Collars and tags

[boscibo]

I want to thank everyone who responded to my thread about letting Hanna out supervised.

We go out every morning while I am drinking my coffee (my neighborhood is quieter then, and it isn't so hot) and so far, so good. I put a little purple breakaway collar on Hanna just in case - it has a little bell and if she did manage to slip out of the fenced yard it would tell people she isn't a stray (although I hate to admit it, she is obviously a little too chubby to be mistaken for a stray). She goes out and explores and eats grass. She hates to come back indside - I have to pick her up and carry her in and she protests the whole way. The only thing I get anxious about is when she gets too close to the part of the fence that is not cat-proofed, she could slip into our neighbors yard. Luckily these neighbors are cat lovers, but it would take me a few minutes to go around our fence to get into their yard and get her back.

The little purple collar is temporary and I was wondering what other people use for ID tags/collars? What is better - breakaway with the buckles that give way or the safety collars with the elastic? I was looking at this collar from Petsmart, it can be personalized.

**I AM NOT PLANNING ON EVER LETTING HANNA OUT UNSUPERVISED** I don't let her out of my sight while we're out!

But she does door dash now and I want her ID'd just in case. She is microchipped, but with a collar ID it would be easier if a neighbor found her. I am thinking about keeping her collared all the time because of her trying to sneak out.

I know by seeing picture on this forum that many people here do allow their cats out supervised - and I know I can be a little overprotective and paranoid, but if anything ever happened to Hanna I don't know what I'd do.

What type of collar - safety or breakaway, and what kind of tags does everyone use?

Thanks!

[kuhio98]

All of our kitties, wear break away collars that have our phone number embroidered on them. You can order them from: http://www.k-9collars.com/

And all of our kitties are microchipped. Because kitties will manage to get out unsupervised at some point. Despite our best intentions, doors and windows are sometimes left ajar and our babies seem to have a knack for exploring.

Please check out the link included in my signature for Avid Chip information. There are a couple of chips on the market, but this link answers the basic questions. Ask your vet what chips they use.

Please consider getting all your pets chipped. We lost Kuhio when she went exploring while we were out of town. She was put to sleep by the pound before we could rescue her. If she had been chipped, she would be home today lazing around in the sun.

Lisa

[Maya & Inka's mommy]

Oh my, that type of collar is NOT available here...! Iwish I could order some for my cats, they are perfect!!

[catnapper]

Kuhio beat me to recommending she get microchipped. It varies in cost from vet to vet, so ask around. The Humane Society here won't microchip unless you adopt a cat from them, but perhaps yours would.

The only other alternative is tattooing your cat's ear.
The ID is unmistakeable, but you have to really be concerned about the collar getting off, since the tattoo is very obvious.

[boscibo]

Originally posted by boscibo
She is microchipped, but with a collar ID it would be easier if a neighbor found her.

All my kitties are chipped, I think the chip is called Home Again. I just think it would save a trip to the shelter/vet if she was collared/tagged.

She is such a little door dasher, and with the dogs in/out so often...I need to feel safer.

[King Spartacus]

I have an elasticated collar (the whole thing is elasticated, not just a part of it)... it's also got reflextive thread in it, a beel and I got a tag. The tag says that I'm microchipped, and also have our phonenumber on! So far I've lost 7 elasticated collars, and 3 snap-open ones... so I guess they both work!!!

[kuhio98]

Originally posted by boscibo


All my kitties are chipped, I think the chip is called Home Again. I just think it would save a trip to the shelter/vet if she was collared/tagged.

She is such a little door dasher, and with the dogs in/out so often...I need to feel safer.

Ooops, sorry I missed that in the first posting. Doesn't it relieve your mind so much to have them chipped. It increases the odds that you will be reunited if your little "door dasher" gets out.

[Kater]

I have used both the elastic breakaways and the buckle breakaways. I have never had any collar actually break off, but something I like about the buckle variety is that you can test them yourself and see how much force it takes the open the buckle...however, the elastic ones are one-time use.

I have recently only bought collars that use the buckle system. This is because I wanted cotton collars and not those made from synthetics like nylon and generally cotton collars come with the safety buckle. I leave Nipo's collar on 24/7 so I want her skin to be able to "breathe" and cotton is more comfortable in that way.

