From March, Seoul Citizens Can Register Their Dogs with Microchips for 10,000 KRW... First 32,000 Pets Supported on a First-Come, First-Served Basis

Advantages of Microchip Animal Registration for Quick Owner Identification
City, Insurance, and Veterinary Associations Collaborate Since 2019 to Promote Microchip Animal Registration

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The Seoul Metropolitan Government will support embedded animal registration, which is effective in preventing the loss and abandonment of companion dogs, at a cost of 10,000 KRW starting from March.

According to Seoul City on the 24th, if you visit one of the approximately 600 animal hospitals participating in this support project in the Seoul area with your companion dog and pay 10,000 KRW, you can register your dog using an embedded microchip. All companion dogs raised by Seoul citizens are eligible for support, and 32,000 dogs will be supported on a first-come, first-served basis throughout this year. Generally, the cost of embedded animal registration ranges from 40,000 to 80,000 KRW, but through this project, Seoul citizens can register their dogs with embedded chips for 10,000 KRW.

The embedded animal registration support project is a joint initiative by Seoul City, the General Insurance Social Contribution Council, and the Seoul Veterinary Medical Association to promote the embedded animal registration system. It has been implemented for three years since 2019. Among about 800 animal hospitals located in Seoul, around 600 participate in the Seoul embedded animal registration support project.

The General Insurance Social Contribution Council provides embedded microchips, the Seoul Veterinary Medical Association promotes the activation of animal registration using embedded microchips, and Seoul City cooperates administratively and financially by providing subsidies to promote embedded animal registration.

According to the Animal Protection Act, dogs aged two months or older that are raised in houses or quasi-houses or kept as companions are subject to mandatory registration. ‘Embedded animal registration’ involves inserting a rice grain-sized radio frequency identification device (microchip) subcutaneously between the animal’s shoulder blades. Since the chip is implanted inside the body, it is less prone to damage, loss, or destruction compared to external registration methods that attach a wireless identification device outside the body. Therefore, if a companion dog loses its owner, the owner can be easily identified through the chip.

Meanwhile, since the 12th, it has become mandatory for animal sales businesses (pet shops) to apply for animal registration in the buyer’s name when consumers purchase (adopt) companion dogs, before selling (transferring) the animals. In this case, embedded animal registration can be done for 10,000 KRW under the Seoul embedded animal registration support project.

Park Yu-mi, Director of the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s Citizen Health Bureau, said, “Animal registration is the ‘minimum safety measure’ to prevent the loss and abandonment of companion dogs, and it is an obligation that must be observed as companion dogs are precious.” She added, “From March, citizens can register embedded microchips at nearby animal hospitals for 10,000 KRW, so we strongly encourage everyone to participate in animal registration.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.