A microchip smaller than a grain of rice has the power to reunite a lost pet with its family.
Cape Town, South Africa (20 April 2026) – Imagine your dog spots a gap in the gate, or your cat makes a dash for it while you’re carrying groceries in. Just like that, they’re gone. Without a collar, tag, or way for whoever finds them to know where home is.
It happens all the time, and most lost pets never make it back. But something as small as a microchip can change that!
This National Pet ID Week (17–23 April), TEARS Animal Rescue is urging pet owners across South Africa to get their animals chipped. Already done it? Take two more minutes to make sure your contact details are still correct.
Only 21% of dogs and 22% of cats in South Africa are microchipped, according to the State of Pet Homelessness Project. And only about a third of lost pets ever make it home. At TEARS, just 35% of strays that come through the door are chipped. For those who are, a reunion is almost guaranteed. For the rest, the odds are slim.
But a chip is only as good as the info behind it. Studies show 35.4% of microchipped animals have incorrect or disconnected numbers on their chip, and nearly 10% have chips that were never registered at all. If you’ve moved house, changed your number or rehomed a pet, updating those details takes two minutes and could mean everything.
Thanks to TEARS Animal Rescue for sharing these quick tips!
- Get chipped. TEARS in Cape Town microchips for just R100, but almost any local veterinarian clinic, SPCA, or animal welfare organisation can get the job done.
- Scan it. Just to be sure, ask your vet to check your pet’s chip at the next visit to make sure it’s still reading correctly.
- Update your details. When you have a moment, log into your pet’s microchip registry and confirm your contact info is current.
- Tell someone. Share this with a fellow pet owner! The more people who know, the more pets make it home.
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