NOW that the new pet passport scheme is in operation, may I appeal to pet owners who are planning to take their pet abroad on holiday this year to please think twice before doing so.

Cats and dogs, like humans, like to explore their surroundings and if they should get lost -- micro-chip or not -- it would create a nightmare for both pet and owner.

It is bad enough when it happens here in England, but abroad there are the added problems of language, geographical and cultural differences, making the chances of getting your pet back extremely slim and its fate doesn't bear thinking about.

Josephine Harwood,

Moor Park Avenue,

Bispham.