With all the thefts that have been going on recently, that's DEFINITELY a viable option.
I saw an ad for microchipping for 30 bucks, I'm betting you can get it done even cheaper. That's half the cost of a vet visit, itself. Not bad at all.
It's difficult to imagine that it's not worth 30 bucks to protect an animal worth over 100 for its life. (I spotted a shelter offering it at a discounted rate for 20 bucks for implanting and registering it).
And if you sell it, the fact that it's microchipped is a huge bonus.
Or, chip them yourself:
http://www.avidmicrochip.com/
I hear the procedure for birds and herps is a bit different from mammals, though, so you'd need to look into that carefully.