Get your cat's microchip registered before you need it
A microchip does nothing by itself. Registering it links the chip number to your contact information, so a scan at a shelter or vet clinic turns into a call to you instead of a dead end. With United Pet Club, registration is free for the life of your cat.
Five steps to register your cat's microchip
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Step 1: Get your cat microchipped
The chip goes in during a regular vet clinic visit. It takes only a moment and most cats barely react to it. You'll leave with a record showing the chip's unique ID number: snap a photo of it or file it somewhere you won't lose track of it.
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Step 2: Pick a registry
Your chip's manufacturer might operate a database of its own, but any registry that accepts the chip's ID will do. Register a microchip with United Pet Club to get a registry that takes any brand and is networked with the lookup databases shelters across Canada rely on.
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Step 3: Fill in your cat's details and yours
You'll enter the chip ID (typically 15 digits), your cat's name, breed or colouring, age, and a photo, along with your name, address and postal code, phone number, and email. Cats that never go outdoors need this every bit as much as the ones that do: one open door, or one startled leap through a window screen, is all it takes.
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Step 4: Cover any registration cost
Registries vary here: some charge a one-time or recurring fee, others cost nothing. Check what you're agreeing to, including whether the registration lapses if it isn't renewed.
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Step 5: Update it after every move
Whenever your address, phone number, or email changes, update the registry right away, and do it again after every move. A chip registered to an apartment you left two years ago isn't going to get you a phone call today.
Why cat owners underestimate how much registration matters
Some owners skip registration on the theory that their cat never goes outside. Indoor cats find their way out anyway: a door left ajar, a screen that gave way, a moving day with boxes propping the front door open. A cat that's never been outdoors is often more likely to bolt and hide than to come when called once it's out, which is exactly when a registered microchip matters most. Collars and pet ID tags can help a neighbour identify your cat on sight, but cats are notorious for shedding collars, and this is one reason the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association points to microchips as the more permanent form of identification: a chip doesn't come off.
Every stray cat that arrives at a shelter or vet clinic gets scanned, whether it came in as an owner surrender, a colony trap, or a walk-in. If the chip is registered, that scan turns up your phone number in seconds. If it isn't registered, the cat is treated as unowned, and a much slower process begins.
If you adopted a cat that already has a microchip, don't assume the registration transferred along with the paperwork. Get in touch with the registry listed for that chip and ask for an ownership update, with your adoption record as proof, or start over and register the microchip with United Pet Club. The current registration wins out over the stale one. A cat with no chip yet can still get a free profile: register your cat now and add the chip number after the vet visit.
What a registered chip does for your cat
Backs up a collar that comes off
Cats slip collars all the time, whether by design, with a breakaway safety buckle, or by accident. The chip stays exactly where it was implanted, collar or no collar.
Speeds up shelter intake
A scan that matches a registered record can mean same-day contact instead of your cat sitting on a stray hold, waiting to be claimed.
Covers indoor cats too
Registration doesn't assume your cat goes outdoors. It simply means that if your cat ever does get out, accidentally or not, there's a way back home.
Moves with you
After a move, one quick contact-information update keeps the registration current. The chip itself never has to be touched again.
Microchip registration questions from cat owners
How do I register my cat's microchip in Canada?
Create a free United Pet Club account, enter the chip's 15-digit number, and add your contact details. The free lifetime plan keeps the registration and every future update free, and it accepts any brand of chip your Canadian vet implanted, so there's nothing new to buy. If your cat travels with you, keep the record current as well: Canada requires proof of rabies vaccination for cats entering the country from abroad.
How can I tell whether my cat's chip is already registered?
Check the paperwork from your vet or the shelter you adopted from: it usually lists the registry and ID number. If you can't track it down, register with United Pet Club anyway. A fresh registration outranks one you can't locate or verify.
My cat stays indoors. Does it really need a registered microchip?
Yes. Most indoor cats that go missing got out by accident rather than habit, and that makes them harder to recover by sight alone. A registered chip still works even if your cat bolts without its collar.
When a shelter scans my cat's chip, what happens?
Staff read the chip's ID number and check it against the registry it's recorded with. When your contact details are up to date, they phone or email you directly rather than holding your cat as a stray.
Do I need to re-register my cat's microchip after an adoption?
You still need to update the ownership record, even though the cat already has a chip from a previous owner or shelter. Bring your adoption paperwork to the existing registry, or start a fresh registration with United Pet Club.
Do I need to re-register when I move?
You don't need a new chip or a whole new registration, but you do need to update your address, phone number, and email. The registry is only as useful as the contact information sitting behind it.
Get your cat registered
A few minutes now is the difference between a scan that reaches you and one that hits a dead end. Questions first? Contact us before you get started.