Swiss diplomat finds her cat thanks to pet tracking system

ANKARA

Swiss diplomat Martine Berset has found his cat Erin that was lost seven months ago, thanks to the pet tracking system called PETVET launched by the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry.

“Erin wouldn’t have been found without the microchip. It’s amazing,” Berset said, who returned to Türkiye to take her cat to Switzerland as her tenure in Ankara expired last September.

Berset opened her home to stray animals during her duty at the Swiss embassy in Ankara that started in 2019.

In early 2022, Berset had her cats microchipped and registered in accordance with the regulation prepared by the ministry. However, three of the cats were lost in March.

When her term expired, she took her other five cats and returned to Switzerland. The microchip of the cat injured in an attack by dogs in Elmadağ district last October was taken to the vet and turned out to be Erin, one of Berset’s three cats who disappeared seven months ago.

“I thank all the cats and dog owners in Türkiye. Erin is very healthy and very happy to see her siblings and mother,” Berset said.

“I want to come to Türkiye again and want to see cats, but this is dangerous for me as I might want to take those cats to my country,” she quipped.

Based on an animal protection legislation that came into force in late 2018, the ministry started the project to determine the exact number of dogs, cats and weasels looked after by their owners.

According to the regulation, all cats, dogs and weasels over six months old and owned are required to have a microchip number. Pets without chips are not able to receive veterinary services, while their owners are fined. More than 1.6 million animals have been identified and registered so far.

With the application, the name of the animal, its passport number, breed, gender, color, date of birth, name and address of the owner are recorded. With the help of chips, authorities will be able to identify these pets, track their medical records and their whereabouts.