You might also be interested in the FAQ page.

Terms and Conditions

This is a simple guide to the terms and conditions of the Fido service.

SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING DOG MICROCHIP REGISTRATION

From 1 Sept 2015 all pups must be microchipped before they reach 12 weeks, and the data recorded on an approved database, and the owner issued with an official Certificate of Registration by the database provider. It will be illegal to buy or sell unchipped pups.

Registration for reunification purposes alone is insufficient under the law.

If you want to register a dog (pup or adult) with Fido and you want to obtain a legal Certificate of Registration, then you should visit your vet who will have the appropriate forms to record the legally-required data on your dog and yourself, for submission to Fido. The vet will perform the registration online through a dedicated portal or will send the forms to Fido for processing, in a timely manner.

Certificates of Registration will be mandatory from March 2016 for all dogs, regardless of age.

If you already have reunification data registered on Fido, the most efficient way to obtain a legal Certificate of Registration is to fill in the ChipCheck form. There is a small fee, which covers the data check and processing of the certification.

If you have reunification data registered elsewhere and want to avail of Fido's services, including the Certificate of Registration, use the ChipCheck form.

Information about you

The main purpose of the information about yourself (the pet owner) that you supply to Fido is to make that information available to authorized persons or organisations who are acting in the best interests of your pet.

If your chipped pet is found and brought to a scanning facility, such as that used by a vet or animal pound, the Chip ID can be detected and then cross-referenced with Fido to obtain your contact details. These details can then be used to reunite you and your pet.

Where information or products must be delivered to you, your contact details for such delivery will be requested. Where possible, your email address will be used as the preferred form of contact.

EuroPetNet is a Europe-wide network of pet registration service providers of which Fido is a member. The presence of your contact details is made known to EuroPetNet. However, your name and your contact details are not shared with EuroPetNet.

In some cases, and only with your permission, some information is shared with partners or sponsors in order to offer you additional services.

Information about your pet

The information about your pet is used as additional information to identify the pet associated with the Chip ID.

The Chip ID is shared with EuroPetNet so that if your pet is located anywhere in Europe (e.g. while on holiday) then it can quickly be determined that the chip is known to Fido, and thus provide the means to make contact with you, the registered owner. Only an authorised person or organisation will be able to obtain your contact details.

In the case of dogs, Fido will only issue a Certificate of Registration if the registration was processed by a trained official Fido Registrar (i.e. most small-animal vets and veterinary nurses in Ireland), you have signed the necessary forms (given to you by the vet) and all of the legally required information has been supplied.

Legal Ownership and Licensing

Registration of a chip with Fido for reunification purposes does not:

• confer legal ownership of the chipped animal
• grant a license to keep the chipped animal
• prove possession of the chipped animal
• prove that the chipped animal is alive at the time of registration
• invalidate another person's claim of ownership

Fido has a facility for a registered owner to inform Fido that the registration is to be transferred to a new registered owner. Since this mechanism requires access to the Fido account that is protected by a password known only to the account holder, the record of this transfer of ownership may be used to infer the intent of the owner with respect to the associated animal. Fido, however, can make no judgement on the actual ownership.

The Certificate of Registration is NOT a dog license. The Certificate can last for the lifetime of the dog; the license must be renewed regularly. The Certificate confirms the registration of chip details; the license confirms permission to keep the dog.

Data Protection

Fido takes all appropriate precautions to protect the information and privacy of Fido customers. Fido customers have the ability to see and amend certain recorded information at any time via their personal accounts or certificate codes. Fido customers can also ask Fido staff for assistance to obtain or correct recorded information. The cost to customers for the service of amending certain data will be nil if conducted without assistance online, or nil at the discretion of Fido for services requiring the assistance of staff. In the case where a cost, this will be reasonable with respect to the effort expended by Fido staff and/or the materials involved. Fido staff are obliged to take appropriate precautions to ensure that only the account holders are facilitated, and may refuse to perform any action if there is a suspicion of the authenticity of the person making contact.

If requested by legally authorised persons or bodies, Fido will share the information with respect to any identified registered owner or animal.

Cookies

A recent European Directive requires Web sites in Europe to explain to customers the nature and purpose of Web cookies (and similar technologies) used on the sites.

A cookie is a piece of data given to your browser by a Web site and stored by your browser. Some cookies are stored only for the duration of your session with the Web site. Other cookies are given to the browser to be stored persistently so that the data is still there the next time you start your browser. Persistent cookies might also be seen by other Web sites, and can therefore be used to to track your activity from Web site to Web site.

The www.fido.ie site does not create persistent cookies nor engage in the use of cookies for cross-site tracking.

Fido uses temporary cookies for the duration of a Web session in order to remember who you are and the fact that you are authorised to use the service at that time. Your browser will only send to Fido the same cookie data that Fido originally gave to your browser. The cookie data is encrypted and unique to your session, and passing this data back and forth between Fido and your browser is how the two stay in sync, until you exit your browser.

If you choose to disable cookies or JavaScript in your browser, or you object to the use of such technology, then you are advised not to use the online Fido service because it cannot function otherwise. If you are interested (or just curious) about cookies, there is a good layperson's explanation on WikiPedia. (The indicated page can be viewed even if you disable cookies.)