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One of the most unique parrots we have bred was the Eclectus. These are very gentle and quiet birds that are rapidly becoming popular by pet owners. But they are not the easiest birds to breed, making them in low supply, and therefore driving up the cost to well over $1000.

Eclectus are very unique parrots, because they are sexually dimorphic, which means there is a very big difference between male and female, making it extremely easy to identify them. Male Eclectus are green, while females are predominately red and blue.

It was during the late 1880’s that scientist discovered that the green Eclectus were the males and the Red Eclectus were the females and that applied in each of the Eclectus species. This made sexing the chicks easy for breeders since there is no doubt by the color of the pin feathers as to what sex the baby was, so this was a financial savings on DNA testing on all the chicks.

BACKGROUND

There are 16 documented species of the Eclectus, however only 4 are generally available in the United States and Europe. These are the Solomin Island, Red Sided, Vosmaeri, and Grand. The Eclectus is a medium sized parrot. Solomon Island’s are the smallest, being 12”-13” long. Red-Sided Eclectus are the biggest at 16”-17”.

Eclectus are a bird native to New Guinea , the Solomon Islands, and southwards to Australia. In the wild, they are very good fliers, and spend much of their time flying over the jungle canopy.

As pets they are very gentle and playful. While they have a loud scream they are normally very quiet. They are excellent talkers, being rated in the top three of the parrots. From our experience, the males have always been the best talkers, and the most friendly and sociable of the sexes.

They are fairly difficult to breed. Breeders that start out as pets have a difficult time learning to parent and are the most difficult to breed. Wild Eclectus parrots seem to do better.

The female will generally lay 2 eggs and only she will incubate them, coming out of the breeder box twice a day to be fed by the male. When the chicks are a bit older she will come out and feed herself. The chicks are weaned by the age of 16 weeks.

In captivity, Eclectus parrots do not require a large cage, as they tend to not fly much. Many breeders who are offered large cages simply walk around or stay on their perches. The female spends most of her time in her breeding box. As pets, they enjoy spending their time on their cage, or on T-stands. They enjoy being petted and cuddled, but don’t usually get involved in active play with their owners.

Therefore, they will do great in a medium sized parrot case of 30×24x50. They are active chewers, and will quickly destroy their perches. So be sure they have extra wood toys to chew on, or invest in some good Manzanita perches. These are a very hard, dense wood that is difficult for birds to destroy.

DIET

Eclectus have a few unusual dietary needs. They must have a diet with a low fat content (adults only) due to their longer digestive tract. They are also susceptible to having low vitamin deficiencies, such as A, E, and D. Too much cholesterol will quickly develop into liver problems and a host of other blood related issues.

Therefore, they must have a very well balanced diet. It is important for an Eclectus owner to understand these health issues, and be able to identify the signs of potential problems. The very best method is to have your bird checked annually by an experienced avian vet, who will do a CBC blood test. Otherwise, you must learn to watch for feather problems, especially discoloration and blackening of the tops of the feathers. Also monitor them for fatigue and signs of diseases that are brought on from immune system problems.

There are some special pellet diets on the market designed for Eclectus parrots that contain a very low oil and fat content. When we bred them, we used just a standard pellet (such as Zupreem or Kaytee) and monitored their other food intake. They must be given extra vegi’s loaded with Vitamin A and E. Some research indicated they do not handle vitamin mixes, but I am not really convinced by this research to the point of abandoning them. We have taken in Eclectus birds with obvious deficiencies, and the vitamins brought them back just fine.

As a pet, the Eclectus is an excellent choice for a large parrot. They are intelligent, and known to just sit quietly and observe what is happening around the room. They are friendly and affectionate, great talkers, and will generally stay on their cage or stand. If you are planning to get one as a pet, it is recommended that you choose a male over the female, as they tend to be more docile and adjust to their new homes much quicker.

Once upon a time we decided to get into breeding birds. We were given a great opportunity to buy out another bird breeder’s stock of 28 parrots, which were added to our current collection of finches, parakeets, cockatiels and conures.

