Big Paws Only Dog Forums
BPO General Forum => General Board for Big Dogs with Big Paws => : GrumpyBunny October 26, 2005, 05:00:53 AM
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So, something that happened last night made me think of this... Do you leave your dogs collars (with ID tags, etc.) on all the time?Â
Let me explain...
We had a "found" doggy at our house last night. Scott was returning from getting a haircut before work yesterday, and came across a dog running thru the yards along a busy street in our neighborhood. He was able to get the dog into the car and bring it back to our house so that he could try to contact the owner. The dog was wearing a collar with a license on it, but no other identification . We were able to call Animal Control and get a phone number for the owner based on the license tag...Â
And that got me thinking - do your dogs normally have their collars on all the time?Â
Right now, our dogs like to be naked unless they are actually going for a walk or somewhere else outside the house. When Scott and I are both not at home, they stay inside the well-secured house, and we have never really felt like they needed to wear their collars just to hang around and chill. We take every precaution to insure that they will be safe and never "get out"... But last night I was thinking WHAT IF...Â
What if someone broke into the house and the dogs escaped? What if a water line broke and a neighbor busted into the house to try to fix it (this actually just happened in our neighborhood) and the dogs got out? Just... WHAT IF? They wouldn't have their collars on, and they wouldn't be identifiable until someone actually scanned their microchips. Plus are people more likely to try to pull over and help a dog that they see has a collar and tags on, than they are a dog that looks "stray"? So now I feel like we need to leave their collars on all the time, just in case...
What do you guys think? Are your dogs always "dressed" and carrying some form of ID?Â
(BTW - the lost doggy did get home. His name was Roper and he was a Dobie mix. We left a million messages on his owners machine, and finally called Animal Control back and finagled an address out of them. Scott went by with Roper, while I stayed home with our guys (who were totally freaked out that they might be getting a new brother, and who is that, and why is he in the back yard, and why can't we play with him or (in Ranger's case) pretend we want to play with him and then try to kill him?). A neighbor told him that Roper gets out pretty often. His owner is an older lady, and this time while she was trying to round him up, she fell and hurt herself badly enough to need a trip to the hospital. Roper was put into his backyard (with a doggy door into his house), to wait for his owner to come back that night. When the neighbor picked the owner up at the hospital, they swung by PetCo to thank Scott for rescuing Roper. Scott said the poor lady's face was all beat up and bruised from her fall....  :()
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My puppies always have their collars on. I get alot of people who say that they shouldn't, because they'll catch on something or on one of the other dog's mouths or something wehn they play, but to me, there's more of a liklihood that they'll get lost then caught during some freak accident.
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Mine always have collars on, either rolled leather or nylon quick release. They only go naked at bathtime until they dry.
Stella
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I like naked myself. Webster only wears his collar if he is on a leash. But, I was thinking about microchipping. He is getting neutered in a few weeks and I would have it done then. Whats the going opinion on microchips?
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the nylon w/ quick release buckles can't hold nikki. she destroys it. i dunno how.. so the PO finally got a hold of a permanent nylon collar w/ a loop-fastener.
w/ cody... since he has SOO many tags, we like to let him roam w/o his collar like a "WILD ANIMAL" (quoting my gf).
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Sugar Bear and Dixie Darlin are both microchiped and have their collars on 24/7.
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My boys only have them on when we are away from home, other then that they are naked LOL :P
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Microchipped and collars on all the time. Farley is a door bolter at times still ::) Puck--I think if he were to get loose someone is more likely to pick him up if he has a collar on.
Puck did get out once. My husband left the gate open---he came to the front door and sat there waiting for someone to let him in...smart boy. Thank god he did though ;)
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Tulsa wears a prong collar when she's out and about, with the proper documentation.
When she's 'In the House'. I take it off. She sometimes 'argues' with me when I attempt to put it back on her, and I put her in a 'Sit, Stay', and it happens! And sometmes she resists.
She's staring at me right now!
I thnk she knows that I am talking about her!
J
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Hi everyone!
Our pups are micro-chipped and collars are off in the house. They wrestle usually 2 at a time, sometimes it's a total melee and all 3 are getting crazy so I have heard of stories where dogs get caught on collars while playing. Outside on walks Maddie girl is great off leash and the Big Klondike is pretty good too. Puppy Kelso is on a leash and collar outside. We are fortunate enough to have a fenced yard, so when they are in the yard, collars off. They don't like to be away from their people anyway, so they are usually up somebody's butt close by.
The Goofy Newfies from Newf Jersey
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Microchipped and collars on 24/, only coming off for baths.
I too am a huge worry wart and worry that when they are outside playing (I let them out for about 10 mintues at a time) that someone will open the gate and let them loose.
Keiko looks better w/o her collar, b/c it has left a permanent groove in her hair, and under her chin he collar has left her hair looking gray.
But I always know where they are in the house b/c of their tags. I know exactly when Gunther is getting himself into trouble. ;)
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Zoey is microchipped and wears tags at all times. She wears a plain flat collar nice and loose for comfort, with her id tag, rabies tag, license, and the tag the microchip people gave us. That way, god forbid she ever gets out unexpectedly people will know she is my baby. We use a seperate pinch collar for walks.
Oh, for everyone who doesn't like the 'jingling', there is a little tag holder you can buy called 'the quiet spot'. You just velcro it around the tags, and you will never hear the tags, but you can take the velcro off to see what the tag says. Zoey used to wear one, but now all her tags but one are plastic so we don't have to worry about jingling.
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Rosie use to hate it when I would take her collar off after she had been the lake or when I would take it off for a bath. I would lay it on the table to dry and she would just keep smelling of it until I would put it back on then she was a happy girl. It was like Mommy that is mine I want it on. I keep one of her old collars in my nightstand. She was put to rest in her pink collar with her tags.
