>Don't they have chips that can be implanted in animals? ... Yes, of a sort, but perhaps not quite the way you're thinking. "Tracking devices" are usually "active", that is they give off a signal that can traced from a distance with special equipment. That's what a Lojack does. If there are any available for animals at all, I must imagine that they are expensive, bulky (for a ferret, anyway), not readily available to the public, and not for everyday use. What we do have are microchips from Avid. These are about the size of a grain of rice and are injected under the animal's skin. They are really "id" chips rather than tracking chips. If someone finds your animal, they can hold a special scanner up to where the chip is implanted (over the shoulders) and find out the id number. Then they can call the Avid company and find out who the owner is. So, the Avid chips can't be used to find an animal, but they can be used to identify him after he's found. They are very inexpensive and do give you some peace of mind. Many vets and shelters have scanners and check strays for chips. I haven't chipped my cats, but since ferrets tend to get lost easily, all of my ferrets have them. The implanting needle is scary (ever seen a pheresis needle? this is bigger....), but the ferrets never notice it once it's implanted. roger & the wolverine wannabees missing bear [Posted in FML issue 4069]