Starting on Wednesday, February 1, all dog and cat owners in the city of Houston will be required to microchip their pets.

The new rule is officially going into effect after the Houston City Council passed an ordinance last year. Initially, there was a year-long grace period for enforcing the microchipping requirement, but that ends on Wednesday.

It's part of a three-step process to completing a pet registration with the city. The city says the microchips help animal control return pets that are brought to city facilities that are lost.

The City of Houston Municipal Code requires that anyone who owns, keeps, possesses, or has control of a dog or cat that's at least 4 months old must have their pet registered, microchipped and vaccinated against rabies every year.

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