Microchipping cats to become mandatory by law

14th December 2021

What a great early Christmas present for pet owners to hear the news that microchipping cats is to become compulsory by law, helping to protect millions of cats across the country.

The new rules follow a Government call for evidence and consultation which saw 99% of respondents support the plans for compulsory microchipping in cats.

Animal Welfare Minister, Lord Goldsmith was quoted on the Governments website as saying “Cats are much-loved parts of our families and making sure that they’re microchipped is the best possible way of making sure that you are reunited with them if they are ever lost or stolen.”

He continues by stating that this new law will be brought in alongside a range of other protections to be put in place under their Action Plan for Animal Welfare.

So it is official! The new law aims to have all pet cats in the UK microchipped by 2023.

Under the new rules, owners will need to ensure that their cat is microchipped by the time they reach 20 weeks of age and any owners found not having microchipped their cat will have 21 days to have one implanted or face a fine of up to £500.

Cats Protection, the leading cat charity in the UK, has been at the forefront of the campaign for compulsory microchipping of pet cats.

A 2021 report conducted by the Cats Protection states that there are over 10.8 million pet cats in the UK, and as much as 26% of those are currently not microchipped. This means it can be very hard to reunite cats with their owners if they get lost, injured or stolen.

Pet Theft Awareness have reported that they have seen cat thefts nearly triple since 2015, and this has once again risen since March 2020. Therefore this new law is highly welcomed in ensuring cats are identifiable by their unique serial number found on the microchip.

Here at Petpals we are delighted by the news of this new legislation coming into effect, which we envisage will go a long way to helping reunite cats with their owners, ultimately ensuring the welfare and protection of cats up and down the country.

For more information on cats and microchipping, click on the links below:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cat-microchipping-to-be-made-mandatory

https://www.cats.org.uk/about-cp/cats-report-2021

https://pettheftawareness.blogspot.com/2021/03/cat-theft-report-2021.html