What is microchip?
Updated By PetymFacts checked against official sources on
Quick answer
A pet microchip is a tiny identification chip, about the size of a grain of rice, injected under the skin, usually between the shoulder blades. It holds a unique number that a scanner reads, linked to your contact details on a database. It is not a GPS tracker. Most countries you might move a pet to require an ISO-standard chip.
Also called pet microchip, ISO microchip, microchipping, identification chip.
Key facts
- A microchip is about the size of a grain of rice and holds a unique number that a scanner reads. PDSA
- A vet or trained professional implants it under the skin between the shoulder blades, in a few seconds. PDSA
- Microchips are not linked to GPS and do not let you track your pet's location. PDSA
- Great Britain requires a microchip to the ISO 11784 or 11785 standard, implanted before or at the same time as the rabies vaccine. GOV.UK
- AQCS asks for the pet's microchip certificate with an application to export a pet from India. AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
How does a microchip get a lost pet home?
Only through the database: the chip itself stores just a number, and the number is useful only if your contact details against it are current.
When a lost dog or cat is found, a vet, shelter or warden passes a scanner over its shoulders. The scanner shows the chip's number, and the database it is registered on gives the owner's name and phone number. PDSA notes that a phone cannot read a chip by itself, though scanners that link to a phone exist.
International Cat Care stresses the step people forget: update the database whenever you move house or change your phone number. In India, where families move between cities for work and change SIM cards, an out-of-date record leaves the chip pointing at a number nobody answers. Keep the chip number on your pet's vaccination card and in your phone.
What can a microchip not do?
A chip is a permanent ID, not a tracker, not a medical record and not a substitute for a collar tag.
You may have read
I can track my dog's location with its microchip.
Myth
What the sources say
No. Microchips are not linked to GPS. For live location you need a separate GPS collar. PDSA
You may have read
The chip needs a battery and will run out.
Myth
What the sources say
A microchip should last the pet's lifetime and rarely fails; if one does, a vet can implant another beside it rather than removing it. PDSA
You may have read
Chipping hurts a lot and causes problems later.
Myth
What the sources say
It may cause brief discomfort like any injection, and the chip is made of non-reactive material. Small movement under the skin is harmless and it can still be scanned. PDSA
You may have read
A chipped pet does not need a tag.
Myth
What the sources say
Only someone with a scanner can read a chip. A collar tag with your number lets any neighbour or watchman call you straight away. International Cat Care
Why does a microchip matter for travel abroad?
For most international moves, the chip comes first, because the rabies vaccine and every certificate after it are tied to the chip number.
- Great Britain: an ISO 11784 or 11785 chip, implanted before or at the same visit as the rabies vaccine. GOV.UK
- The EU: the pet must be microchipped before its rabies vaccination. European Union (Your Europe)
- Leaving India: AQCS asks for the microchip certificate with the export application. AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
- Coming into India: the vaccination and microchip certificates are uploaded with the ATITHI application. AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
- Flying: IATA advises making sure your pet can be identified, for example by a microchip. IATA
What should you do after your pet is chipped?
Ask the vet for the chip number in writing and which database it is registered on, check that your name, address and phone number are spelled correctly, and ask the vet to scan the chip at each annual visit to make sure it still reads. If you plan to move abroad one day, ask whether the chip meets the ISO 11784 or 11785 standard before it goes in, so the rabies vaccine does not have to be repeated later.
International Cat Care also points out a handy use at home: microchip cat flaps read the cat's own chip and open only for numbers programmed into them, which keeps neighbourhood cats out of the house.
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Questions owners ask
Is microchipping painful for dogs and cats?
- It is like an injection. PDSA says it may cause brief discomfort, most pets barely notice, and a treat afterwards helps. The chip is made of non-reactive material, so it should not cause problems later. A vet or trained professional does it in a few seconds.
Can a microchip track my pet with GPS?
- No. PDSA says microchips are not linked to GPS and cannot show where your pet is. A microchip only stores an ID number that a scanner reads when someone finds your pet. If you want live location, use a separate GPS collar as well.
Does my pet need a microchip to travel abroad from India?
- For most destinations, yes. Great Britain requires an ISO 11784 or 11785 chip implanted before or at the same time as the rabies vaccine, the EU requires the chip before the rabies vaccine, and AQCS asks for the microchip certificate when you apply to export a pet.
How do I update my pet's microchip details?
- Contact the database the chip is registered on, usually through its website; International Cat Care notes there is often a fee. Do it every time you move house or change your phone number, because a chip with old details cannot get your pet home.
Keep reading
Related terms
More in breeds and anatomy
- Body condition scoreA body condition score (BCS) rates a pet's body fat by look and feel, usually on WSAVA's 9-point scale: 1 is emaciated, 9 is severely obese, and the ideal sits around 4 to 5. You check how easily the ribs can be felt, whether there is a waist from above, and whether the belly tucks up from the side.
- BrachycephalicBrachycephalic means short-headed: dogs and cats bred with a flat face and short muzzle, such as the Pug, Shih Tzu, French Bulldog, Bulldog and Persian cat. The squashed airway makes breathing and cooling harder, so these pets overheat more easily, a real risk in Indian summers. Several Indian airlines refuse them in the hold.
- DewclawsDewclaws are the extra toes with claws that sit a little above a dog's foot, on the inner side of the leg, most often on the front legs. Because they do not touch the ground, walking never wears them down, so they need regular trimming. Left long, a dewclaw can curl round and grow into the toe pad, which hurts.
- Double coatA double coat is two layers of fur: a soft, dense undercoat close to the skin and a longer outer coat of guard hairs. Huskies, Labradors, Golden Retrievers and Pomeranians have one. The undercoat insulates against heat as well as cold, so vets advise brushing it out regularly rather than shaving the dog in an Indian summer.
- Indie dogAn indie dog is India's native dog: the free-living type often called the Indian pariah dog, INDog or desi dog, rather than a pedigree breed. It is usually medium-sized, short-coated, prick-eared and curl-tailed, alert and territorial. Genetic research finds Indian village dogs show little European ancestry, making them one of the world's older dog populations.
- Senior petA senior pet is in the later part of its expected life. For cats, vets' guidelines say senior means over 10 years. For dogs it depends on size: AVMA counts giant breeds as seniors from about 6 to 7 years and small dogs from about 8 to 11. Old age is not a disease, but seniors need closer checks.
- Spay and neuterSpaying and neutering are surgeries that stop a pet breeding. Spaying a female removes the ovaries and usually the womb; neutering or castrating a male removes the testicles. Besides preventing litters they lower some health risks, such as womb infection in females. The right age depends on species, breed and size, so your vet decides the timing.
Keep exploring
Sources
Each source was opened and read on the date shown. How Petym checks its sources
- PDSA: Microchipping your pet (opens in a new tab)
- GOV.UK: Bring your pet to Great Britain: microchip (opens in a new tab)
- AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying: Export of pets (dogs and cats) (opens in a new tab)
- International Cat Care: Microchipping cats (opens in a new tab)
- European Union (Your Europe): EU rules on travelling with pets and other animals in the EU (last checked 01/09/2026) (opens in a new tab)
- AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying: Import of live pet dogs under the Livestock Importation Act, 1898: standard operating procedure (August 2026) (opens in a new tab)
- IATA: Traveler's Pet Corner (opens in a new tab)