Usage of Computers and Computer Software in the Animal Adoption Industry - Essay Example

How computers and computer software are used in the animal adoption industry. July 12, Introduction Animal adoption refers to the process of taking ownership and the responsibility of an animal (pet) that has been abandoned by its owner. Adoptable animals are usually found in animal shelters, animal rescue groups, stray pets lacking identification tags, online pet adoption websites1. There are many reasons why pets are taken to animal shelters; Breeding, Overpopulation of pets is usually caused by breeders who produce more than they can sell, and they also breed animals that do not meet the required breed standards. Second Thought, when an owner realizes that caring for a pet is more than he can handle Change of Circumstance normally caused by financial problems Lost Pet, when an animal leaves home and can’t find its way back Allergies, People suddenly develop allergies to their pets Moving across borders, some laws might make it difficult to keep certain pets in some areas. These animal shelters house many animals coming in and out of the facility making it extremely difficult to remember each animal by name. This is where computers and computer software’s come in because they make it easier to keep track of animals with the help of an assigned identification number. This facilitates managing the animals and keeping records of every detail to each animal. This method requires different organization styles, but in order for an animal shelter to stay organized they must embrace computers and its relevant software. Every day animals are taken out of their kernels for viewing or vaccination and even out for a walk along with many places other than the animal’s assigned area, this makes it hard to keep inventory of the animals at the animal shelter and this gives more reason to develop a system of keeping the animals accounted for and organized. Once an animal has been adopted there is a need to register the new owner so as to easily keep track of the animal, in many regions it is mandated by law for dog owners to register their dogs with the local animal shelters. This information is recorded at the county level and surrounding local pet organizations in case the animal gets lost. The registration of animals at the animal shelters creates more works for its staff but gives an easy way to take inventory of all registered animals in case something happens. This work is much less compared to the manual exercises in a regular animal shelter, it eliminates the need for paperwork, follow up and effort that goes in running an animal control and shelter facility. Many systems have been developed to make running such a facility much easier. Animal Control And Animal Shelter Management (ACM) This system offers complete animal shelter management solutions, from the first day the animal is brought to the facility through adoption. This program maintains detailed records highlighting all areas of animal care. For each animal medical records pertaining assessment, vaccination, treatments etc are kept and also a whole module has been developed to monitor and control quarantined animals 2. Legal information like complaints brought forward against pets and owners, convictions that are animal related, special animal breed registration are also accommodated. This system also processes open lost reports and displays potential candidates. When a client presents his or herself as a candidate to adopt an animal, he or she will be checked for complaints or convictions against them making the shelter to make decisions based on facts as to whether approve the adoption or not. This full suite of management results reduces work load and also helps in documenting the contribution a specific shelter is having on the community. Its full features and functionality include; Wanted animal requests, Follow up, lost animals, Images and Video, Euthanasia Review, Vicious dog and selected breed registration, Behavior assessment, Bites and Quarantine, Cash receipts, Complaints, Convictions, Mapping and charting, Kennel management, Dispatching, Licensing, Health assessment system Cisco Software Animal Control Software This system has been designed for the tracking and capturing of information on animals. The design has been done in a modular manner providing easy to use menus for function selection. It also contains new enhancements such as a photo imaging interface and html missing and adoption notification with the animal’s photos. When an animal is brought to the shelter it is assigned with a number and its identifying information is recorded, this information is type, breed, markings, name, name of the veterinarian, rabies tag, whether the animal was picked up or brought in, owner information and cage assigned to. This system also captures digital images and displays them for adoption and tracking of missing animals. This makes receiving the animal a whole lot easier and the subsequent recording of vital information 3. This system also records treatments given to the animal. It also records the amount, frequency, type, start and stops dates, follow up dates and staff id of the medication given. It also checks when the animal was fed or checked for some other reasons. The module also keeps record of the animal’s release from the shelter, to whom released, the reasons for the release and the person releasing the animal. This module is therefore very useful for the adoption process. Citations are also issued to the animal’s new owner after recording which later helps in tracking. It also records payments, the cage type and capacity, population, types of supplies, supply transactions and code tables. Supply inventory records are kept by inputting the quantity, type and reorder points for the shelters supplies. Tracking And Tagging Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) RFID is a new computerized system that helps in keeping track of things with the use of tiny electronic circuits only read by special receivers. RFID stands for radio frequency identification. These radio frequencies are invisible signals that travel through air, walls. These signals have been commissioned for uses other than sending radio broadcasts and this lead to the creation of RFID. The RFID system is an electronic product code not only identifying the object type but also which specific object it is. One of the most important parts of implementing an inventory system is selecting the right components to meet the specifications of the environment and the needs of the system 4. To properly implement a fully effective RFID system, it