Man’s reunion with stolen dog shows importance of microchipping pets

A New Jersey man was reunited with his dog stolen a year ago thanks to a microchip that was inside of the pet.

John Tomasulo says that he was on his way back to New Jersey from Florida last year and stopped in Richmond, Virginia, for lunch. He says that his 11-year-old Yorkie Buddha was stolen during that time. He had raised the dog since it was 4 months old.

Tomasulo says that he had given up hope, but then received a message that his beloved pet was found.

“I got an email on Facebook saying he was microchipped and they found my dog,” Tomasulo says.

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Four days later, volunteers from the Richmond Animal Care and Control drove Buddha back to John in New Jersey.

Monmouth County SPCA Executive Director Ross Licitra says that the reunion may not have been possible if it weren’t for the microchip.

“It’s not a live unit inside the animal until a scanner activates it. It sends a signal out, it emits a number, we look the number up and then we can locate the dog once we look it up on the computer of who the company is and who the actual owner is,” Licitra says.

Licitra says that microchipping a pet is not very expensive – it usually costs around $20. But he says that it is a small price to pay for peace of mind.

The Monmouth County SPCA will hold a free microchipping event for all pets on Saturday Jan. 26 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at 260 Wall St. in Eatontown.