The Winn Feline Foundation announced today that the HomeAgain Proactive Pet Recovery Network has pledged to donate $1 toward feline health research for every new cat microchipped and enrolled in HomeAgain during the months of June, July and August 2008. According to the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP), less than 5 percent of lost cats are reunited with their owners once they are taken into a shelter.
“No question, microchipping saves lives, ensuring far more lost cats are reunited with their families,” says Dr. Susan Little, president of the Winn Feline Foundation.
Most cats don’t wear collars, and even for those that do, collars and ID tags may fall off or be removed. Microchipping, plus enrolling in the data base, is the only permanent form of identification.
“HomeAgain knows that, in our database, cats are underrepresented in comparison to the number of lost and found cat reports we receive,” says Steve Shell, vice-president and general manager of HomeAgain. “Twenty-two percent of pets in the HomeAgain database are cats, but we actually keep more cats than dogs as companion pets in the US. Cats are not as well identified as dogs, with collars and tags, or with microchips and registration, putting them at great risk of never getting reunited with their owners if ever lost. It is our mission at HomeAgain to save pet’s lives. That’s why we are pleased to partner with Winn to help spread the word about the importance of permanent identification for all cats while supporting important veterinary research to enhance the health and longevity of our feline friends.”
Little adds, “When cats become separated from their people in an emergency, such as a tornado, hurricane, wildfires or flood – a microchip may be your only chance of getting your cat back. I also believe that people with indoor-only cats think their cats will never get out. Unfortunately, that’s just not true.”
About Winn Feline Foundation
The Winn Feline Foundation is a non-profit organization established 40 years ago by the Cat Fanciers’ Assoc. to promote the health and welfare of cats through education and research. Veterinarians and cat owners benefit every day from research funded by Winn. For more on cat health, visit www.winnfelinehealth.org.
About HomeAgain
Since 1995, HomeAgain has been a leader in companion animal identification and lost pet recovery. Debuting in 2006, the new HomeAgain Proactive Pet Recovery Network is a proactive lost pet service that actually mobilizes veterinary clinics, shelters and volunteers at the first alert of a missing pet. With HomeAgain, a lost pet is successfully recovered approximately every six minutes. To date, more than six million pets in the United States have been enrolled in the HomeAgain program, resulting in more than 500,000 successful recoveries. For more information, visit www.homeagain.com. HomeAgain is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Schering-Plough Animal Health Corporation.