Local Girl Scout coordinates pet recovery project

Byram Township — Angela Gargano, a Byram Girl Scout, joined forces with Newton Veterinary Hospital, Byram Animal Rescue Kindness Squad (BARKS) and Schering-Plough Animal Health Corporation, to conduct a low cost Pet Micro-chipping Clinic on Saturday Oct. 7, at Newton Veterinary Hospital. Gargano initiated the project while working to obtain the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest award in Girl Scouting. Gargano began her scouting career as a Daisy in the Byram Girl Scout over 11 years ago. The high school junior enlisted the help of Newton Veterinary Doctors, BARKS and Schering-Plough, the makers of Home Again Pet Micro-chips, to make her project a reality. Gargano’s goal was to make pet owners aware of the benefits of pet micro-chipping and conduct a clinic that would count on volunteers to help keep down the cost of chipping animals in the surrounding counties. Gargano was guided by three advisors, Sheryl Thole, President of BARKS, Karen Loree, Manager of Newton Veterinary Hospital, and her mother, who is her Girl Scout Leader. She spent many hours making signs that advertised the event. The signs were posted in the Sussex, Warren and Morris tri-county area and various news articles were written to advertise the clinic. Gargano reports that the clinic was a success and over 35 animals were chipped. She also held a pet food drive and collected two huge boxes of dog and cat food, which were donated to BARKS. Micro-chipping is a safe and permanent pet I.D. and recovery system. A micro-chip the size of a grain of rice is implanted between the shoulder blades of a pet. If the pet becomes lost, it can be identified with the use of a hand-held scanner used in shelters and vet offices. The micro-chip links the animal to the recovery system and the owner, immediately. Micro-chipping is not harmful to the pet. The Byram Girl Scout also created a short power point presentation on micro-chipping, which included a live demonstration of a dog being chipped at Newton Veterinary Hospital.