Migrating microchip

[daniela]

Apologies in advance if this is the wrong area to post this topic but I was just wondering whether anyone here has had the misfortune of having a dog with a migrating microchip?

My girl's microchip appears to have moved from the top of her shoulders right down to the side of her shoulder blade.

She was at the vets for a check up and the vet couldn't find her microchip and had to run the scanner all over her to find it.

I am not sure the best way to proceed and will quiz the vet but I was wondering whether anyone else has had this experience and if so what did you do?

[marjolein]

Yes, one of my girls has a migrating microchip. It's right under her left jaw. Since we have good scanners here, it's not too difficult to trace it.
If someone brings a lost dog in our practice, we scan the whole dog anyway, just in case he has a migrating microchip.

[daniela]

Thanks Marjolein.

I wonder whether every person (warden, vet etc) would have the sense to scan the whole dog?

Does it cause your dog any problems now that it has moved to her jaw?

[narelle]

Hey Dan, I have heard of this before but realistically so long as the chip is still showing up on scan 'somewhere' then ther eisn't much you can do about it. Eden is still 'identifiable' even with the chip not in her shoulder blades. I wouldn't worry about it.

Narelle

[marjolein]

Nope, it doesn't cause any problem at all.

[marjolein]

I think most wardens/vets check the whole dog, while all pedigreed dogs have a microchip here and a lot of mongrels as well.

[sdwlucas]

Being a dog warden, I do scan the entire dog. I scan it when I find a dog: right before I load it into the truck and the SPCA also scans the dog when it enters the building. Sadie my 3 year old has a migrating microchip. It is on her left shoulder instead of the middle of her back. From what I understand the chip moves if you do not hold your dog still for an hour or so after it is implanted. I may be wrong on that however.

[casadejuno]

Hi Daniela,

Our Boy Jack has its microchip on his chest! also Jean her microchip migrated to the other side of the neck. it can happen frequently, don't worry about it.

[daniela]

Thanks everyone for your feedback. You have put my mind at rest.

Do you think some different brands of chip work better (i.e they don't migrate) or is it down to the way they are inserted which can cause them to migrate?

[Weims]

Hi Daniela, I know of 2 dogs where the microchip was implanted inbetween the shoulders as normal, when they came to be scanned again some time later both chips had been expelled by the dogs bodies. In fact the bitch had an x ray because no one could believe that it had disappeared. As she now had no chip she had to be returned to spain and was not allowed into the uk. The dog was a weim I found, perhaps you remember reading about it in the club mag?, he had been chipped and both I and the kennels and the vets scanned him but couldnt find a chip. When I found his owners some weeks later they said he had been chipped and even the vet who had put it in couldnt find it anywhere in the dog.

I have also heard a few tales about chips migrating into shoulder joints and having had to be removed.

Lynn

[daniela]

Hmmm. Ignorance is bliss eh? I am just grateful to know where it has migrated to, albeit momentarily.

I do have a scanner so I shall be beeping her through every now and then just to check its location.

Thanks again.

[groovydreamyfab]

Several years ago, I had heard that it was actually possible for the chip to come out, but my whole pack has never had that problem, and haven't heard anything lately about that happening. My vet scans my weims regularly just to check the chip and it's basically in the same place. I had not heard that you were supposed to keep your dog still for a while after they were chipped. Weims...still? That would've been hard, mine are full-tilt!
Cassandra

[Alkemist]

Anyas chip has migrated to just under / behind her left ear! was really shocked when the vet scanned her and he found it there

Nina

[daniela]

I have since spoken to a few people about this and they said that if the mircochip was inserted when my girl was a puppy, it could have migrated as she grew in size. She was mircochipped when she was a puppy.

[sian]

For what it's worth, Cassie's chip was put in when she was 2+ years, and has since migrated to halfway down her shoulderblade. Having moved to there when she was about 4-5 years, it has remained there ever since.

If it has something to do with keeping them still after putting the chip in, then we're all doomed! Cassie had hers done when she was spayed, and the vets phoned me 30 mins after the op, asking me to take her home. The vetinary nurse stood there, holding a mad LH that was jumping up to my shoulder-height with excitement, saying "rest her, and keep her quiet for the next 3 days"!

[Rachel]

One of my dogs had a migrating chip. Its one reason I wont micro chip young puppies now. I try to wait for a few months before I have it done. As I also had been told by my vet if they are done too young they could migrate. But I have no conclusive evidence this is why they migrate.
Rachel

[tasha]

rachel I've got a similar problem with bonnie her chip is migrating, it was fine until last year when it went from the position in the shoulder blades to the latest position of half way down her leg. The body is actually designed to repel foreign objects from the body some take years but others can come out very quickly. I have bits of shotgun pellets in my face, neck and chest and they have one by one been coming out over the last 20+ years. There are some buried in the bone or in scar tissue that won't come out though depends on where it is.

I've been concerned about the migration not just for the health of my dog but also because of the level of dog thefts going on in the UK, my vet offered to redo the implant but I am reluctant to add yet another foreign body especially when one is already on its travels :-(

[marjolein]

The thing with microchips is that they're designed to create some scar tissue after implantation. That way they should stay embedded properly.

[Rachel]

Tasha
I did not realise until the other day that if someone has any metal in their body they can not have one of those MRI scans. Because the magnetic pulls the metal out of your body. I know someone who was asked if they were a farmer because you can get bits of metal dust in your eye, and if thats the case you cant have a MRI scan, just think. URGH!

I know this is not dog related but it crossed my mind when you said you have metal in your body.

Do you think Tattoo's are better for dogs ?

Rachel

[tasha]

I'm not sure really I suppose it depends on what you are going to do with your dogs, tattoo's are certainly more visible so easier to identify if the dog has gone missing but if you pet passport your dog, which I've done so we can travel, you have no choice but to insert a chip.

It would have been nice to be given the choice but I think they had concerns over how easy it was to tattoo where as each chip is unique. I've had to have an amendment added to my pet passport to show where the chip has migrated to and when I travel that will have to be amended again when she has her medication.