Photo Courtesy of NYPD
Officer Pardo and Jackson inside the 106th Precinct stationhouse.
By Michael V. Cusenza
A quick-thinking South Queens cop recently helped reunite a lost dog with his owner, according to the City Police Department.
After a concerned neighbor brought the meandering pup to the 106th Precinct stationhouse in Ozone Park, astute Officer Claudia Pardo reached for a pet microchip scanner provided to all 86 NYPD commands earlier this year by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
According to officials, Pardo then used the tool to obtain a serial number that provided all pertinent information on “Jackson”—including his anxious owner’s phone number.
“I’m a big animal lover, and we get so many lost dogs in this precinct,” Pardo said. “This chip reader avoids so many unnecessary trips to the Animal Care Center in Brooklyn and allows us to reunite the dogs with the owners much more quickly.”
The entire process — from the moment Jackson entered the stationhouse to the time his relieved best friend came to pick him up — took about 30 minutes, the officer added.
According to the ASPCA, Jackson’s microchip is a subcutaneous identification implant, roughly the size of a grain of rice, used most commonly in cats and dogs. Each implant contains a unique serial number which can be read by a scanner and matched to a database containing the owner’s contact information.
The organization noted that the pet microchip scanners can also help NYPD officers responding to suspected animal cruelty cases quickly obtain animal ownership information to aid their investigations.
“Effectively fighting animal cruelty means equipping law enforcement officers with practical tools as well as comprehensive training, and these scanners will certainly accelerate the process of finding owners and clearing cases,” ASPCA President and CEO Matt Bershadker said in February. “As we enter the fifth year of our partnership with the NYPD, I’m inspired by their enthusiasm to use every means available to stop cruelty, rescue victimized animals, and bring animal abusers to justice.”