Prior to this, all of our birds were kept in our laundry room and scattered around our home. Adding a huge number of large cases was going to be impossible, so we needed to build a separate aviary. We didn’t have anyone to consult, so we just tossed it together as best we could. We decided to build another building on our property to house our aviary.

We made serious mistakes, and spent the next several years constantly upgrading our building to correct these errors. Once it was finished, we have a very efficient and easy to maintain setup.

So what follows is a VERY general idea of what you need to do if you want to put together a large, indoor bird aviary. I can’t possibly cover every situation in this short of space, but I will certainly give you important points that must be included into your designs. If you have any questions please post them in the comments section below.

LAYOUT

You are going to find that you just can’t toss in a bunch of assorted birds into a single room and expect them to get along. Our first mistake was discovering that some birds don’t get along at all with other breeds, and unless you can put them into separate rooms you need to partition them off.

In one case, we had two pairs of Macaws in cages next to each other. The problem was the female in one cage was more interested in the Male of the other, and we couldn’t get them to breed. We had to move them far apart, causing us to redesign our whole aviary layout.

Later, we discovered that Electus Parrots do not breed well when there are Conures around. And we had a bunch of them! So more modifications were required to our floor plan.

Lesson learned: Know the different issues with your birds, and how other birds can effect their breeding habits.

NOISE

Having a building filled with large parrots generates a lot of noise. If you live in a residential neighborhood be prepared to get a couple of complaints. Yes, we did get a few. But we had a lot more people who loved the jungle atmosphere we generated.

CAGE LAYOUT

We put a lot of careful thought into this. We had a lot of smaller birds that required cages with breeder boxes attached to the side. The layout was not space efficient. So we built some custom breeding boxes that stacked on top of each other. The top box would be for the left side cage, the bottom box for the right side cage. This reduced the space needed and gave us room for another row of cages. It worked out great, and the birds did perfectly will in this setup.

But our Macaws were a different story! Breeding Macaws need a huge cage. We decided not to even use a cage, but built our breeding pairs their own room. It was closet sized (4’x6’x8’) and had a large breeding box inside, with lots of perches scattered around. The box was built for easy access so we could monitor them.

Some birds do not do well if they are close to the floor, and prefer as high up as possible. Other birds are social and don’t really care who their neighbors are…others are just plain picky! Constant experimentation was needed to resolve all these issues, but we finally have everyone situated and happy.

LIGHTING

It is extremely important to monitor the lighting in the room. If your aviary is in an area with no windows, you need to supply them with artificial sunlight (full spectrum lighting). Our aviary had a few windows, so we supplemented with a lot of fluorescent fixtures, and in some cases cage-top fixtures. In an ideal situation, you would want them connected to timers to ensure about 12 hours of light a day. Too short of a period and the bird’s breeding instincts will shut down.

Regular lighting does not supply the birds with enough UV light, which is not healthy for breeding birds. Do not overlook this issue!

CLEANING

Keeping your aviary clean is a never ending chore. Every cage is cleaned daily. Every surface is cleaned and disinfected weekly. Failure to practice good cleaning could cost you the lost of your whole aviary if a disease infects your building. If you plan correctly, you can make this chore very simple.

Moving cages is dangerous for birds sitting on eggs, and any disturbances could end up with lost babies. But you need to be able to clean in and around the cage. We solved this by using a few different methods.

When possible, we used cage stands equipped with wheels. We could then move the stand away from walls for cleaning, and for sweeping underneath. If a single case was not filled with breeding birds, we could remove the cage for additional cleaning.

Many of our cages were on wire shelves. You can get these at most hardware stores. They come in lengths up to 12 feet, and are 20 inches wide. They are not expensive at all! By removing the cages from the shelf, you can clean the shelf and wall very easily. And since the bottom row is several inches above the floor, you can easily sweep and mop without disturbing them.

