photo by: Kathy Wismer Photography

A Lawrence Humane Society employee, Elina Alterman, carries a dog during a recent pet vaccine clinic for clients of Just Food.

Microchipping pets prior to the Fourth of July might be the key for pet owners getting reunited with their beloved pets who bolt due to the sights and sounds of the holiday, local animal shelter leaders are warning.

In advance of the holiday, the Lawrence Humane Society is urging pet owners to take part in Saturday’s microchip clinic at Dale Willey Honda, 2851 Iowa St.

The clinic runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., with the first 100 animals receiving the procedure free of charge. Those arriving later will be charged $25 to have their animal microchipped.

Elina Alterman, director of development and communications for the Lawrence Humane Society, said that the days following the Independence Day holiday are among the busiest of the year for animal shelters nationwide.

“The Fourth of July is a pretty stressful time for a lot of animals and pet owners,” she said, adding that both the sound and smell of fireworks can frighten pets.

The subsequent reaction can result in animals slipping loose and often turning up at shelters.

“The day after the Fourth of July is not always a great one for animal welfare,” Alterman said. “We have a lot of stray animals coming in and we’re trying to get them home.”

Encased in a glass cylinder that’s roughly the size of a grain of rice, the microchip is injected under the skin using a hypodermic needle. Alterman said that a common misconception is that microchips function as a GPS tracker. In reality, there is no transponder, but rather the chip is scanned once an animal turns up at a shelter, veterinary office or other such location. The scanned chip tells shelter officials who the pet belongs to.

“The microchip connects to the owner’s name, phone number, address and email address,” Alterman said.

Microchipping dramatically increases the likelihood of reuniting lost dogs and cats with their owners, according to a study cited by the American Veterinary Medical Association. Dogs that are microchipped are twice as likely to see a safe return to owners, and cats are 20 times more likely.

Dale Willey general manager Ryan Pfannenstiel said the dealership recently donated $7,500 to the Humane Society, but also came up with the idea of the microchipping event as a way to help the Humane Society and Lawrence pet owners at the same time.

In addition to the free microchipping, the event will feature free Kona Ice snow cones to the first 100 people in line.