Dog owners play with their dogs. Photo: cnsphoto

Shenzhen in South China's Guangdong Province held a chip injection day for dogs on Sunday, urging dog owners to microchip their dogs. Dogs without microchips will be considered unlicensed from October.

Microchip injection measures were launched so that dog owners could be easily identified, to help people to find their lost dogs, eliminate dog abandonment, and prepare dogs for potential travel, according to a report published on the website of the Urban Management Bureau of Shenzhen Municipality on Monday.

The chips were imported from the US and Switzerland, and the injections were free, the report said. Over a hundred injection stations were set up in the city.

Yu Xinyi, president of the Shenzhen Pet Medical Association, told media on Sunday that the microchips are about the size of a grain of rice and have almost no impact on the health of the dogs, the Economic Daily reported.

"Simply inject [the chip] into the skin on the upper right side of the neck and press for a few minutes," Yu said, explaining the injection process and noting that the surfaces of the chips used in Shenzhen are covered with materials that are compatible with the canine physique, preventing the slippage and damage of the chips.

The chips last about 15 years, longer than the usual lifespan of a dog, and can be attached for life, Feng Zengjun, deputy director of Shenzhen's urban management bureau, said in a previous media interview, according to the Shenzhen Special Zone Daily.

The number of registered dogs in Shenzhen is now above 170,000, according to Shenzhen urban administration authorities on Monday. The number of dogs that have been chipped has not yet been released.

The microchip policy was originally launched in May, a move that drew widespread attention. After Sunday's event, local government is expected to boost the policy's implementation and promote its importance.

More than five districts in Shenzhen have thus far preliminarily completed the procurement of microchips and signed chip implantation agreements with 100 pet hospitals in the city, media reported.