Speaking of walls…bird poop and wall paint do not like each other! Look for wall coverings that will be easy to clean and disinfect. Yes, it’s going to cost you more, but the convenience will be worth it.

SINKS

Get a couple of laundry sinks installed (if possible). In our aviary, we also equipped it with a long hose that could be used for filling up bird baths and dishes. The sinks were large, making it very easy to clean cages up to 24” in size.

Without a sink, you will find it very difficult to keep your aviary clean.

AIR FILTERS

Keeping the air clean of dander is probably our biggest oversight. And it nearly cost us our birds. One cold winter the furnace shut off. Fortunately, we had equipped our aviary with burglar alarms and a temperature alarm to warn us if the temperature got too high or low. We got a call from the alarm company about the temperature, and discovered our furnace had shut down. It was due to the filter being totally clogged with dander!

After some thought, we put together a home made filter that consisted of an old furnace fan, a wood box, and several air filters. The fan simply pulled air into the box, through the filters and then out of the bottom to be reticulated through the aviary. Their worked, but we supplemented it by taking an inexpensive box fan and attaching a filter to the back. This helped to circulate the air plus filter it at the same time (for summer months). We used a cleanable filter and vacuumed it out twice a week, as it would become totally clogged in a short time.

INSECT/RODENT CONTROL

It is a sad fact that when you have animals in a building with open food and water containers, you will also attract unwanted guests. Mice is a common problem, so you must make some preparations for this.

If you have a lot of seed in our aviary, you will develop bug problems. Seed is not cleaned very well, and the eggs and larva will develop and infest your aviary. Develop a storage system for all of your food. We were fortunate enough to find a huge source of 5 gallon pails with lids, and we kept most of our food sealed inside. In cold months the larva would be killed off, but in warm months we had to pay very close attention, and not have too large of a food supply on hand.

WORK AREA

This area included a counter for working on our birds, such as giving medical attention, clipping wings and toes, or hand feeding babies. It housed our brooders and hospitalization units, and our supplies. We also had a hand cart that we loaded with all of different types of foods and supplies we would need for our daily feedings. Each bird had different diets. Some on pellets, others seeds. We needed to have containers of fruits and vegi’s to pass out, cuttlebones, vitamins and other assorted treats. Having everything on one care proved to be very convenient.

WHISTLES AND BELLS

We also equipped our aviary with a television (mounted on a shelf high in a corner), and stereo with surround speakers. Then we got high-tech and added wireless headphones (so we could actually hear the radio in a room full of very noisy parrots!). It was just one more oversight that we didn’t think about while putting together our aviary.

I had wiring installed that would allow us to put in closed circuit cameras, so we could monitor our birds from inside the house…but we never got that far. I also had an idea of a Web-Cam being installed to share our experiences with the rest of the world. That was another idea that never got off the ground. But at least the wiring was there just in case!

At the time we built our aviary, we didn’t have the money for a skylight. On retrospect, we wish we had done that. The additional lighting would have been great, and it would have helped with some of our utility bills.

No, we didn’t forget our birds either. There was a location for a small popcorn machine (one of those small air-popper types). We would make a pail of popcorn to pass around to the birds (who loved it).

HOME MADE CAGES

During this time, we experimented with a number of home made cage and stand ideas. It started out using PVC pipes and wire fabric. The advantage was they were lightweight and easy to move around. They were inexpensive to make, as PVC pipes are cheap to buy. But we had difficulty finding a good source for half inch fabric, as most fencing stores and hardware stores do not carry it unless the wire gauge is very small (not good for medium size birds). This style of case proved to be a little difficult to clean.

We were then told about a company that sold plastic inserts so you could use square aluminum poles, similar to those used in construction porch awnings. This worked very well but got to be very costly.

We finally just decided to get commercial cages and developed a wire shelf system. It was much easier to clean, not too expensive, and easy to customize for our aviary.

