ALPINE, Calif. (KGTV) — This Small Business Saturday, one Alpine pet center hopes its promotion will fix an ongoing issue in the area. Natural Instincts Healthy Pet Center is helping make it easier for pet owners to find their furry friends in case they go missing with microchips.
“Well, when dogs escape, a lot of times they may have a tag on their collar, but that tag can come off, and they can lose it,” says Angela Palmer, Manager at Natural Instincts Healthy Pet Center.
The typical cost of microchipping your pets can be anywhere between $25 to $80. But for this small business Saturday, the fee will only be $20, which includes a lifetime registration fee. The manufacturer of the chip will be avid.
However, reuniting pets with owners isn't the only issue they're aiming to solve.
“We've decided to do this because of the amount of dogs that are being dumped in our area, and we're trying to be able to make sure all the animals get back to their proper home,” says Palmer.
It's a concerning trend among alpine neighbors.
“Some of them are chipped, and luckily, they get to go back to their owner,” explains Palmer. “But then, unfortunately, there's the ones that aren't shipped, and we try to hold them to make sure an owner can come forward. And once in a while, they end up back at the shelter, and the shelters are already overcrowded.”
Palmer has been helping the community since 2015. But she's also emphasizing the importance of registering the microchip on your pet.
“Miss Arwin came to us when she was running loose,” Palmer said. “She was microchipped to a humane society that did a microchip and vaccinating vaccination clinic in the area. They chipped her, but nobody ever registered the chip.”
Palmer told ABC 10News it's a simple process that can make all the difference.
“We want to make sure that the dogs in our community are chipped and they get back to the rightful owners,” she said.
