Northern Ireland has the lowest rate of cat microchipping, with over a quarter currently not microchipped, a total of around 76,000.  This is despite Northern Ireland having a strong track record when it comes to dogs, being the first UK nation to introduce compulsory microchipping for dogs in 2012. 

Cats Protection Advocacy & Government Relations Officer Alice Palombo said: “Microchipping is a safe and effective way of reuniting lost cats with their owner. No matter how far from home or how long they’ve been missing, if a cat has a microchip, there’s a good chance they will be returned home. 

“We regularly have unmicrochipped cats coming into our care, and use valuable resources searching for owners, often with no success. Eventually, we need to rehome these cats, even though they may in fact have an owner who misses them desperately. 

“Microchipping really works, but sadly there’s still some owners who only think about it once their cat has gone missing, and by then it’s too late. By making microchipping compulsory, we’d be building it into being an essential part of pet ownership, and that is a good thing for cat welfare in Northern Ireland.”

USPCA Chief Executive Nora Smith said: “Without a microchip, it can be impossible to trace the owner of a lost cat – particularly if a few months or even years have gone by and they have given up searching. It’s incredibly frustrating when we have a friendly, well cared-for cat which we know must have been someone’s pet, but we can’t find that owner. 

“What’s more, our charity resources need to work harder than ever, yet we need to spend valuable time, effort and money searching for owners and caring for missing cats. If microchipping was compulsory we would see rates increase, and this would mean we can reunite much more quickly, and concentrate our resources on animals most at need.”