The Santa Maria Eagles Lodge had a full house Wednesday as the CARE 4 Paws Mobile Pet Clinic made a stop offering free microchipping services ahead of the Fourth of July holiday.
The number of runway pets traditionally skyrockets around the holiday celebrated with fireworks that bring plenty of lights, sounds and smells that frighten pets.
Santa Barbara County Animal Services arranged for free microchips for area pets. The CARE 4 Paws Mobile Pet Clinic offered free microchipping services Tuesday in Lompoc and Wednesday in Santa Maria at the Eagles Lodge. Santa Barbara Humane has also provided free microchipping services ahead of the holiday with limited appointments still available.
The Santa Barbara Humane campus in Santa Maria is located at 1687 West Stowell Road. Those interested can make an appointment online by going to sbhumane.org/clinic and selecting the Santa Maria location.
Microchips are small electronic devices that are injected between an animal’s shoulder blades. When the transponder, which is roughly the size of a grain of rice, is scanned at an animal shelter or veterinarian’s office, the pet’s unique identification number pops up. That number can then be compared against a national database to find contact information for the owner.
CARE 4 Paws Mobile Pet Clinic has a pet wellness clinic scheduled for Friday in Santa Maria at the Elwin Mussell Center from 10 am to 1 pm with free microchips available.
The clinic also offers low-cost vaccines (no rabies), flea treatment, nail trims and dewormers from $10–$20 per service. Spays and neuters and medical care by prior appointment.
CARE 4 Paws mobile wellness clinic serves free microchips to local pets Wednesday | Photos