February 22nd is known as "Cat's Day" due to a number pun.
While the number of cats kept as pets is said to exceed that of dogs, only about 40% of dogs are fitted with microchips to identify individuals.
According to a survey by the Pet Food Association, an industry group of pet food manufacturers, the number of cats kept as pets is estimated to be 8,837,000 in 2022, exceeding the number of dogs, which was 7,053,000, for the ninth consecutive year. .
On the other hand, pet dogs and cats, when purchased from a store, are equipped with a microchip with a diameter of about 2 mm that has an identification number recorded, and the identification number and owner information are registered in the national database last year. Although it became compulsory from June, according to the Ministry of the Environment, the number of registrations by the 21st was
about 453,000 dogs
and about 189,000 cats, which is about 40% of dogs. .
Regarding the reason for this, the Ministry of the Environment believes that many cats are not microchipped because cats are often raised by transfer or protection, and if the owner does not go through a store, it is obligatory for the owner to install a microchip. I'm here.
The registration of microchip information is intended to reduce the number of lost children and abandonment of breeding by making it easier to identify the owner. I want you to proceed with microchipping for both cats and cats."