Here at "VIDEX" we now offer to Microchip your dog, including whole litters of puppies if required.

To Chip or not to Chip?
The Dog Identification Group (DIG) is proposing a scheme for every dog to be identified by a microchip. It's not law yet,  but all parties seem to be keen on the idea and that's a good sign. 

The dog or cat should feel no more discomfort from a microchip implant than from a conventional injection. Microchipping uses Radio Frequency (RFID) technology and cannot be tampered with, fade or be removed. The chip is deposited mid-line into the fatty area between the shoulder blades. The needle houses the microchip and is therefore larger than a conventional needle, however, a clever design allows it to incise the skin easily with very little discomfort. Some animals cry - most do not.

What Is Microchipping?
Installing a glass encased transponder which has a unique identification number under the skin of your puppy is generally referred to as Microchipping.

Microchipping provides a permanent, relatively inexpensive form of identification that cannot be lost, altered or intentionally removed.  The process is quick and painless and can help ensure a happy reunion.

A Microchip containing a unique identification number is enclosed within a tiny glass transponder about the size of a grain of rice.  This transponder is inserted by a needle into the scruff of the dog's neck.  Once inserted the transponder can be read by a scanner.  All the details assigned to the identification number are recorded on the PETLOG database.

Microchipping should only be performed by a Veterinary Surgeon or a person trained to do so. At VIDEX Microchip Service all microchipping is done by Rhoda Payne who has received full training in conjunction with a recognised veterinary association and tutor from The Pet Chip Company and holds a valid "pet-detect" Certificate of Competency. 

What is a Microchip?
A microchip is the tiny computer chip that contains the unique ID number assigned to the transponder. The microchip measures approximately 1mm sq.  Each unique ID number is encoded onto the microchip during the manufacturing process by a laser that etches a code onto the surface of the microchip prior to the transponder assembly. The microchip is attached to an integrated circuit that uses a coil of copper wire would around an iron (ferrite) core.  This functions as a tiny antenna to pick up the energy from the scanner, and to send the encoded ID number from the microchip back to the scanner.  Between the copper coil and the microchip is a capacitor used for tuning.

Videx puppies are microchipped using the AEG pet-detect® system.  The ID-162 microchip is assembled using Trovan-proprietary, patented manufacturing technology.  The Trovan product is manufactured in a fully automated manufacturing process (i.e. nothing is touched by human hands at any stage of the manufacturing process).  Other technologies require semi-manual assembly of transponders, in certain competing brands, the transponder is placed inside the needle by hand before packaging and sterilisation!  The Trovan/AEG patented direct-bonding method uses gold bumps, NOT lead solder.  The "pet-detect®" transponder has no lead soldering joints.  Lead is a toxic substance. All ISO microchips conform to the ISO Standard 11785.  ISO microchips use the protocol set out in Standard 11785 and is the preferred microchip protocol for the UK and many other European countries. 

What are Transponders and how do they work?
A transponder is simply the tiny electronic device encapsulated in biocompatible glass used to store an identification number.  The size of the "pet-detect®" transponder is 2.12mm x 11.5mm and is often compared in size to an uncooked grain of rice.

Most people are familiar with laser scanning of bar codes on groceries and household goods go identify them at the cash till.  There are two principal differences between electronic identification (EID) and bar code technology.  Electronic identification uses a common low-power signal to read an ID number stored in a tiny electronic circuit, the microchip.  Bar codes use laser light to read the label.  Electronic identification is also referred to as "radio frequency identification" or RFID.  Low frequency radio waves, unlike laser light, can penetrate all solid objects except those made of metal.  Therefore, use of electronic identification allows the tiny device carrying the number to be injected into an animal where it resides permanently.  The transponder is made of inert material so it won't be rejected by your dog's body.  Once implanted, transponders cannot be lost or altered, or become worn like an external collar tag.  The transponder which is really the outer casing (encapsulation) of the microchip but is often referred to as the microchip itself.

The transponder is packaged within a sterilised needle, the needle cartridge containing the transponder is placed on the implant gun ready for implantation.  It's logical that a thin, extremely sharp needle is kinder to the dog.  The needles we use at Videx have a unique 'thin-walled' design.  As a result, the outer diameter which is what the animal experiences during implantation, is significantly smaller.  It is in fact more like a conventional 13-guage needle than the standard 12-guage needles used by many other brands.

Minimising the outside diameter of the needle is important in animal applications because it decreases the chance of haematoma and is less likely to cause discomfort. Also the needles we use, unlike other brands, have a double bevel, therefore, the needle neatly incises the skin rather than puncturing it.  The opening heals more easily and the transponder is less likely to be extruded.

To read the ID number of the transponder you require a scanner.  Most scanners generate an excitation signal in the low frequency radio band.  The power of the scanner's signal is less than one one-thousandth of a watt (one milli-watt).  When the scanner is passed over the implant site the scanner reads the ID number of the transponder as a radio signal, which is then decoded and displayed on the scanner as a 15-digit number.

The "pet-detect®" transponder uses the ISO protocol (FDX-B) and can be read by all scanners.