When a four-legged family member goes missing, one always fears the worst. Will I find it dead in the road? Did someone steal it? Is it lost and can’t find its way home? Is it lying injured under a bush?

One of the best and most affordable ways to safeguard your pet is to have it micro-chipped; a tiny device that has been responsible for reuniting thousands of lost ones with their humans each year. It is very affordable insurance, costing around $30, and lasts a lifetime. It should be a standard part of the first wellness exam after you adopt, even if you (hopefully) plan on keeping her inside.

About the size of a grain of rice, the microchip is painlessly injected just below the skin between the shoulder blades of the animal. Each chip has a unique ID code within that is activated when a scanner is passed over its location. This is the link between pet and you, providing that you have followed through with the registration.

Shelters and veterinarians routinely scan “new” animals as they come into their care. Many lost and stolen pets have been returned to grateful owners this way. But it is surprising how many micro-chipped strays there are which cannot be matched up with their humans, because they did not register with the manufacturer. Don’t let this happen to you.

This is what happens when an indoor cat gets out…

A frightened cat will run and not take the time to mark her route or take mental notes of landmarks in order to return home. Watch a cat or dog sometime as it saunters down the street. There is a repeated glancing back over a shoulder as it walks, even on leash. This is the way they find their way back home, by imprinting the landscape in their memories.

When a pet goes missing, alert all your neighbors and post flyers, even blocks away. Enlist the help of kids that walk to and from the bus stop every school day. Ask the postman and the gardeners in your area, and of course call the shelters and local veterinarians and give them the micro-chip ID if you have one.

It is important to have pictures of your pet around, just in case you need to make a flyer some day. Even old kitten photos of an adult cat can be used as the animal’s markings will not have changed. (This is not the case for Siamese, however, as they are all born creamy white and morph into something completely different by the time they reach adulthood.)

Hopefully, none of you will experience the fear and heartbreak of losing a pet. It only takes a split second for an animal to go missing. If you have indoors-only cats, keep your screens in good shape and door latches working. The brutal summer sun takes its toll on screens, breaking them down so that they will tear at a slight push. Check yours periodically for strength. Prevailing winds blow dust and grit into door latches causing them to stick. Lubricate or replace them as needed.

Be ever vigilant, never complacent, and take head counts of your pets frequently. Remember, even indoors-only cats can go on walk-abouts if given the chance, especially if they are intact at this time of year. Kitten season has begun, and all the adults are in a breeding frenzy and will find any possible way to get outside.

It is not too late to get your intact pets spayed/neutered and micro-chipped. Please do your part in helping reduce the births of unwanted litters.

Two new good reads:

Good Cat! Practical Answers to Behavior Questions by Steve Dale, award-winning cat columnist, is a wonderful collection of just what the title states. With advice from many other renowned animal behaviorists and veterinarians, it’s not just one man’s ramblings but a font of sage information. It’s nice to know there are other inquiring cat-owners out there who may have the same perplexing question that you have, even though you may never have thought to ask.

Grey Matters by Clea Simon is the second in a series of mysteries in which one of the main characters is a cat. Set at Harvard, the series revolves around the life of a grad student intent on finishing her thesis based on an 18^th-century gothic manuscript. Murder, ghostly messages, dreams and her offbeat mom’s premonitions keep you on edge until the end.