I am seeing a lot more posts on social media about pet microchips causing cancer, and it’s not supported by the facts. Since information circulating on social media can cause people to make decisions about whether or not to chip their pets, I wanted to take a look at the current science about it.
What is a Pet Microchip?
A pet microchip is a small object about the size of a grain of rice that is injected under a pet’s skin between the shoulder blades. Each chip is encoded with a unique number, and when a microchip scanner is passed near the pet, the chip emits a radio wave with the that identifying number. The scanner then displays the unique number of the chip, uniquely identifying the pet.
Databases of microchips are maintained by the manufacturers, and consumers submit their contact information to the database so that there is contact information corresponding to the unique chip ID number. When a veterinarian or shelter scans a cat and needs to find the owner, they can contact the manufacturer or use a universal microchip lookup tool that can search multiple manufacturer databases at once. This makes it possible to access the contact information associated with the unique ID in the chip and contact the pet’s family.
Do Microchips Cause Cancer in Cats and Dogs?
In the United Kingdom,the British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) has been tracking microchip adverse reactions since 1996. This gives long-term, real-life data about actual adverse reactions to implanted microchips in pets.
The most common adverse reaction reported to microchips is migration, when the chip does not remain behind the cat’s neck and between his shoulder blades. This happened to Pierre. His chip is located over the middle of his left shoulder blade. The risk of a migrated microchip is that it may not register if someone runs the scanner down the cat’s back if it migrates far enough. It isn’t a health risk.
The BSAVA reported 2 tumors at the microchip site in 3.7 million microchipped pets. In one of these cases, veterinarians are unsure whether the tumor was from a vaccination that was given at the same location.
Why Microchip your Cat?
On the other hand, the American Humane Association estimates that over 10 million dogs and cats are lost or stolen in the US every year. The return-to-owner rate is SO much higher in pets with chips, especially for cats.
Cats are 20 times more likely to get home from a shelter if they have a chip. Dogs, in general, have a better return-to-owner rate even without chips, in part because people are not as proactive about finding lost cats. But even dogs 2.5 times more likely to get home from a shelter with the help of a microchip.
Ultimately, you have to decide what’s best for your cat. Every choice you make balances risks and rewards for your pets, from microchipping to what diet you choose for your furry companion. I am an advocate of microchips for identification because the chance of a cat being lost is much higher than 2 in 3.7 million, and I see a lot of heartbreak every week from people searching for their lost cats.
Research and further reading:
AVMA, Microchipping of Animals Backgrounder
Animals Journal, Frequency of Lost Dogs and Cats in the United States and the Methods Used to Locate Them
Ohio State University Research News, Microchips Result in High Rate of Return of Shelter Animals to Owners
American Animal Hospital Association, AAHA Universal Pet Microchip Lookup
Photo credits:
depositphotos/RasulovS and vetkit
flickr creative commons/Quinn Dombrowski
We are all chipped!
Great information! I had never heard any of those rumors about microchips and cancer, but it’s good to see them being debunked.
My cat has just been diagnosed with a brain tumor. He has very good nutrition. He has been microchipped by the pet adoption place.
In all may many years with cats, I have never lost one. I would not choose to get a cat microchipped, to lessen the chance of a medical consequence. I am doing research to investigate further.
Mine had a tumor in the throat area .I believed it to be from Miralax being prescribed from a vet but now not sure if it was the microchip
There are always risks with even the most safest things. The benefits of microchipping definitely outweigh those risks. None of us are microchipped, however, even though the mom always said she was going to get it done.
We appreciate your research and perspective on Micro chips and cancer. However, we are not microchipped because we have a genetic link to VAS in our line that caused Truffle to lose her little brother from a vaccination. It is a very small percentage of cats that develop this cancer, but that percentage sent Beignet to the bridge at 11 weeks of age. Yes the chances are very small of getting cancer, but since it is in our genetic line, our chances are higher of developing a tumor. We agree microchipping is extremely important and unless there is a history in the genetic line, pets should be microchipped.
You have done minimal research on this topic. The anti hip movement was started by a group who were against human chipping and extended it to animals. Most literature is anecdotal. Aditiinally 2-3 articles are hardly enough for a non anatomist or cancer specialist to draw conclusions.
JULIE SAYS
MAY 31, 2017 AT 9:33 AM
I don’t write anything without reading extensively on the subject. Referenced at the bottom of this post are resources that were the most relevant and compressible to the average reader, not the full list of source material and research. I apologize if i gave the impression that they were the only information I reviewed on the subject.
That said, you are correct that I am not a veterinarian or clinician, and I always encourage anyone who has concerns to speak to their veterinarian, who knows them and their cat best.
Wanda, do you have any links to articles that show they do cause cancer?
THANK YOU for posting this….
the cancer concern is real for me. Having a cat who suffered and died with VAS, I am concerned about injecting foreign objects into my cats. I have heard of more adverse reactions and I know full well that not all vets report all adverse reactions, but it is still reassuring to see those figures. Kinda blows the water out of the argument that VAS should be called FISS
Great info! I’m chipped and we’re glad I am. TW doesn’t let me get vaccinated and wouldn’t have axed them to chip me if she had concerns.
We chipped Angel and Chuck (inside cats), and then Patty O’Malley and Sweetie too, who are friendly ferals. Don’t ever want to have to worry that the animal shelter would euthanize or adopt out one of my cats if they went missing! And keep that microchip info up to date, folks, when you move. Some groups cannot track you down, due to time and cost limitations. Great post!
That was great information and we appreciate you sharing it!
What a very helpful and informative post. We had no idea they could move about.
Hugs madi and mom
This is great information! I was surprised to read the cancer rumor when researching our Purrfect 10 microchip post. Mudpie was microchipped when I adopted her and I’m very happy she has that protection.
We are all chipped! We came pre-chipped from the shelter.
We’d rather it was fish and chips, though.
Yeah, that’s what I found too – and it irritated me that recently a study about “microchips! cancer!” began circulating again. *sigh*
Very interesting post. I would think the 2 cases out of 3.7 must be coincidental. I am ashamed to admit only 2 of my 12 are microchipped, I need to work on that.
Great information ! Only 2 cancer cases out of 3,7 millions is nothing, and the benefits of microchipping your cat are definitely worth of doing it, except if you already know that your cat is “at risk” like mom Paula said above. Purrs
5 of my 7 pets have been microchipped. One of the cats and my dog were not. Raven has two microchips, one of which is broken. You can see them both on her x-rays. I’m not thrilled about the broken chip since it could expose her to small amounts of multiple chemicals. But I don’t think it’s worth the risk of doing surgery to remove it.
its made of glass though!!! that pet must be in so much pain !