Just found this article in a news letter that I received from Little Big Cat and thought everyone should be aware:
There are three major U.S. microchip companies: Avid, Home Again, and Banfield (the Petsmart vet clinic folks). When microchips first came out, Avid and Home Again distributed thousands of scanners, at no cost, to shelters all over the U.S. These two chips use similar frequencies and can be read by the universal scanner that most shelters and veterinarians have on hand.
Around 2004, after its supplier lost a patent infringement lawsuit, Banfield developed its own microchip according to ISO (International Standards Organization) specifications, which are widely used in Europe. Banfield's reasoning is that ISO standards will eventually be put in place in the U.S.; but the truth is that this is years in the future, if ever. Because they use a different frequency, BANFIELD MICROCHIPS CANNOT BE DETECTED BY MOST SCANNERS IN THE U.S.! There have been several horrible cases where pets were lost and ended up in a shelter. The shelter scanned for a chip but DID NOT FIND the Banfield chip; the animals were subsequently euthanized. If your cat (or dog) was microchipped at Banfield after 2004, it is NOT fully protected, and you may want to consider having an Avid or HomeAgain chip added.
There are three major U.S. microchip companies: Avid, Home Again, and Banfield (the Petsmart vet clinic folks). When microchips first came out, Avid and Home Again distributed thousands of scanners, at no cost, to shelters all over the U.S. These two chips use similar frequencies and can be read by the universal scanner that most shelters and veterinarians have on hand.
Around 2004, after its supplier lost a patent infringement lawsuit, Banfield developed its own microchip according to ISO (International Standards Organization) specifications, which are widely used in Europe. Banfield's reasoning is that ISO standards will eventually be put in place in the U.S.; but the truth is that this is years in the future, if ever. Because they use a different frequency, BANFIELD MICROCHIPS CANNOT BE DETECTED BY MOST SCANNERS IN THE U.S.! There have been several horrible cases where pets were lost and ended up in a shelter. The shelter scanned for a chip but DID NOT FIND the Banfield chip; the animals were subsequently euthanized. If your cat (or dog) was microchipped at Banfield after 2004, it is NOT fully protected, and you may want to consider having an Avid or HomeAgain chip added.