StrettonDOG owners in Burton have backed Government plans to have all dogs microchipped.
On Wednesday the Government announced all dogs must be fitted with a microchip by April 6 2016 or risk a fine of up to £500.
The chip, which is about the size of a grain of rice, will also allow police officers, vets, councils and charities to trace the owner of the dog.
It is hoped the move will make it easier to prosecute dangerous dog owners and return lost dogs to their owners.
In a comment on Facebook Johanna Tipper, Burton, said she was planning to fit a microchip to her nine-week-old pups later this week.
She said: “As a dog owner, why would you not chip your pet?
“Surely it gives peace of mind.
“At least if you putt a chip in we a have better chance of getting the pet home instead of some animal shelter.”
In another post, Craig Elson, of Burton, said his black Labrador was already fitted with a microchip.
He said: “It’s almost like registering his birth in a way and at least if he does go missing he will hopefully be returned safely.
“It is a good idea but how they’ll actually enforce it I don’t know.”
Samantha Thurlow, of Swadlincote, also backed the plans.
She said: “I think it’s a good idea.
“Both of my dogs are chipped – not because they are dangerous but in case they get lost.”
The spokesman for the RSPCA in Burton and South Derbyshire called the move “a step in the right direction”.
She said: “Compulsory microchipping will help make it easier to identify the owners of those dogs that have strayed or are being mistreated, neglected, abandoned or lost.”
But David Bowles, the charity’s head of public affairs, said more should be done to combat the number of strays.
He said: “On their own we don’t believe they will reduce the number of stray dogs.”
