We had a stray dog brought into the clinic today without a tag or microchip. Fortunately his owner was found through a Craigslist post, but it reinforces the importance of microchipping our pet cats and dogs.
I came across a great story in Trends Magazine, from the American Animal Hospital Association, which Sabino Veterinary Care belongs to. This story had a great outcome and illustrated the importance of microchipping and REGISTERING the microchip with your contact information. I could not find a way to link the article so I will try to give a synopsis.
The story began when a woman taking a walk in Ventura, California, stumbled upon Charlie, a cat that had been run over by a car and left to die. Charlie had suffered severe head trauma, including a broken jaw and an eye hanging from its socket.
A neighbor offered to drive the woman and the mangled feline to the nearby Oakview Animal Clinic.
Karen Sama, DVM, discovered Charlie was microchipped but not registered to an owner. The microchip company informed Sama that Charlie most likely came from a shelter. She contacted local shelters and found out a woman named Judy Schwocho had adopted the cat. However, after conducting an Internet search, Sama learned Schwocho had died.
Continuing her detective work, Sama called a relative mentioned in Schwocho’s obituary. The relative in turn, directed Sama to Ray and Judith Cosh. The were friends of Schwocho, who had asked them to care for Charlie shortly before she died from cancer.
They rushed to the hospital and told Sama and fellow veterinarian Robert Fryer, DVM, to do everything the could to save the animal. Charlie survived the surgery and was sent home, where he was tube-fed until he regained his ability to chew.
Then a stranger appeared at the Coshes’ doorstep. He was the driver who had run over Charlie.
The man told them he had stopped his car, but left after hearing someone say he would look after the cat. The driver later heard about the cat’s miraculous recovery from a neighbor and felt compelled to come forward. Then he wrote a check for $3000 to pay for Charlie’s medical bills.
“Who’d have ever thought that somebody would come to the door and voluntarily identify themselves and offer to pay?” Ray Cosh told Scrippsnews.” And that was money we didn’t have.
“In a day where we sometimes don’t think there are very many nice people, Charlie brought a whole bunch of nice people together. “
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