CONCLUSION

By now you can plainly see that we are not the normal bird owners…we are very dedicated to our birds and our hobby. But we were also very successful breeders, and by putting the time, money, and effort into our aviary it made our work very enjoyable, and our birds very safe and healthy. I hope I gave you some ideas on building your own aviary.

In all the years we have raised birds, and after all the birds we have bred and owned, the Amazon is one of the most difficult birds to understand and raise. You will either grow to deeply love these birds, or totally hate them!

They are noisy, aggressive, demanding, destructive, and totally annoying! But they are also sweet, and loving (as long as it’s not breeding season.) They are great talkers, rated one of the top three talking birds.

If you plan to purchase an Amazon, you must do some careful research. All Amazons are not alike, and the wrong choice will most likely become a major disappointment to you. Amazons are one of the most common birds to be abandoned and given to rescue groups. The reason is that the owners just couldn’t control their temperament, and didn’t understand them. For this reason, we do not recommend Amazons to any novice bird owner.

Amazon Parrot Care And Feeding

You are going to quickly discover that Amazons are a smelly bird. Not that smelly, but they do have a odor. They will require weekly showers (if they will tolerate it). Frequent misting will encourage grooming and the bird will do its own personal hygiene.

Amazons will require a fairly large cage. We recommend at least 24×30x30. A play gym can be helpful to allow them to get more exercise, as they are an active bird.

Amazons love fruit. Use this to your advantage to supplement the birds diet with vitamins. Amazons have a major problem getting enough Vitamin A into their diet, and you will notice a problem quickly if the feathers begin to show a darkening of the tips. Be sure to offer your bird orange and yellow vegi’s and those with high Vitamin A. Those include such vegetables as carrots and zucchini. You can lightly dust their favorite fruit with a powdered vitamin mix to supplement their diet.

We never recommend and all seed diet to birds, and this is especially true for Amazons. Find a good pellet diet. Your bird should be eating at least half of his diet this way. Our Amazons also liked human foods, and we would usually give them leftovers from our meals. If you want a quite pizza night, and don’t want your Amazon to scream, be sure to leave him some!

Be sure to supply your bird with lots of wood chew toys. Amazons are very aggressive chewers, and if left unattended they will destroy your furniture and woodwork in your home.

CHOOSING THE RIGHT BIRD

As I mentioned, there are a number of different species of Amazons. Each has their own unique traits. One bad thing is that Amazons are very moody. One minute they are sweet, the next they are very aggressive. The worst bites we have ever taken were from Amazons. You need to watch for the warning signs of an Amazon that may be agitated. This includes a fanned out tail, puffed up feathers, and if their pupils narrow to a point. When they show these signs…back away and let the bird calm down.

Here are some of the most common types of Amazons, and our comments on each:

Double Yellow-Headed Amazons

Very popular for it’s talking ability. Has a bit more color in it, accented by its brightly yellow face. The Magna Double Yellow headed is a subspecies, and has even more coloring to it, butt are usually more expensive. They are very intelligent, imaginative and easy to tame. They will quickly bond to their owners.

Yellow-Naped Amazons

Closely related to the double yellow headed Amazon, and carries many of the same traits. They are intelligent and rated one of the top three talking birds.. They are a bit noisier then other Amazons. They have a reputation for being very determined, territorial and demanding. For this reason they do not train well, and can become nippy and temperamental. They can change their attitude on a moment’s notice, one second being very sweet, and the next attacking you for no apparent reason. This is most evident in the males, and especially during breeding season. Not recommended for novice bird owners. Average price is around $1000-$1500 due to their popularity as a great talker.

Yellow-Fronted Amazons

Like the Yellow Naped Amazon, they are good talkers but are known to be moody and temperamental. Not recommended for novice bird owners. If hand-fed and raised as babies, they tend not to be as aggressive. They do not tend to bond to one owner the way other Amazons do. They are noisy, especially in the evenings. Not as expensive as other Amazons.