Lisa
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My pack are all microchipped and nekkid except when we leave the house/yard.
Cindy
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Sammy & Pippin are both microchipped & wear their collars on walks or whenever we leave the back yard for any reason...In the house & fenced in back yard (where they are NEVER unsupervised & we have locks on all gates) they get to go naked...& I am still uncertain whether or not they should wear collars (with all their tags) in the fenced in back yard because they could possibly jump the fence or someone could take them...or not...lol!
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Cowboy and Chester are microchipped and wear their collars at all times. We live in no-lease-law neighborhood where the dogs can wander if they want. I don't want!!!! They are supposed to stay in the yard at all times unless they are with me. So far, so good!!!
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Microchipped , collars are on when we are at home and off when we are not.
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Mine wear nothing in the house.But when we leave they must be wearing a collar.They get excited when they see the collars,because then they know they are going some where.
Donna
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We don't have a fenced in yard, so my crew all wear their collars & tags 24/7. Especially with certain children who occasionally forget to shut the storm door(our screen door just pushes open). ::)
If I had a fenced in yard it might be different, but until then collars on. :)
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Drake always has his big Cal Trans Orange, quick release collar on. No reason for him not to have it on. You never know when you might need to grab ahold of them and that's kind of hard to do without a collar. Also, like so many other people mentioned, if your dog gets loose and is found or, god forbid, is killed, how will people be able to get ahold of you if there's no collar with ID tags on it? Sure Microchips can do the job eventually, but not everyone has access to the scanners for them. Putting a collar with ID tags on your dog is like making your little kids memorize your home telephone. Gotta do it!!!
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Cabeza is microchipped. He almost always has his collar on. I take it off at night, cuz I'm there and I wouldn't wanna sleep with a collar on! I try to get it back on him in the morning, but sometimes, I forget.
I use a rubber band to hold all his tags together. Then they aren't constantly jingling. I think that Cabeza probably doesn't want to hear that all the time.
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Mine always have thier collors on.
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Drake always has his big Cal Trans Orange, quick release collar on. No reason for him not to have it on. You never know when you might need to grab ahold of them and that's kind of hard to do without a collar. Also, like so many other people mentioned, if your dog gets loose and is found or, god forbid, is killed, how will people be able to get ahold of you if there's no collar with ID tags on it? Sure Microchips can do the job eventually, but not everyone has access to the scanners for them. Putting a collar with ID tags on your dog is like making your little kids memorize your home telephone. Gotta do it!!!
That's an excellent reminder. You never know when you might have to grab them for one reason or another. We've had dogs come to our dog park w/o collars on and then either get into a fight or cause some trouble and there is nothing for the owners to grab onto.
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The only time I take off Nanook's collar is when he's in the house with me...otherwise, it's on. It's been a ritual every morning when it's time to go out to put it back on...I'm pretty paranoid about it simply because he's gotten loose so many times. At least if he ever escaped again, he'd have a better chance of getting back home :D
It's kinda funny too, because he's got like, 3 tags on him...city, animal shelter, and then the one with his name and my phone number and address.
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Think before you chip...
I am only saying this because you asked.
There is no universal scanner for chips, scanners are not always accessible or compatible. The AVA at this time took the position that animals should not be chipped at this time. They recommended tatooing.
There has been a lot of buzz regarding the recent farm bill and the money alotted for a national registry of animals. We had a discussion about that on a previous thread.
We are tatooing. Not just because of the AVA, but because of reasons previously stated.
By the way... have any of seen the new technology from Japan? They are able to actually certain control humans via a headset. Some governments want to implement it for National Security and as weapons. This is not science fiction but reality. Hmmm...
Deena
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A link to the thread referenced: http://www.bigpawsonly.com/index.php/topic,4227.0.html
It has more information on the problems with microchips. Some people also mentioned the benefits, but you probably already know those. ;)
Sofia
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Sophia and Riggs are microchipped and wear their flat buckle collars, with ID tags except when given a bath or brushed. If their fur was shorter, I would have collars with their names and contact info imprinted directly on the collar. But think, if ...GOD Forbid!!!...they ever got out of the yard etc., that people would be more apt to see their colored ID tags immediately. To keep them from having to hear "tags clinking", I do not keep their rabies, or license tags on...only their large size plastic name tags...with my name, address and phone number. I am a strong microchip advocate!!!! Collars and tags can be easily removed or lost....microc hipping is forever.
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I don't know if the scanners are worldwide universal, but the scanners will tell you what company your chip is thru, then they would contact the company and notify them and give a description of the dog.
I know the clinic I worked at read AVID chips (b/c that is what was mostly used in that area), but if it was thru another chip company, it would show the first 4 #s (I believe), which tell you which company it is thru. And this was several years ago for a basic reader. They do now have universaly readers, but most clinics/shelters don't use them. As for the European frequencies, I believe they are not allowing them to be sold here. But I'm sure in the future, there will be a worldwide frequency.
The only reason I don't like tattoos as much is that they can fade over time and get hard to read. Especially for dogs with dark skin. This was the case even in dogs with new tattoos at CCI where I worked.
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This is why I believe always having collars on is so important:
This afternoon, Dan was driving around and saw a little beagle wandering around. She had a collar with a rabies tag on it, so Dan brought her home and I called the vet. Turns out she belongs to a parent from my school who didn't even know the dog was out. She hung out in my yard until her mom could pick her up, and now she is home safe and sound. I call her little zoey because her name is zoey and she is little. I tried to get her to play with my Zoey, but little zoey was afraid of her size....