A 185% increase in microchipping of companion animals in the U.S. was reported in the weeks following the reunion of Willow, a cat lost in New York City, with her family in Colorado. The reunion was made possible by her being microchipped. Overall, microchipping is on the rise and better technology is being developed to help reunite lost companion animals and their humans.

Microchipping involves implanting a small chip that electronically stores the guardian’s or owner’s contact information beneath the companion animal’s skin. Lost pets are scanned for the chip at shelter facilities. There was an 11% increase in the number of dogs microchipped from 2009 to 2010, with a total of 26% of dogs in the U.S. being microchipped in 2010. Previously, microchips were more difficult to detect as each brand required a different scanner to read them. However, universal scanners have been developed to read the microchips regardless of what company made them, though this technology is still not available in many underfunded shelters.