all comes down to the tags and the reader. Readers All readers fall under either smart or simple. Simple readers only have the capability to detect the tags that are in range, although when integrated into a server or PC setup a simple reader can accomplish some of the same characteristics of a smart reader, this can save money and possibly be easier to integrate. A smart reader is defined as a reader that can accomplish more than the simple detections of the RFID tags. The readers come in three categories, a handheld device, a stationery reader or mounted reader 5. There are many more types of readers that fall into each of these categories, featuring increased range, different frequencies detection and rugged structure to fight against weather and intense work conditions. Handheld devices fall into the smart category commonly used on offsite detections but their main drawback is having a decreased range. Stationery readers have the highest capability in terms of hardware potential and direction range. They can also be connected to a laptop computer to perform tasks that a mobile solution would have been preferred. Tags/Micro Chips There are different factors that determine which tag is appropriate for the system at hand. A big distinction between tags is if a tag is active, passive or battery assisted passive (BAP). A tag is considered active if there is a battery used to constantly transmit signals from a tag to a potential reader in range. Passive tags do not require batteries to submit signals. There is also a hybrid of both passive and active tags, these tags remain dormant until a signal is initiated by a reader, but when a signal is initiated it has a better reading range 6. Tag selection is purely dependent on the job the RFID system is designed to accomplish. It could be reasonable for one project to have tags that have long read range but another may require a low read range tag to control the number of tags detected. The most important aspects when it comes to tag is the range performance, how far the tag can be detected. The main drawback is cost and it’s one of the most important aspects to minimize, another disadvantage is most tags tend to be ineffective in extreme conditions. Also most tags don’t save enough information of the animal in them and in many applications the memory stored and transmitted by the tag is usually used as a reference number to a database. It is increasingly important to be able to save a large amount of data on the tags. For example, if an RFID system used in an animal shelter categorized their pets into types, breed of animals etc this would require the tag to be capable of storing more information 7. Many of animal shelters, pet owners have turned into micro chips to easily keep track of their animals. This type of technology is safe and simple. It is the size of a grain of rice, it is a radio frequency identification transponder made up of a few components encased within a capsule of bioglass. This bioglass is extensively used in implants on humans and animals and it has anti migration features to ensure that the capsule stays intact by bonding with the tissue under the animal’s skin. It can be classified as a passive RFID device because it does not have an internal source of power and until it is powered on by a scanner the device remains inert. The chip contains three components, integrated circuit, coil inductor, capacitor. The main function of a micro chip is to store unique ID number, this number is used to retrieve the pet’s owner contact information, the chip contains the unique ID data and this information is encoded by the electronic circuits. In order to obtain this information a scanner is passed over the skin of the chipped pet, the micro chip then emits a low radio frequency signal, the scanner then reads the microchips unique identification code. This calls the registry, and the registry company uses the id number to get the pet owner’s contacts from its database. Almost all veterinary hospitals and animal shelters use global scanners to read chips from different manufacturers. Most microchip will last the lifetime of the pet because they don’t have an internal energy source. These microchips have different frequencies. The 125 kHz chip was the most commonly used in the United States and can be read by almost all scanners in the country. The 134 kHz chip was introduced in 2004. It is defined by the specifications developed by the ISO. 128 kHz chip was introduced in 2007, which can also be read by a majority of scanners. All veterinary clinics and animal shelters have scanners 8. There were already more than 70,000 universal scanners in the United States. Other countries also require that all imported animals be chipped with universal micro chips and accompanied with compatible readers. This is done so as to make sure that the vaccination records match with the relevant animal. In some countries such as Israel, this is mandatory In conclusion, the noble work which is done by the animal shelters cannot be undermined, offering quality services to animals that have been abused, abandoned, stray and unwanted. They provide valued services that deserve everybody’s support. The use of computers and computer software has made the work of these shelters to be greatly manageable hence improving efficiency. Long before the introduction of this technology, animal shelter managers and their personnel had to do so much paperwork and actual physical follow up on adopted animals. Animals such as dogs only had name tags which could easily get lost and this made tracking of the animal extremely difficult. Now, this can all be done by use of handheld devices or just a click of a button. Bibliography Espejo, Roman. RFID technology. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2009. Catherine Masters, The Year Of The Dog War, The Newzealand Herald May 2010 Claire Swedberg RFID Goes To The Dogs, Retrieved Nov 10 2009 Cisco-ps.com. "CISCO Software - ACS - Animal Control System." 2014. http://www.cisco- ps.com/animal_control/ (accessed 14 Apr 2014). Humanesociety.org. "High Technology: Identifying Lost Pets With Microchips : The Humane Society of the United States." 2013. http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/resources/tips/microchips.html#.U0p-nyHdrRE (accessed 14 Apr 2014). Multiop.com. "Animal Control / Animal Shelter Management." 2014. http://www.multiop.com/animalcontrol.htm (accessed 15 Apr 2014). (Multiop.com 2014) Nxp.com. "RFID in animal identification :: NXP Semiconductors." 2014. http://www.nxp.com/applications/rf-identification/animal-identification.html (accessed 15 Apr 2014). Read More