Identification and registration (I&R) are inseparable components of dog and cat traceability. Traceability, veterinary care and the education of all stakeholders constitute the core of responsible ownership and protection from zoonotic disease. 

The EU Pet Passport Regulation has established mandatory electronic identification for all cats, dogs and ferrets moving into and within the EU. The passport and pet microchip enable verification of the vaccination status and health history of an animal. However, the regulation does not include compulsory registration, leaving this responsibility in the hands of the member states. For this reason, full EU traceability cannot yet be implemented. Although mandatory I&R for dogs is already in place in most EU countries, cats are largely not covered. Besides reuniting lost pets with their owners and preventing abandonment, I&R is the only reliable way of tracing disease and controlling health hazards, ensuring consumer protection, tackling tax evasion and curbing illegal trade.  

FOUR PAWS advocates the mandatory, EU-wide identification (through injectable transponders) and registration (in compatible, harmonised databases) of all cats and dogs. To this end, FOUR PAWS and its partners in the CARO project (carodog.eu and carocat.eu) have launched an expert group on canine and feline traceability representing members from all along the traceability chain (FOUR PAWS, IZSAM, FVE, EC, TASSO, Datamars, Planet ID, Europetnet, Belgian Health Ministry). Underlining the value and central role of traceability, the expert group calls for the establishment of a mandatory EU-wide I&R system and has drawn up recommendations for policymakers.

Furthermore, to help combat the exploitative online pet trade, FOUR PAWS has developed a 'Model Solution for full traceability across the European online puppy trade', which requires all puppies to be microchipped and registered, and the seller's details verified, before they can be advertised online.