No More Collars

Hi

They all went for a shampoo and set last Sat and I didn't bother to put Daisy's collar back on, then yesterday Rosie was having a good scratch so I took hers off and today I have decided no more collars on for all of them .I certainly wouldn't like a collar round my neck with an assortment of tags dangling from it and they are all secure in and around the house all chipped and when we go out they all have their harness on so therefore why collars ,I shall just ensure their tags with their names contact phone numbers ,address and name of vets and contact details and lastly their chipped and spayed tagsare all attached so from now on no more collars it must be more comfy for them and I really should have set them free long ago.

bri.

Murphy never wears his collar in the house - he only wears it if we go out, into town or unfamilar area's, otherwise he just wears his harness on his walks!

I allways keep collars on my guys, after doing a microchip course recently I learned how far chips can migrate & can often be missed so I like the peace of mind physical evidence (which I know can be taken off if the dogs are stolen etc....) of their address is on them 24/7. Fortunatly I have never had a dog of mine lost or straying but you just never know.

I would disagree with this approach to collars and tags (setting aside that in many places -- such as Ireland and the UK -- there is a legal requirement for a dog to always have tags on if outside the home, including on a walk on lead ). I always keep them on. The tags aren't there for the times when you think or even know they are all safe -- they are there for the times they get out the door or run off when you don't expect. Any dog, any time can get out or away unexpectedly. And believe me -- chipped dogs do not always get scanned, and sometimes pounds/vets do not scan carefully enough/slowly enough to pick up the chip, and they can stop working or migrate (so people always have a vet scan for the chip at an annual check-up).

I chip for the legal security of identification and as an essential backup to tags -- but tags are far more likely to get a dog returned! A lot of people who find a dog do not even know there would be such a thing as a chip to check for in the first place. I regularly have to tell people who have found a cavalier to get the dog scanned. Many do not know they have a legal requirement to notify dog wardens and police (though NOT to leave the dog into a pound!) if they find a dog and hence it could be rehomed without ever being scanned by anybody.

If you are worried about indoor/outdoor safety, there are breakaway collars. Dog Training Ireland and many other places sell them.

If a dog is having a good scratch at the collar area regularly (to where anyone would feel the collar is causing the issue) -- it might be a good idea to consider potential health causes of this and have them checked. As we know repeat neck, ear and collar area scratching in this breed, especially if caused by a collar, should always be checked out.

UK legal requirements on tags and collars (from Kennel Club website):

The Control of Dogs Order 1992 mandates that any dog in a public place must wear a collar with the name and address (including postcode) of the owner engraved or written on it, or engraved on a tag. Your telephone number is optional (but advisable).

You can be fined up to £5,000 if your dog does not wear an identification tag.

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Collars are necessary evils, unfortunately... I know how you feel Brian, I often think about how it must feel to have them around their necks. My two don't keep theirs on while in the house, but beyond the secured garden they always wear them...

Perhaps if you get diamond encrusted collars for the girls they would feel differently about wearing them?:wggle:

Mine don't wear collars in the house. My household consists of me and John so we don't have to worry about people in and out leaving doors open, we have an extremely quiet household. I've attached their tags to their harnesses so they do wear id when we are out.

Scarlett only wears her collar when out for a walk as I have been using a touch method with her collar to train her not to jump up at people we meet in the street.Her id tags are attached to her harness but as it stands at the moment,but need replacing as I have recently changed my mobile number.

Speaking of which, do others on here put your dog's actual name on the id tag? A friend of mine who is a receptionist at our village vet's told me the vets are advising against it as a procaution to dog theft in the area,as a safety measure, if anything.

I have decided to put our married name and my mobile number as well and information on id chipped and spayed.I am told this also can help.I'll do anything if it means Scarlett is returned safe and well to us.I have thought of attaching a vet id to her harness also for extra measure.

