If you've got a pet registered here in Australia you may have heard about the issues with microchip registry HomeSafeID by now.
But if you're not, let us fill you in on what's going on.
Basically, HomeSafeID is one of five major private pet microchip registries in Australia and last year rumours began to swirl that the company had gone into administration.
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The company has been non-responsive since December and then on February 5, a notice was put on the website saying that the owner of the site “is no longer communicating or paying” for the website and that it will likely be shutting down soon.
Although there has been no word from HomeSafeID, there was another notice posted on the website on February 14 stating that the registry in Victoria has now closed, meaning that other states are likely to begin to follow.
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What happens if the HomeSafeID microchip registry closes?
If the registry does end up closing nationwide, any pets registered with HomeSafeID will no longer have a working microchip.
This means that if your pet is found and taken to a vet, council, or animal shelter to scan their microchip, no details will be found making it difficult to reunite you.
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How to check your pet's microchip details
Now, it's important to get ahead of the HomeSafeID closure and see if your pet is registered with them or another company.
According to vet Dr. Magda Upton, there are seven pet microchip registries in Australia, two state run in New South Wales and South Australia, and five privately owned including HomeSafeID.
The easiest way to check where your pet is registered is to find their microchip number (this can be found on vet documents or your vet should have it on file) and look it up on the Pet Address website.
If your pet's details don't turn up, it means that they are either registered with HomeSafeID or one of the state owned registries.
Either way, your best move is to register your pet with one of the other four privately owned companies.
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How to change microchip registries
According to the RSPCA, the other privately owned microchip registries are Central Animal Registry, Australasian Animal Registry, Global Micro Animal Registry and Petsafe.
All you need to do now is contact the company of your choice to swap your registration over, or you can get in touch with your vet and have them organise an alternative microchip registry for your pet.
Central Animal Registry, Australasian Animal Registry and Global Micro Animal Registry have all made things easy for HomeSafeID customers by posting notices on their homepages directing those affected by the closure to fill out a simple form to have their details moved across.
According to Dr. Upton, pet re-registration shouldn't cost more than $15.
The Australian Veterinary Association also states that there is no need for your pet to be microchipped again and that the information can simply be transferred to another registry if action is taken before HomeSafeID is shut down.
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