Dog ID Tags - Have Fun Keeping Your Dog Safe
Why Buy a Dog ID Tag?
Bring Your Dog Home Safe
In 2012, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals’ surveyed pet owners about lost dogs and cats, and discovered the following, which highlights the importance of ID tags to ensure the quick return of lost pets:
- Only 15% of pet owners reported a lost dog or cat during the previous five years.
- 93% of dogs reported lost were eventually returned to their homes safely
- 49% of dog owners found their dog by searching the neighborhood
- 15% percent of the dogs were recovered because they were wearing an ID tag or had a micro-chip
- Only 6% of dog owners found their lost dog at a shelter
What should you do if your dog goes missing?
Start your search immediately within your neighborhood by walking/driving around, putting up posters, and utilizing social media to enlist others to help search. Be sure to carry your cell phone so people can reach you when they see your pup.
Check local shelters regularly, from the first day your pet is lost. Calling is the first step, but be sure to go in person as well. Your pup could have lost their collar along the way and have no identification to help shelter workers reunite you. And know that everyone can get a breed wrong – many shelters assume a lab, shepherd or pit mix when they get a dog in.
In both cases, the search is made significantly easier if your dog has a tag, a tattoo, or been microchipped. Tattoos and microchips provide permanent ways to identify your dog. Shelters, veterinarians, and research laboratories know to look for these identifiers when animals are brought to their facilities. Tattoos should be applied by veterinarians or trained specialists who will ink the code for you. Note that you will need to list your dog with one of the many tattoo registry programs around the country.
Microchips are tiny electronic chips embedded under your dog’s skin. They require special scanners to read the information on the chip, so while most veterinarians, shelters, and research laboratories have these on hand to scan strays for identification, but do not assume that all do.
As such, it is essential to use an ID tag worn on your dog’s collar, even if your dog is microchipped or tattooed. ID tags are the fastest, easiest way for ANYONE to find you if your dog gets lost.
Make sure the tag contains your most current information
Every engraved dog tag will offer space for at least your phone number. Be sure to use your mobile number here, as you will probably be out searching for your dog when the call comes in! If there is room for a second number, add your home phone, the cell phone of another household member, or a close friend. Be sure to keep this information current – both on the tag and any registries for microchips or tattoos. Just a few minutes of your time to update registry information or investing in a new tag when your number changes is a small price to pay for the piece of mind of having your best friend home safe. If there is additional room, consider adding the following: your puppy’s name, your address, your dog’s microchip #, any medical conditions, or dietary restrictions.
Express your or your dog’s personality
As you go to purchase your dog’s tag, there are a number of options for ID tags and charms (a tag which contains no personal information, but it looks very cute on your dog’s collar) on the market today.
Materials can range from plastic to resin to a variety of metals. Tags can hang from or slide onto a collar, depending on which you and your dog prefer.
A hanging tag can be used as dog jewelry, while a slide on tag, often referred to as a silent tag, can reduce the noise of various tags clanging against each other.
Many offer fun taglines or sayings or symbols to help express your dog’s personality. Is your dog a WIGGLEBUT? Or a LUCKY MUTT? Or maybe loves to give FREE KISSES? Do they LIVE to chase balls? If so, there is a tag for them!
You can even get a matching necklace for yourself to show your love for your dog.