I did come across that collar you posted from Petsmart, however I personally didn't order it because they charge outrageous shipping costs for Hawaii. So I scoured the net for the best collars...I honestly spent hours on this. My new source for collars is "Ragtime Pet Collars." I ordered three from the eBay site (my first eBay purchase!) and am very happy with the quality...the bell...the buckle...everything.

eBay store: http://stores.ebay.com/Ragtime-Pet-Collars
website: http://www.ragtimepetcollars.com/

You can order from either place but the costs somehow differ slightly...I know if you order from her website you can get free toys of some sort with certain minimum orders. Anyway, let her know what you plan to order and she can tell you if you'd be better off ordering from eBay or her site. So anyway, big fan and Nipo gives them two paws up!

A nice synthetic brand is Lupine.
Cat Breakaway Collar: http://www.lupinepet.com/cat/index.html
We sell these at the clinic where I work but I haven't personally used this brand. They have a great return policy so that's a bonus. (http://www.lupinepet.com/guarantee/guarantee.html)
Use this to find a dealer near you: http://www.lupinepet.com/dealers/index.html

I recently bought Nipo a nice ID tag as well. Previously I had used cheaper plastic ID tags where you put a small piece of paper inside with name & phone number. However, after finding a new job I was able to afford a nicer ID tag. This tag is kind of pricey and may not be practical for kitties who are likely to lose their collar or are still getting used to the idea of wearing a collar. I love it because it is beautiful as well as being incredibly durable.
http://www.brasspaw.com/tags/hearttag.html

Wow, more than you probably wanted to know, huh? I just thought I'd post all this since I just went through the "great collar (and ID tag) hunt" myself. I hope something I've said will be useful. Good luck to you and Hanna!

P.S. Yay for microchipping! It gives me amazing peace of mind. But I also should say that chips can shift from the shoulder blade area and sometimes even get LOST in the body, completely disappear, not kidding! When I go in for my yearly at the vet I like to ask them to scan her just so I know it's still in place and comes up when scanned. It only takes a second and makes me feel even better to know that the chip is working as it should.

[catmandu]

I WILL BE RELIEVED,WHEN THE CITY STARTS,TO WORK,ON MY PORCH,AS I WILL BE ABLE,TO ENCLOSE IT,AND MY CATS,WILL BE SAFE FURR EVER,AND A DAY,UNTIL THEN I HAVE,TO KEEP,AN EYE ON JJJ3,AS HE WILL RUN OUT GIVEN HALF A CHANCE.

[Craftlady]

Everyone has a break away collar with a cute heart with name/phone #. Eleanor is only one that is microchiped (county shelter that went through PetSmart has all their animals chipped).
Since all ours stay inside it's just a cool thing to have on Also, everyones bell sounds different so I can keep track of everyone.

[King Spartacus]

Originally posted by Kater

I recently bought Nipo a nice ID tag as well. Previously I had used cheaper plastic ID tags where you put a small piece of paper inside with name & phone number. However, after finding a new job I was able to afford a nicer ID tag. This tag is kind of pricey and may not be practical for kitties who are likely to lose their collar or are still getting used to the idea of wearing a collar. I love it because it is beautiful as well as being incredibly durable.

Mamma says to type "tell me about it!" With all the collars and tags I've lost so far it adds up to £70-£80 somewhere stuck in one of the neighbours gardens!!! Mammma always has extra collars and tags in a drawer, as she's now gotten so used to me loosing them!

My collar and tag (you can also see it on my avatar):

[CalliesMom]

My kitties wear the snap away collars and they have a bell, their rabies tag and a tag with our last name and phone number on it. They aren't door dashers and Whisper and Shadow will only try to get out if someone leaves the door open. I have been thinking about microchipping them for my own peace of mind...Their yearly appointments are coming up in two months so I will probably have it done then.

[boscibo]

Thanks everyone. From Kater's link, check these out!

The elastic collars worry me, I guess. My RB kitty Boo got his jaw around a collar when I first put one on him. Luckily I was there and took it off, but if a collar stretches I can see many ways a cat could get a jaw or maybe even a leg stuck in an expandable collar - and really get in trouble.

Here's a Hanna picture I took this morning - she was laying flat on her back with her legs up and had the dopiest look on her face, but when I grabbed my camera she moved. Oh yeah - she has claimed that dog bed as hers.

[King Spartacus]

Ah bless! Hanna's a real cutie!!!