By JEREMY REES
Microchips may be implanted into pet ferrets to identify them and their owners.
The 12mm by 2.2mm chips, implanted under the ferret's skin by a syringe, would record information, which could be picked up by a hand-held scanner.
The proposal is part of a submission by the Auckland Regional Council to the Department of Conservation, which is seeking public ideas on what to do about ferrets.
There could be as many as 3000 pet ferrets in New Zealand but hundreds of thousands of wild ones.
ARC councillor Lady Patricia Thorp said the possibility of ferrets escaping from their owners posed a serious threat to ecosystems around the region, including the Hauraki Gulf islands.
DoC's discussion document - entitled What Can We Do About Ferrets? - puts options including licensing, compulsory desexing and stronger regulations.
In its submission, the ARC says all people who keep ferrets should be licensed and their pets registered. Under current law, owners of more than three ferrets must be licensed.
The ARC also wants ferrets desexed and implanted with the identification chip so owners can be given "substantial" fines if their ferrets are found in the wild.
ARC programme development officer Steve Hix said the microchip and injection would cost around $9.50 plus GST, with desexing costing about $12. The costs should be carried by buyers of ferrets.
Implanting chips in dogs has been mooted in the past. Similar microchips are used by DoC to track rare wildlife.
A spokesman for the Ferret Association, Rob Fort, said cats, rats and dogs posed a far greater threat to wildlife than ferrets. He had heard of only one or two examples of pet ferrets escaping into the wild in Auckland.
"How are they possibly going to improve the wildlife survival rate by implanting microchips for identification? Most owners are very responsible, partly because of the cost of a pet ferret."
Ferrets can cost more than $120 and, in some cases, up to $1000.
On compulsory licensing, Mr Fort said: "If they are going to do that, they should license all pet cats. Cats do far more damage than ferrets."
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