Shannon,

I work for a vet clinic and we used the AVID chips for a long time (recently switched to a slightly cheaper/more client friendly brand). While mostly we chip cats and dogs we would do snakes or lizards if a client wanted one. You asked where in the body cavity the chip would be implanted, no where. Microchips are acually implanted under the skin of the animal. I believe, but am not 100% certain that on snakes the chip is generally implanted in the tail just past the cloaca. Your vet should know though.

As far as the claims of chips causing cancer I would be a little skeptical. Is the possiblity there? Of course, but be realistic. For one the microchips are made from an inert glass material so that the body doesn't experience an adverse reaction when implanted. Secondly, while there are articles on the net pretty much saying that these chips cause cancer check your sources. The internet contains a wealth of information, but unfortuantely a lot of it is unfactual. I personally would be hesitant to accept anything not published in a peer reviewed journal. Certainly there have been studies done concerning cell phones and the like causing tumors or leading to other health issues, but I don't believe a correlation can be made to microchipping your pet. The reason being is the funamental way that these chips work. While your (insert favorite device here) is usually on for large periods of time and used daily over the course of our lives, micro chips are not. The only time a micro chip is active is when it's being scanned. Thus once implanted (usually it is scanned once after implantation to insure it's working as it should and that the correct chip number matches the paperwork) it is entirely possible that it may not be scanned again for the life of your pet. You certianly won't be scanning it multiple times a day over the life of your pet.

I personally don't have any of my snakes chipped simply because I don't really have a reason to. They aren't large expensive snakes (3 corns, 2 black racers, and 2 baby ball pythons) and I don't really worry about them being stolen (I'd love to see someone try and get my male black racer out, expecially if you're not used to handling snakes...lol), but ultimately the choice is a personal one. If you feel more comfortable with an animal that is permanently identifiable, do it.

Just my two cents, but hope it helps.
Dan
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1.0.0 Snow Corn Snake (Suzie - it's a funny story)
0.1.0 Normal Corn Snake (F.U.)
1.0.0 Amelanistic Corn Snake (Tohper)
1.1.0 Black Racers (Diablo & Noir)
1.1.0 Normal Ball Pythons (Trogdor & Samantha)
1.0.0 Red Eared Slider (Fish)

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