1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and system for identifying animals and more particularly relates to a method for identifying pets such as dogs using noseprint identification.
2. Background Information
There are a number of reasons why it is important to provide identification of pets. One important reason is to identify a pet so that it can be returned to its owner if lost. Another purpose would be to certify the identity of a pet before or after competition such as horse racing or dog shows. Another important use for identification would be for forensics to determine the identity and ownership of an animal involved in property damage or personal injury.
Presently there are systems for identifying animals by applying a permanent mark on animals. Branding of cows, sheep, etc. is still widely used. Also identification tags can be attached to the animal's ears, nose, or attached to a collar worn on the neck of an animal. Another method is the use of an ink code of lettering, letters, numbers, or other symbols that can be tattooed on the skin of an animal. Also, the insertion of a readable (MICRO) chip into the body of a dog or animal can be used. The microchip uses numbers only, which can identify the owner of the dog via a database. The disadvantages of these systems are that chips can be removed, as can tags and collars. Tattoos can also be altered. It has been known that chips used at animal shelters can create mistakes with ownership, by lack of follow-through by shelter personnel to change ownership records when necessary.
It was recognized that pore and crease patterns on the noses of dogs are unique and can be utilized for forensic identification as fingerprints are used for positive identification of people. A dog's noseprint for example can be used for positive identification which is acceptable for registration and identification of purebred dogs by kennel clubs, specifically the Canadian Kennel Club, and recognized by the Canadian Agricultural Department since 1938. The Canadian Kennel Club sold a kit that consisted of a pre-inked noseprint pad with a paper form for registration. The ink was a viscous, organic, stamp-pad type of ink that was applied to the nose of the animal or dog. The ink remains solvent which was irritating to the animal and to the dog owner as well.
To use this system the surface of the pet's or dog's nose was first dried with a clean cloth to remove access moisture. The pre-inked plate is then applied to the front and sides of the dog's nose with a rolling motion. The noseprint pad was slightly flexible to confirm to the curvature of a dog's nose. Once the rolling motion was applied to the dog's nose with the flexible ink pad, it was pulled away with a quick motion to avoid smudging the noseprint. The print was then transferred from the inked nose to the paper registration form which was allowed to dry. This method is very difficult to make acceptable prints, even for persons experienced with this type of ink product. The print must be complete, legible, not smeared or smudged, of the correct density, not too light or too dark. Non-acceptable prints can be caused by too much moisture on the pet's or dog's nose, too little or too much ink, or by incorrect or inconsistent hand pressure. For these reasons this method was found to be tedious and not very successful. Although the Canadian Kennel Club registered tens of thousands of purebreds using the conventional ink product, too many of the dog owners were turned down because poor quality nose prints were taken which could not be identifiable.
There are a number of patents that disclose inkless fingerprinting system that use water-based inks in a two part system to develop fingerprints on a substrate impregnator with a coated layer containing a developer for the other part of the system. For example the patent of Meadows et al., U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,379,178 and 4,699,077. Other patents include U.S. Pat. No. 4,029,012 of Smith et al; U.S. Pat. No. 4,705,299 of Hedgecoth et al; U.S. Pat. No. 5,363,453 of Gagne et al; U.S. Pat. No. 5,522,623 of Soules et al; U.S. Pat. No. 5,879,453 of Streeter et al; U.S. Pat. No. 5,673,647 of Pratt; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,928,708 of Hansmire et al.