Blue-Fronted Amazons

There are three types of Blue Fronts, including the Yellow-Wing and Bolivian. The Blue Front is a very strong-willed bird, aggressive and is not recommended for novice bird owners. Yellow Wings are a lot tamer, and Bolivian’s are the best choice if you are looking for playful Amazon. All are good talkers and quite noisy. They do develop strong personalities.

Orange-Winged Amazons

Often confused with the Blue Front Amazon due to the blue patch on its face. They are easy to identify because they are the only Amazon with orange feathers on their wings. They can be temperamental, but can be tamed to become friendly, especially if raised as a hand fed baby. They are one of the smallest of the Amazons. They are not considered to be good talkers, but are good mimickers. They have a very loud, high-pitched scream. They are reasonably priced at $500-$800.

Green-Cheeked Amazons

Also called the Mexican Red-head, this bird is similar to the yellow-cheeked. They are very popular in the US. They have a unique call, and you will hear it in the mornings and evenings as they are quite vocal. Not the best talkers but they are great mimickers. They make much better pets as they are not as moody and temperamental as other Amazons. They are medium priced bird due to their popularity, and sells for $800-$1200.

Lilac Crowned Amazons

These birds also also referred to as Finsch’s. These birds make a good pet as they are not as temperamental or moody as other amazons. They can talk but are not known to be the better of the talking amazons. Are are quite vocal and will mimic, especially in the mornings and evenings. They are one of the smaller amazons, but also one of the most active and comical. They do best if supplied with lots of toys, and a play gym will keep them busy for hours. They are known to quickly bond to their owners. Also one of the more quieter of the Amazons, but do have a loud yell. They sell for $600-$800, making them a good buy for someone moving up to larger parrots.

One of the sad facts about bird owners is that they rarely give their birds a careful health examination. This is mainly due to the lack of education on what to look for. What are the signs of a sick bird? How do they act? What should you do if they are showing signs of being sick?

Birds have a built an instinct of hiding signs that they are sick. This goes back to when they lived in the wild. A sick bird became the immediate target of predators. Even in an aviary condition it’s dangerous to show weakness. Many times we have had a sick or injured bird become attacked by the other birds in the cage. So their instinct tells them to hide those signs.

Even with all of our experience, it can be difficult. My wife, fortunately, has an instinct of being able to tell when a bird is sick. Many times while feeding and doing our daily maintenance, my wife will suddenly stop and begin examining a bird. To me it looks fine, but she sensed something. And most of the time she was right.

But for the rest of us, we need to learn what to look for, and identify the signs they are sick.

EARLY PREVENTION FIRST

Birds also have another ability…to get sick on weekends, holidays, or when the vet is on vacation. I haven’t figured this out yet either. So you need to be ready in the event this happens. Remember that once a bird begins to show obvious signs of illness, it may be too late to do anything to save him. Early identification of problems is very important.

Have your normal avian vet give you a list of competent vets in your area that know how to treat birds. Note that many vets do not have a clue about avian medicine, and the last thing you want to do is begin searching when an emergency hits. Get the names of after hour vets and clinics. Your vet may even be able to supply you with an experienced bird breeder who you can contact. My wife is available to do emergency “triage” to stabilize a bird until we can get to a vet. This has saved many birds lives.

>> There is a very good article on how to put together an avian first aid kit at The Tame Parrot Blog – First Aid Kit. This article covers all the important items you need, and why you should have them available in case of an emergency. Read this article, put together your own emergency kit, and keep it handy!

Also, begin to practice a good cleaning ritual. If the bird is forced to live in a dirty cage, you are just asking for problems. You need to clean and disinfect the cage every week, examine the cage for any dangers, and fix them immediately.

WATCH FOR BEHAVIOR CHANGES

Hopefully, you have been watching your bird for a while. By now you know it’s routine, how it acts, what it does during the day, and all of its habits. By monitoring these habits for any changes, you can detect the early warning signs of a bird.

Has it changed its eating habits? Does it seem to spend more time on the bottom of the cage and not on the perch? Have you noticed he doesn’t make much noise in the morning, when before he would wake the dead with his loud screams?

