[coastcat]

As you already know from reading the import regulations, your cats and dogs must be microchipped before being imported into New Zealand. This is primarily to have a definitive identification of each animal for the purpose of health screening (all the veterinary paperwork requires the microchip ID).

But here's the fun part. In the U.S., the standard is a 125 kHz chip. Everywhere else in the world, the 134.2 kHz chip is common and has been set as the standard by many countries including New Zealand and Australia.

I contacted MAF and the NZ Veterinary Association about this issue. (same day e-mail response from both, very impressive!) According to Dr. Kerry Mulqueen, the animal import/export advisor for MAF, their scanners can read all chips made by Avid (a major manufacturer), including the 125 kHz version. However, Dr. Chris Hutchings (NZVA's spokesman on the issue of microchipping) advises Americans to either re-chip pets with 134.2 kHz chips or to bring a compatible scanner.

The Avid MiniTracker scanner that only reads FriendChips (the Avid chip implanted by American vets - my cats have them) has a list price of US$225.00. That's an unnecessary expense on top of vet fees and quarantine costs!

The 134.2 kHz chips are available in the U.S., however. The American Kennel Club endorses the HomeAgain chip (http://www.homeagainid.com), which conforms to the international standard and can be read by scanners available in NZ. If you have not yet chipped your pets, save yourself some potential annoyance and expense by using HomeAgain or the EuroChip. I haven't gotten confirmation that the EuroChip can be read by the scanners in common use in U.S. shelters, but it should be fine. HomeAgain is readable by all scanners here and abroad.

(I just did a vet search on the HomeAgain site - it seems like every vet clinic near my house implants HomeAgain except for the one I take my cats to!)

FYI, NZ adopted the 134.2 kHz standard in 2001. In July 2006, all dog registrations will require microchipping, so all shelters and vet practices should have the scanners by then.

Note: If you had your pet chipped by Banfield (Petsmart's vet clinic), they used a chip that met the international standard but could not be read by most U.S. scanners. They've stopped using that chip after some bad publicity over the incompatibility, but it should be fine for NZ purposes.

[Raeven]

Hi, coastcat,

This is super information that could save us all lots of money -- thanks so much for taking the time to post it!! I've put it into my 'very valuable information' file.

Thanks again!!

All the best, Rae

[drumminj]

Thanks, coastcat. I"ll need to find out what kind of chip the rescue put in my dog.

How did you come across this information, exactly? I wasn't even aware there were different frequency chips??

J

[coastcat]

Thanks, coastcat. I"ll need to find out what kind of chip the rescue put in my dog.

How did you come across this information, exactly? I wasn't even aware there were different frequency chips??

J

I was completely unaware of the different frequencies until I started researching the availability of microchipping in NZ. Here's some info from the American Veterinary Medical Association: http://www.avma.org/onlnews/javma/oct04/041015e.asp

Theoretically it shouldn't be a problem if your dog has a 125 kHz chip implanted, since the MAF rep said their scanners can read it. If it's a HomeAgain chip, no worries. I sent an inquiry to Avid regarding the FriendChip, but haven't gotten a reply back - I'm not sure the FriendChip can be read by overseas scanners because of the whole proprietary technology issue (FriendChips cannot be read by non-Avid scanners). A little Googling shows that a lot of AKC breeders use EuroChips if they go with Avid's products. I did ask MAF specifically about Avid chips, and was told that their scanner can read all Avid chips, but I'd rather not find out the hard way! Besides, even if MAF can read the U.S. chips, it's not necessarily true that the scanners being installed in NZ shelters and vet clinics can detect and read them. And as I said, chipping dogs will become mandatory in a couple years.

I also submitted an inquiry to the HomeAgain people to find out if their product can be implanted in addition to an existing chip, or if the vet needs to remove the FriendChip.

It's only a theoretical problem for me, since neither of my FriendChipped boys is likely to make the journey to NZ. But now I know which chip to get implanted in any future felines acquired here.

Edit: I just received a reply from HomeAgain. In theory you can have your pet implanted with a 125 kHz chip and a 134.2 kHz one, but this isn't universally acceptable when exporting your pet to another country. The rep specified the UK as a country which would not allow a double-chipped animal. If you have a FriendChip implanted, it seems like the best thing to do it remove it and re-chip with the EuroChip or HomeAgain.