TOWSON, MD — The Baltimore County Department of Health and Human Services on Monday announced the launch of pet scanning stations at five locations across the county, offering 24/7 access to microchip scanning to help lost pets be reunited with their owners more quickly and prevent animals from being unnecessarily housed at the shelter.

Baltimore County is the first jurisdiction in Maryland to provide these community scan stations.

“Providing community access to scanners will help residents reunite lost pets with their family and loved ones,” said Dr. Gregory Wm. Branch, Director of the Baltimore County Department of Health and Human Services and the County’s Health Officer. “Pets are extensions of families and we work diligently to ensure that family connections are not interrupted. This is another way we are working to make Baltimore County a great place for both people and pets.”

Residents who find a lost pet can now visit any of these scan stations and quickly check for a microchip by following the provided instructions. If a microchip is found, the resident can look up the number in an online database to get the owners’ contact information and reunite them with their pet.

These new stations compliment a change to local law extending the found-pet surrender period from 24 hours to 72 hours to assist with more quickly reuniting pets with owners rather than bringing them directly to Baltimore County Animal Services (BCAS), the open admission shelter for the County. Under current law, someone who has found a lost pet is now required to submit a found animal report with BCAS within 24 hours and turn the animal over to BCAS within 72 hours if a reunion isn’t possible.

Please note that found animals that appear sick, injured, in immediate danger, or have no other options apart from shelter intake, should be delivered to BCAS.

Pet microchipping is a quick and safe procedure that provides a permanent form of identification. As part of a national best practice, every dog and cat adopted from Baltimore County Animal Services is microchipped.

Baltimore County pet owners interested in microchipping their pet can call 410-887-PAWS (7297) to schedule an appointment.

Additional information is available here at the BCAS’ Lost and Found Pet Help page.