Microchipping Event at the Senedd

 All for Cats!

Yes, that’s what we are and what drives us. And if you are reading this, then it probably applies to you too.

You may be aware that microchipping will be compulsory in England from 10^th June 2024 and although it is on the agenda and in the Animal Welfare Plan for Wales no date has been given for microchipping to be enforced in Wales.

To push the issue up the agenda, Daryl Gordon the Cats Protection Advocacy and Government Relations Officer for Wales arranged an event at the Senedd, Cardiff Bay to bring the matter to the attention of parliamentarians. He was joined by Madison Rogers, Cats Protection Head of Advocacy, Campaigns & Government Relations and members of her staff from Head Office, Jenna Butcher, Deputy Manager, Bridgend Adoption Centre (BAC) and me, Theresa Cooper, Volunteer at BAC. We were fortunate to be sponsored by Huw Irranca-Davies, our local MS.

Theresa and Jenna at the Senedd

The drop-in reception event was to raise awareness of the importance of microchipping pet cats, to answer questions on microchipping and to encourage the Welsh Government to pass legislation which makes microchipping pet cats compulsory. MSs came and went throughout the event and in conversations with them we were able to ask if they had a cat, point out case studies of cats being reunited with their owners and using a fluffy toy cat and scanner, demonstrate how scanners work. They were offered a pledge board to have their picture taken with and we didn’t have any refusals.

KEY STATS ON MICROCHIPPING

According to the Cats Protection CATS 2023 report:

·        71% of owned cats in Wales are microchipped.

·        25% of owned cats in Wales are NOT microchipped.

·        4% of owners are unsure.

This means there are potentially 180,000 owned cats in Wales that are not microchipped!Hence the need to highlight to Welsh Government that they need to pass this legislation asap.

We were also joined by representatives from Dogs Trust, RSPCA, Blue Cross and Battersea Dogs and Cats Homes, so they could see the type of advocacy work carried out by Cats Protection. And to thank and encourage parliamentarians for their interest, there were some goodies (Cats Protection branded!) to take away and tasty treats of Welsh cakes and slices of bara brith.

Most of those I chatted to did have cats in the family or had experience of owning a pet. There was a great deal of interest shown, appreciation for all the work carried out by Cats Protection and a general willingness to move forward with the Animal Welfare Plan as early as possible.

As a volunteer I was thanked numerous times for my commitment and (a first for me) took part in a live video blog on Huw Irranca-Davies’s Twitter (or X) page. It does reflect the attitude of the MSs we met in that 26 attended, almost half the total number of Senedd members - a new record for a Cats Protection event!

Hopefully, we did raise awareness of welfare matters, and that it’s a human issue too. As we know, it can be devastating to lose a pet and not know what has happened to them or where they are.

Theresa Cooper, Volunteer Bridgend Adoption Centre