Microchip brands

I am getting my cats and dog chipped tomorrow.  The vet uses the Avid chip and I noticed on a search here that a lot of people got the Avid Eurochip.  Does anyone know whether I'll need to buy my own scanner if we get the standard Avid chip?  I'm assuming that the Eurochip can be read by the ISO scanners. 

I also thought it might be helpful if people wanted to just list the chip brand they used and if they needed to buy a scanner - for future reference.

Thanks!

Carrie

My cat came over in December. He has an AVID chip. The number format is 9 numbers followed by a letter. I didn't buy my own scanner and he came through Defra and customs fine.

My cat has a Home Again chip. I didn't need to buy a scanner and had no problems getting him over here.

Here is the email that I got from DEFRA today regarding Avid chips....

Good Afternoon,

The Animal Reception Centres (ARC) based at Heathrow, Gatwick,
Manchester and Bristol airports have universal scanners which can read
all Avid types of microchip.  Please note most UK veterinarians cannot
read these types of chip therefore, if you wish to continue to have your
pet in the scheme you must provide your own reader.

Regards

Claire Heslop
PETS Helpline

You can also "rent" scanners from the Avid company and Home Again.  That's what I'll do, just to make sure. 

Our cats have DataMars chips (www.datamars.com) which are ISO standard and should be no problem in England. As far as I understand, the chips are of the same type they use in the UK.

(oh, and I came across a website which lists DataMars as a lot safer than Animalcare, Avid or Bayer. (http://www.bsava.com/VirtualContent/85185/2004_microchip_report.pdf --second to last table on the last page) But then again, that's just the factory reported problems, so I don't know whether that's really indicative of anything. But I thought I'd post it anyway, as this topic is about gathering info on the chip issue!)

Realize that this is a relatively old topic - how do you rent a scanner from the Avid folks.  Is there a website or a number to call?

Many Thanks!

Yes, you can rent a scanner, but the easier thing to do is just call the reception centre where your animal will be taken.

Avid chips (if I am not mistaken) are the mainstream in the UK, so you shouldn't have to worry anyway.

My dog had HomeAgain, and I called the reception centre (they are really nice in Manchester) to ask.  No problems at all.

Like you, I worried about this for no reason because you can just call and ask!  If you know where your dog will be going (London, Manchester, etc..) YOu can look online (do a search..manchester animal reception centre) and find the contact details.