When you stand next to his cage, he may look active and not show any problem signs. Walk away from his cage and observe him for a few minutes. If possible, peak around the corner so he doesn’t know you are watching. Now that he knows you are not watching, he may begin to show signs of a problem.

BIRD PHYSICALS

It’s also important to do some up close inspections. Here is what to look for

Blood Feathers – These are feathers where the blood has not retracted back into the skin after development. They become irritating and the bird will begin to chew on them. If they rupture, your bird will bleed to death. Learn how to identify and remove them.

Fluffed Feathers – Most common indicator of a sick bird. They do this to stay warm. If you see this frequently, or for long periods of time, start looking for the cause. It could be something as simple as a draft, or something more serious. Look further….

Vent – This area should be clean and try. Dirty vents are signs of diarrhea. This could be caused by over consumption of certain foods, stress, parasites or internal organ problems. Immediate attention is needed to prevent dehydration.

Droppings – Keep clean newspaper on the floor of the cage and you can easily examine the birds stools on a daily basis. You should see the urates opaque fluid) with a dry white dropping in the middle. If it looks green, yellow, or any other color, you could have a problem. If it is runny you have a diarrhea problem. Also pay attention for undigested seed or food, foamy stools, or changes in the volume of the droppings.

Bird is quiet and not singing – Sick birds do not want to attract attention to themselves. They will remain quiet.

Eyes – Are they open and alert, or are they half-closed, and watery/glassy? That is another sign of a sick bird.

Nostrils – Draining, runny nose, or clogged, can be signs bad signs.

Respiratory Problems – Is the bird showing signs of heavy breathing? Coughing, sneezing, and excessive nasal discharge are all potential problems.

Change in eating habits – especially if they reject their favorite treats.

Lethargy – They are not active at all, and may sleep a lot more then normal.

There is also an excellent website where you can go and look up a number of symptoms, and get a diagnosis of what could be wrong with your bird. This is no replacement for a trained avian vet, but in an emergency it could save your birds life. Check out The Bird Channel for more information.

WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU NOTICE SOMETHING

If you have other birds, you MUST put your bird into quarantine. Better yet, place it into a brooder, or any type of container that can be monitored and heated. Sick birds need to be kept in a warm, dark area.

>>There is an article that will show you how to build a simple brooder using easy-to-find parts. For a small investment you can save the life of your bird in case of a medical emergency. Check out The Tame Parrot Blog – Brooder for instructions.

Seek immediate attention from your vet. Remember that once a bird begins to show signs of sickness, it may be too late…but immediate emergency attention can save it.

If you can not get your bird to a vet immediately, supply the bird with pedialyte (this should always be in your emergency first aid kit) to prevent dehydration. Birds with severe diarrhea can be given a drop of Pepto-Bismo. Your kit should also contain some soft baby food or powered rice cereal (make sure it does not contain zinc), and powered hand feeding formula, so you can feed your bird by hand if necessary.

I’m sure many of you have lost your pet, or certainly know someone who has. The sad fact is that most lost pets are never recovered.

About ten years ago, technology was developed that allowed you to implant a special microchip under the skin of your pet. This chip would enable any vet, rescue agency or shelter to identify the pet by “scanning” the chip with a hand held reader. By searching through a database, they can identify the pet owner and reunite the pet with its owners.

It sounds so simple! But unfortunately we humans have an incredible knack of messing up a good thing.

In order to explain it, I need to revisit the past…and look at another technological breakthrough…the home computer.

COMPUTER WARS

Back in the 80’s, computers were rapidly becoming a popular (but expensive) item for consumers. At that time, the main choice was IBM and Apple, with a hand full of other manufactures like Commodore and Atari. The other computers could not gain a foothold in the market because their operating systems were not compatible with the IBM’s or Apple, and this was important. IBM was mainly used in the business world, while Apple was entrenched into the classroom.

