ESCANABA -- As of last month, the Delta Animal Shelter in Escanaba began offering microchippng to all animals being adopted from the shelter. It's done at no additional cost to the owner and is included in the standard adoption price.
The procedure is quick and painless. A microchip is inserted between the animal's shoulder blades. It has a barcode that's readable with a scanner, and that code contains the pet's home address and their owner's phone number. Microchipping is part of the shelter's dreams of improvement.
"When we first took over the shelter, we did things the way they were done before. But we always had big dreams and wanted to improve upon the things that we were able to improve on; the things that we were able to offer for the animals here," said Shelter Manager Susan Gartland. "So I think it's one step closer to making this an adoption center versus an animal shelter pound that it used to be."
Officials say microchipping will help cut down on the number of stray animals being brought in and being unable to reunite them with their owners.
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