I got a cat the other day from the SPCA
that's a year old.

I just noticed today that she has an tattoo,
or stamp in her ear.

Does anyone know if this is for identificaion
purposes... or what?

Hmmmm, I thought for a bit that maybe she
was a purebred of some type.....

Well, Tree, a clue might be if the tattoo looks like a number. If so, I'd say, yes, it was probably intended for identification. Our pet dogs were tattoed in the ear regularly. In fact, as purebread puppies, they came to us pre-stamped, so to speak. I suspect this happens with cats, too, though less often. I wish I knew how to tell you how to proceed from here. If the number (if that's what it is) is at all legible, perhaps your vet or maybe even the SPCA people can advise you on how to track down a potential owner who is missing a much loved cat.

[This message was edited by maiku on 10-19-02 at 06:38 PM.]

At our SPCA, when we do a spay/neuter, that animal is tattoo'd in its left ear with the letter "N" (generic neuter) and its id # on the inside of its left thigh.

The hair will grow over the # on the thigh, but the "N" in the ear will still be visible.

When a stray comes to the shelter, we check it's ear. If we find an 'N', we know to shave and look for the id#. We can punch the # into our computer system and the adopter's name and info come up so we can contact them.

A tattoo can be used a proof of legal ownership as well.

Years ago when I was heavy into all my doggie activities, we would use Tattoo-A-Pet. Now it seems that the microchips are more common, and easier to trace nationwide.

[This message was edited by SPCAgal on 10-19-02 at 07:13 PM.]

I used to do pet tattooing a long time ago. I gave my equipment away. However, I checked the internet and there are still several registries open. The two I worked with were National dog Registry (Natldogregistry.com) 1-800-NDR-Dogs and Tattoo-A-Pet at tatoo-a-pet.com (1-800-tattoos).
I would definitely check out these registries to make sure you don't have someone's lost pet. I read recently where a dog that had been microchipped turned up after years of being lost. the owner didn't even recognise the dog because the change in it's appearance. these agencies register both dogs and cats. It also could have been a breeder. A friend of mine tattoos her puppies.

Thanks for your into...although, I think
that SPCAgal gave me the answer that I was
looking for, as this cat was spayed at the
SPCA and they are the ones who had tatooed
her.

Thank you for your input!