Islanders are being urged to check whether their cats are properly microchipped and registered as part of a community campaign.
Jo Abraham has been visiting cat owners’ homes as part of the Jersey Cat Search Group to scan pets and confirm both that they are microchipped and that contact details linked to the chip are fully up to date.
Figures from the JSPCA revealed that around half of cats in Jersey are not microchipped.
According to Jo, an increasing number of cats have been taken to the Animal Shelter as strays over the past year because they were either not chipped at all or their microchips were not registered to a UK database.
She added that “up-to-date contact details are so important”, particularly if a cat is injured or involved in a road accident, as owners can then be contacted quickly.
The campaign is also helping reunite missing pets with their families when unfamiliar cats are found wandering in gardens.
Several owners have already taken up the free scanning offer, and the group hopes wider publicity will help reach people who are not active on social media.
Anyone interested in arranging a scan or finding out more can contact the group at jcsgmicrochips@gmail.com.