When I bought Leo his breeder advised me not to put his name on his tag only mine as any potential theives could entice him away by calling his name:yikes

I only have MY name and tel number on his tag

I hear that a lot but have always thought it's pointless advice as 1) most cavaliers (and most dogs!) will go to anybody anyway, they don't wait to hear their name; and 2) a dog will start to respond to a new name within hours -- minutes!! -- if you positive train -- a 'name' after all means nothing to a dog except 'when this sound is made I am supposed to pay attention to the human'. Which means you would get the same reaction to any range of words, including 'walk' and 'treats'. I have never had a single problem with getting a rescue dog whose name is a mystery, to come to me simply by saying 'come' or clapping.

If someone has stolen the dog it will not matter whether the dog's name or the human's name is on the tag -- if they can read the tag, they already have the dog, after all! I always put their names on tags, my name, my address and number. On a second tag or the back of the main tag, I put "I am chipped and neutered, reward if found!'. Lucy has a tag that says "I am deaf. If you find me please put me on a lead and call my owner" while Leo has a second tag that says "I am on special medications. If you find me please call my owner urgently'.

Karlin said:

Leo has a second tag that says "I am on special medications. If you find me please call my owner urgently'.

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Thank you for reminding me - I've been meaning to do that for Bosco, but haven't gotten around to it yet. A job for Monday!

At DT we give adopters a collar & tag for their new doggie - plus a 2nd tag that says 'I am microchipped, please scan me'

Mmm... I always leave the collar on. As a puppy she once escaped downstairs when i was signing for a package. I was living in an appartment building in NYC on amsterdam avenue!! coincedentally the doors downstairs where open too coz someone was moving in. So Ms. Blondie took a walk on Amsterdam avenue alone (she was like 4 months old) while my bf at the time ran downstairs in his boxers and just about saved her from crossing the street alone. :shock: She also once escaped on the beach while my friend was taking care of her, she had lost her collar the day before I left on holiday and i instinctively put on a cat one with the little paper inside in the meantime while the new tag was made. So Ms. Blondie went running off with the neighbourhood kids at the beach while my friend was swimming. The kids thought they had found the dog. Thank god I got a phonecall from the mother that night, who said she could barely make out the number on the paper coz the ink had gotten wet. Anyways, in NYC not everyone will go as far as having the dog scanned, or bring them to the vet they find a cute dog and want to keep it or set it free or whatever. A cavalier on the run... mmm... Mine wouldnt make it 2 blocks I think. No sense of danger whatsoever..
In NYC ther are so many crazy people too.. I just wouldn't trust it without a collar on. Now, if she ever runs around the corner , at least they can bring her right back. If i lived in a small town or so it would probably be different... The tag with "special medications" is a great idea and Ive been meaning to do get one of these as well..

Mine wear their collars all the time. I am least concerned about them having them on while on a walk because I am with them and they really aren't wanderers. I am more concerned about them getting out if our house was broken into or the back gate (which I can't see from the kitchen) was accidentally left open or blew open. Our Golden got loose once when a piece of fence that wasn't visible from the house blew down in a storm. I got him back more than once because of his collar and tags.

Both of mine are microchipped but to be perfectly honest I don't put a great deal of faith in the microchip and certainly it wouldn't be the quickest way to get them back. We once took in a greyhound that was wandering our neighbourhood. I called the number on his tag and there was no answer:shock: I wasn't prepared for that but there was nothing for it but to keep the dog overnight as there was nowhere to take him before morning. Lucky for all the owners had been out for the evening and the dog had managed to open the patio door and escape while they were happily watching a movie in the city. After we had all settled down to bed there was a knock on the door and the owners had come as soon as they got my phone message. They would have had a frantic night had he not had a tag.

I got a call from our vet last winter because someone had turned in a ruby cavalier (our vet doubles as the pound) that had no collar or tag. The vet knows my guys and thought I might know of the ruby. I didn't but somebody missed him and put up posters and they were reunited. Had he had a tag on that could have happened more quickly.

Neither of mine wear collars, Barney has had a harness since a baby and we've done the same with Cassie. There is a stair gate if the front door is open.

Their tags are attached to them for walkies. Both are microchipped for piece of mind too. Their tags also say "scan me".

It is a worry about dogs going missing - I would be heartbroken if either of mine did!!