MICRO-CHIPPING CONCERNS

TheDogPlace.org was among the first media to inform readers about the privacy and medical risks associated with microchips, then considered "far out" and conspiracy junk theory.

In 2004 TheDogPress.com reported that VeriChip's parent company, Applied Digital Solutions, received FDA approval to market the implant for humans. That approval was granted by Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson who later joined the board of VeriChip.

TheDogPress.com again covered microchips (nicknamed Spychips) in February 2006. Then in March the premier dog news agency warned about the National Animal I.D. System (NAIS) in "Tying The Knot" and revealed a frightful connection between micro-chips, AKC, HSUS, PAWS, USDA, Digital Angel and supporters Senators Fred Thompson and Rick Santorum. That same year, TheDogPress.com also informed readers on The National Animal Identification System (NAIS) which isn't just about tracking food animals... On the positive side, there was no shortage of heartwarming "lost pet recovered" stories in the media but most were actually press releases generated by microchip manufacturers and sellers such as the American Kennel Club.

Paid critics said the NetPlaces Network was just "sensationalist" publications but in Spychips Revisited, Haywood said "It gives me the creeps to think that a credit card in my purse might be encrypted with a dot-sized chip that can be read when I walk through the door of a shopping mall, and every door into every store reads that microchip ..."

In 2007 this A/P (Associated Press) headline validated cancer concerns.

"MICROCHIPS CAUSE FAST-GROWING, MALIGNANT TUMORS IN LAB ANIMALS"

VeriChip opponent Dr. Katherine Albrecht said the Associated Press story could not be ignored.  She knew what they had discovered - a series of research articles spanning more than a decade showing that mice and rats injected with glass-encapsulated RFID transponders developed malignant, fast-growing, lethal cancers in up to 10% of cases.  When weighed against the risk , informed owners decided fencing is a safer way to protect their pets from becoming lost. 

In 2012 TheDogPress.com confirmed microchips migrate in the body and also informed readers about Medical Microchips in a "convenient" digestible prescription RFID pill which would regulate heartbeat and even send messages to your doctor!

By 2014 people learned how their personal, private digital information was collected and sold in a feature story on Data-mining and AKC Privacy.

In 2015 Joe Byer reported on Marketing Microchips and RFID signals that transmit your identity as you pass through a security checkpoint or walk into a football stadium!  Later that year, mainstream media reported rampant identity theft and credit card information stolen from top retail chains. 

Dr. Katherine Albrecht - Founder and Director, CASPIAN Consumer Privacy reported that Under FDA policy, it would have been VeriChip's responsibility to bring the adverse studies to the FDA's attention, but VeriChip CEO Scott Silverman claimed the company was unaware of the researchsince gaining FDA approval, VeriChip aggressively targeted diabetic and dementia patients.  The giant microchip company announced that it had chipped 90 Alzheimer's patients and their caregivers in Florida. Employees in the Mexican Attorney General's Office, workers in a U.S. security firm, and club-goers in Europe have also been implanted..

Dr. Albrecht expressed concern for those who have received a chip implant, urging them to get the devices removed as soon as possible.  "These new revelations change everything," she said. "Why would anyone take the risk of a having a potential cancer chip in their arm?"

Determined to sell the value of microchips, by 2016 commercials pointed out that cell phones could help a mother find her child lost in a shopping mall.  The frantic mother calls her provider who "pings" the child's phone and tells the mother exactly where she is.

Not sure what this has to do with you or your dog?  Get instant information re: ii microchips can cause cancer at the injection site and from a highly respected dog group, read this Mandatory Micro-chipping Position Statement. "Responsible Dog Owners of the Western States opposes any mandated microchipping of privately held domestic pet animals. The choice of whether to or whether not to microchip should be based upon all available information; and left strictly up to the owner to make for his/her animals. Our research has discovered potential health risks that are posed to domestic pet animals from microchip emplacement."

In 2017, USA Today observed "embedding a small device that communicates with other electronics poses a health risk — and brings us a big cyborg step closer to a surveillance state."

The AMVA has offered scant information but does mention the occurrence of tumors in lab animals.

Email with your thoughts on "the value vs. risk of micro-chipping?"  Lu Calico suggests, "Before you implant a microchip in your pet, get the facts at chipmenot.info."