Keep an eye on those collars folks....

[Fabguy]

Yesterday morning my beagle Leo was out on this tether in the yard and ran after a squirrel that was running around... When he got to the end of the rope the plastic clasp on his collar BROKE and he was running free.

Wifey got him contained and took him to Petco and bought a new collar. This morning he did the same thing, and the new one broke as well. Just glad he was in the yard and we weren't walking him at the time.

So, today I went to a better pet store and bought a collar with no clasp at all. It's kind of a hybrid thing that also can act like a choke collar, but most of it is 3/4" wide nylon strapping. I feel much safer about his security now.

It's similar to this.... New Collar

[bt6845]

I have 5 Chihuahuas that I have the martingale collars on to have their license and micro chip info tag on. They normally run in an enclosed area with my constant supervision. They get walked with a step into harness....all but my escape artist who is a puppy mill breeder rescue, I have the leash clasp on both her harness and collar so if she slips out of the harness the martingale collar still has her, (she had escaped a few times and scared me so much). Love those martingale collars but have to say that with little dogs you should use a leash attached to harness not just a collar.

[Good_Ol_Boy]

I use a prong collar for training, 2" leather collar for everyday use. Also check out Stillwater collars if you're looking for something heavy duty that won't break the bank.

[Cookielady]

Just as an FYI, some dogs, particularly smaller dogs have a tendency towards collapsed trachea so it is advised to never use a collar on these dogs. It causes too much pressure on the trachea.

[TugCE]

Here is another "Funny" story. An old Friend of mine had two labs that always walked with him with no leash, I always told him that this was asking for trouble. Well, one day he was out for his walk when Labs being Labs saw something and took off running. My Friend was getting up in years and could not catch them and for some reason they did not listen to him. Well about 1/2 of a mile later he finds them sitting at a stop sign waiting for him. He had them trains to always sit at that corner to wait for traffic and that was what they did. We laughed about it but it scared him enough to start putting them on their leashes before going on anymore walks.

I do use the collars with the plastic clips on both of my girls. This does worry me with my Big Girl Macy but I do check it often for any problems. They are never left outside on their leash. Both of the girls have been chipped for a long time but I never knew about all of the different types, my Vet did tell me of two different types and that they could scan for both. Something else to worry about now.

[Fabguy]

So.... Day 3 with the Martindale now and it's a wonderful thing!

I remember as a kid having our German Sheppard mix girl and my dad insisted she have a choke chain for a walking collar. He demonstrated to us kids about how she would learn the sound of the chain sliding through the rings would get a "response" from her to slow down, or she would get hurt.

I am seeing that response from Leo every time we go walking....

Makes me think that raising dogs is a lot like raising kids... There are MANY opinions of the "proper way", the "safe way" and the "easy way"....

But there is no definitive "EXACTLY CORRECT way".

[Pawz4me]

When my dogs are wearing harnesses I attach their tags to the same "D" ring that the leash attaches to. But they're traditional harnesses, not the front clip type.

[stroza99]

Fabguy wrote:
We also use a harness in many situations. The thing about the harness we have is there is no real good place to clip his ID tag and license.

We use a harness when we take our 2 labs out but while we are away we keep a coller on then too for their id's. we even have a lighted coller for each of them for when we take them out at night, their black labs so if they ever got away form us we would never even see them in the dark!!

[raindove]

I love the Martingale collars for walking, as the dogs can't slip out of the collar.

Word of caution: I would not put him on a tie out wearing it, as he could choke himself. Also, I have heard first hand of cases where the dog hung itself when the collar (any collar) got caught in the crate.

I have personally seen many dogs back right out of a harness and take off.

I think anything has it's pros and cons. And everything has proper and improper uses. The key is to pay attention and make sure you have what works for you and your dog.

[Go_Dogs]

If you get a dog from a shelter, already chipped. It will list the shelter as the dog 'owner'. The shelter will give you the information about the chip. Mine came with a collar tag to identify which chip company it is. The new owner should contact the chip company to update their data, should be done whenever you move, too. If the chip is not updated and a lost chipped dog is traced back to the animal shelter, the shelter should be able to find the owner thru their adoption records. Their are various manufacturers that all use different readers, but if a rescuer knows the dog has a chip, efforts can be made to find another reader. Microchips are also used for livestock, zoo animals,monitored wild animals, etc. I think they are one the greatest ideas to save animal's lives.
microchip info

[Tvov]

Fabguy wrote:


Yes... we are looking to get him chipped... BUT WHICH ONE????

I have heard that there is an annual fee on top of the original purchase.... Then I have heard that there is not.....

Almost as confusing as picking the right tow vehicle!

Try contacting your local Police/Animal Control department, see what they say. They may have a preferred system that they use.

[dturm]

There are different plans for different companies. What is also frustrating is that all chips cannot be read by all readers (though most will tell if a chip is there). Europe has one standard so if you ever take an animal there, it has to have a type of chip they use (not the most common in the US)

We use AVID but Home Again is also common. PetSmart has their own brand (I think), and the ISO compliant (European standard) are becoming more common.

AVID has a one time fee for registration that permanently puts your name and address into their data base, but they also have a plan for yearly registration (I don't know what else that plan gets you).

The main problem I see with chips is the lack of a central data base. Most of the animal strays we see that have chips are still registered to the rescue or organization that placed the dog (new owners never activated or transferred the chip to their name). But we really don't see many strays.

Regardless, chipping a pet is another level of protection for you and your dog/cat.

Doug, DVM

[Fabguy]

Dog Folks wrote:
Over 90% of pets running loose are NOT wearing a collar when found. Make sure you chip them.

True story of how well a chip can work: When I was an animal control officer I got a call in my zone of a dog running loose. I arrived at the scene in less than ten minutes. Contained the dog, read the chip with reader on my truck.

Called dispatch and they called the chip company. The dog was missing from an address right around the corner. Drove there and knocked on the door. I asked the owner if she knew where her dog was. “On the back porch.” She replied. I asked her to check and she returned in a minute with a white face and said:” He’s gone!” I replied: “I know. He is in my truck.”

The total time the dog was lost? About 15 minutes! I did not ticket the owner.

Please chip your dogs. Chips do not get lost.

Yes... we are looking to get him chipped... BUT WHICH ONE????

I have heard that there is an annual fee on top of the original purchase.... Then I have heard that there is not.....

Almost as confusing as picking the right tow vehicle!

[Deb_and_Ed_M]

Funny story: Back in Ike's prime, he could run and stop and turn so hard/so fast, that his collar would fly right off his neck! Fortunately, he knew the command "seek" so when he showed up "naked" - I'd just send him back out into the yard to find his collar (or Jack's), which he'd dutifully bring back in his mouth....LOL!

[Dog_Folks]

Over 90% of pets running loose are NOT wearing a collar when found. Make sure you chip them.

True story of how well a chip can work: When I was an animal control officer I got a call in my zone of a dog running loose. I arrived at the scene in less than ten minutes. Contained the dog, read the chip with reader on my truck.

Called dispatch and they called the chip company. The dog was missing from an address right around the corner. Drove there and knocked on the door. I asked the owner if she knew where her dog was. “On the back porch.” She replied. I asked her to check and she returned in a minute with a white face and said:” He’s gone!” I replied: “I know. He is in my truck.”

The total time the dog was lost? About 15 minutes! I did not ticket the owner.

Please chip your dogs. Chips do not get lost.