photo courtesy of O2

Receive To Retrieve : Microchip + Mobile Phone Can Now Bring Your Dog Home

Petlog, the Kennel Club Pet Identification Service, is changing – bringing you and pet owners a range of extra benefits designed to make the service easier, faster to use and more effective in reuniting lost pets and their owners more efficiently. To continue to evolve within this technology driven age and aware of the fact that mobile telephones are becoming our ever constant companion, Petlog is pleased to announce an initiative that enables your mobile to increase the happiness for both you and your pet.

There are over 2,000,000 microchipped pets registered on the Petlog database, the UK’s largest pet reunification service. With 53 million mobile phones and 6.2 million dogs in the UK, this new text service, powered by O2, will now make it even easier for owners to be reunited with their lost pets as all that is required is a quick text message!

On October 1st 2003, this new facility will provide Petlog Plus customers with peace of mind that should they find themselves in the situation where they have lost their dog, they can immediately send Petlog a text message. The minute this message is received by Petlog, any time of the day or night, a Lost Pet Alert will be emailed to authorised agents, which include vets, dog wardens and rescue kennels within an approximate 30 mile radius from where the pet was lost.

But it isn’t just the owners of the pet that can use text messaging. It also works for the authorised agents. If they find a stray animal, the first thing that they should do is scan it for a microchip. They can then send the microchip number to Petlog by text message and upon verification of the agent’s security pin, the details of the owner will be sent back to the user’s mobile phone by text message, thereby ensuring that the pet can be returned to its rightful owner as soon as possible.

Text messaging is one of the many new benefits to be launched on 1st October for Petlog Plus members. For just £10 for the lifetime of any pet, owners can have complete control of their records and change them at any time without incurring any additional charges. Petlog Plus customer records are now available online at www.petlog.org.uk. With this new service owners are also provided with additional opportunities to include further relevant information on their records, including information on the dog’s health, temporary contact details if the owner is on holiday and 2nd carer details if they cannot be contacted for any reason.

Louise Goulding from O2, the mobile network operator that provides the Business Text service from 2SMS, on which the Lost and Found service is based said; “O2 are delighted to support the use of text messaging in this innovative and exciting way and are pleased to assist Petlog with even more speedy reunification of lost pets with their owners.”

Caroline Kisko, Kennel Club Secretary concluded: “With over 118,000 recorded stray dogs in the UK in 2002, the Kennel Club feels that this issue needs to be proactively addressed and we are proud to be launching such an innovative and unique service for pet owners. Petlog really can provide peace of mind and an effective service to ensure pets get back to their rightful owners in the least possible time and therefore, alleviate stress and upset incurred when a beloved pet is lost.”

Notes:
How does a microchip help find a lost pet? If the worst happens and a pet is lost or strays, the microchip in a pet can only help reunification if details are kept up to date on the Petlog database.

When someone first registers with Petlog, detailed information is gathered and recorded about the pet and the owner. Petlog is able to include three contact telephone numbers and an e-mail address as well as home address details. Information on whether the pet is neutered, if it has a tattoo, distinctive features and essential veterinary information are also recorded. Therefore, when an authorised agent such as a vet finds and scans a pet, they will be able to not only contact the owner at any time of the day or night, but have an understanding of the pet’s health if it has been injured in any way.

For an extra £10 for life you can upgrade to the Petlog Plus Service which includes:

· A unique Lost and Found service. Lost pets can be reported via the web, by telephone or through a text message and the relevant authorities in the local area will be alerted within minutes.

· No charge for change of details

· 2nd carer contact details added free

· No charge for holiday/travel details

· Owners can update records whenever they need – by phone, mail and web

About O2

The Business Text service from O2, that allows the sending of large volumes of messages to users of any UK network at discounted rates, can be viewed online at www.O2.co.uk/businesstext.

O2 aims to enrich customer's lives by enabling them to get the most from their mobile. As a leading provider of mobile services to consumers and businesses in the UK, O2 offers a range of services including text, media messaging, games, always on data connections (via "GPRS") and much more. Other services under development include music over mobile and mobile video. O2 is the UK market leader in mobile data services such as text, with over half a billion messages being sent by O2 customers each month.

O2 (UK) Limited is a subsidiary of mmO2 plc which also delivers O2 branded services in Ireland and Germany. O2 has approximately 12 million customers in the UK.

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