Cat owners could face £500 fine unless their pets are microchipped before 20 weeks old under new law
- All owners must have their cat microchipped by June 2024 – or they face a fine
- There are as many as 2.3 million unchipped cats in England, according to Defra
- READ MORE: Motorists warned driving with pet could land them a £5,000 fine
Cat owners have been warned that they could face a £500 fine under a new law, unless their pet is microchipped before it reaches 20 weeks old.
All pets in England are now required to be microchipped, with millions of cats set to be inserted with the small electronic device by June 2024.
This comes following the compulsory cat microchipping legislation that was introduced in Parliament today – a move that has been welcomed by a charity that has been calling for this to be passed since 2016.
The new rules mean pets must be implanted with a microchip before they reach the age of 20 weeks.
Owners’ contact details will also be stored and kept up to date in a microchipping database.
The move has been welcomed by Cats Protection, which has been calling for all owned cats to be microchipped since the measure was first introduced for dogs (File image)
The aim of the new law is to make it easier to track down any lost of stray pet cats, so they can be returned home safely, which Environment Secretary Therese Coffey described as a time of ‘devastating’ loss for many owners.
All owners must have their cat microchipped by June 10 2024.
With plenty of warning being given, any owner that is found not to have microchipped their cat will have 21 days to have one implanted.
Otherwise, they face a fine of up to £500.
According to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), there are more than nine million pet cats in England – with as many as 2.3 million unchipped.
Compulsory microchipping of dogs came into effect in April 2016.
Speaking about this new rule, Ms Coffey said: ‘Cats and kittens are treasured members of the family, and it can be devastating for owners when they are lost or stolen.
‘Legislating for compulsory microchipping of cats will give comfort to families by increasing the likelihood that lost or stray pets can be reunited with their owners.’
And Chief veterinary officer Christine Middlemiss added: ‘Microchipping is by far the most effective and quickest way of identifying lost pets.
‘As we’ve seen with dog microchipping, those who are microchipped are more than twice as likely to be reunited with their owner.
‘By getting their cat microchipped, owners can increase the likelihood that they will be reunited with their beloved pet in the event of it going missing.’
This new rule will not be compulsory for free-living cats, such as those that live with little or no human interaction or dependency, such as farm, feral or community cats (File image)
The move was welcomed by Cats Protection, the cat rescue and welfare charity, which has been calling for all owned cats to be microchipped since the measure was first introduced for dogs.
Madison Rogers, of Cats Protection, said: ‘The charity regularly reunites owners with their much-loved cats and in most cases this is only possible thanks to microchips.
‘No matter how far from home they are found, or how long they have been missing, if a cat has a microchip, there is a good chance that a lost cat will be swiftly returned home.’
What is microchipping?
Microchipping involves inserting a chip – around the size of a grain of rice – under the skin of a pet.
As this chip has a unique serial number, the owner needs to register it to a database.
Therefore, if their beloved pet ever becomes lost, when it is found the microchip can be read with a scanner.
And, this means that the registered keeper will be identified on the database so the pet can be quickly reunited with them.
This new rule will not be compulsory for free-living cats, such as those that live with little or no human interaction or dependency, such as farm, feral or community cats.
And owners that have their cats already microchipped should ensure their details are up to date, Defra said.
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