Apple accomplished a firm foothold by offering free computers to schools. The theory…teach students how to run Apples, and when they get older they will continue to use Apple computers. However, this didn’t quite work out, because the business world simply would not give up their dependency on IBM’s. So we ended up with students coming out of school who knew nothing about IBM’s, making all that computer training worthless. If you didn’t understand IBM systems, you didn’t have a job.

OK, still with me?

FREQUENCY WARS

While microchips have been around since the mid 1980’s, thet did not become popular for pet implants until 1995, when AVID Identification Systems began to offer them. Shortly afterward, other companies began to offer their own models, and AVID and HomeAgain (manufactured by Schering Plough) became the two main sources in the US. Both of these chips transmitted at the 125MHz frequency.

AVID then began to offer their hand scanners for free to shelters and veterinarians, but they would only read the AVID chip. If you bought the HomeAgain or some other competing model, your vet would be unable to scan it. Eventually they developed a “universal” scanner that could read any manufactured chip in the 125MHz range. Both of these models are widely available throughout the US and most of the world.

Now the fun begins. A new chip was designed by Banfield, who began distributing it around the world. They were entrenched into the PetSmart chain of stores, ensuring that they had a good distribution network and customer base. The problem? It transmitted at 134MHz, making it unreadable by the current scanners being used. Unless the shelter purchased a Banfield hand scanner, there was no other way to scan the chip.

This system is now widely used throughout the world…except the US. It gets even worse….the International Standards Organization, which attempts to set electric standards throughout the world, decreed that the 134MHz frequency should be the standard for pet microchips. And the battle begins!

It’s the Apple/IBM wars all over again. Or the BETA/VHS. This is why TV’s used in the US are not usable in Europe. When two manufactures develop competing standards, they wait for the consumer to decide, and the winner takes all! We have different manufacturers fighting over a standard, and the loser goes out of business. And the consumer always loses.

CURRENT STATUS

In October, 2005, Congress passed HR255.109, which was the appropriations bill for the Department of Agriculture. Tucked inside was a demand to APHIS (Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service) to develop a standard and implementation for microchips. I have not been able to find anything else regarding this bill…it seems to have fallen into a government crack.

The only solution to this problem is for someone to develop a universal scanner that can read both the 125MHz and the 134MHz chips. To complicate things even more, some manufactures use different frequencies, and even use encrypted chips. It’s unlikely anyone will combine all of these standards into one scanner.

CONCLUSION

The cost to microchip your pet is between $30-$80. The chip itself is not that expensive, but should be implanted by a vet or animal technician. In birds, it is usually implanted into the muscle, and usually into the breast. The chip itself is about the size of a grain of rice. It is a relatively painless procedure, much like getting a vaccination shot.

The other problem you will have is the lack of a central, universal data system. Each manufacturer keeps their own database. In some places, the government or local organization has established local databases.

In all cases, the chip is generally registered to the vet or shelter who sells the chip. In the event your pet is found, the rescue shelter will determine which chip was implanted and contact that manufacturer. The name of the vet is given, and from there the owner is tracked.

For a small fee, the owner can have their name entered into the database. But there has been a lot of instances where this information is lost or corrupted. It is suggested that owners contact the database holder on an annual basis and update their information.

The lack of a central data base will greatly complicate the recovery of your pet. But with competing manufacturers unwilling or unable to rectify their disputes over standards, I don’t see any quick solution to this. Trying to force standards appears to be bogged down, as evidenced by the APHIS bill that seems to be going nowhere.

Microchips are safe and inexpensive. Regardless of the lack of standards, it is recommended that you make the investment. The vast majority of lost pets are never returned, so this may be your only hope.

The other alternatives to microchips are unreliable. Tags and collars can fall off and become lost. Tattoos are permanent, but the shelter needs to know where to look and then figure out what database to search. At lease with microchips, you have some established databases, the microchip is secure and can’t be lost, and hopefully the shelter that scans it has the appropriate hand scanner to identify the chip.