Vets are often asked about why they should get their cat microchipped, and there is both an answer as simple as the process itself and one that is more detailed and nuanced.
The simple answer is that it is the law; all cats must have a registered microchip implanted before they reach the age of 20 weeks, with fines of up to £500 for owners who do not ensure that this is the case.
However, the reason why it is the law is that this tiny chip can save lives, mend hearts and reunite lost pets that would have potentially have never been rediscovered otherwise, even if a cat manages to end up hundreds of miles away.
Rayne Beau was camping with Susanne and Benny Anguiano of California at Yellowstone National Park, only some kind of noise to spook the feline and send him scurrying away into the thick forest.
It happened so quickly that the Anguianos did not even know what had happened until they looked back and saw Rayne was not there.
The couple were worried when he did not come back, and despite trying for the rest of the holiday to lure him back to the campsite, they had to make the heartbreaking choice to go back home without one of the family.
They did not give up hope but knew that they had no chance of finding Rayne Beau in the park by themselves.
Two months later, the American Society of the Protection of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) informed PetWatch that a cat had been found in Roseville, California, close to where the Anguianos lived but nearly 900 miles away from Yellowstone.
The microchip confirmed it was Rayne Beau and PetWatch informed the pair that their cat had been found. He was four pounds lighter and looked very depleted, but they were back together, all thanks to a microchip.
The couple have since fitted a GPS tracker to the wayward cat to make sure they do not lose him again.
