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Beware of Common Collar Dangers

 

DON’T LEAVE COLLARS ON UNATTENDED DOGS

Any collar left on an unattended dog has the potential to catch on something and hang the dog. In fact, some agility and barn hunt venues don’t allow dogs to wear collars while they are running the course, for fear that the collar could get caught on something. It is also possible for a dog to get her lower jaw caught in the collar.

 

The tradeoff is that your dog has no visible identification and may be harder to capture if it should somehow escape. You have to decide what hazard is a more likely threat to your dog’s safety.

 

DON’T LEAVE COLLARS ON PLAYING DOGS

Dogs who are playing together can get tangled in each other’s collars, especially if they engage in mouthy play. At one of our play days a dog got her jaw caught under another dogs collar and then spun around, twisting the collar so that the dog was being choked. Fortunately the owner was there and could un-spin the dog releasing the tension on the collar and allowing the dogs to separate. Neither dog in this case was harmed-but it could have been significantly worse. Dogs have broken their jaws, and others have choked to death in this way. 

 

If you feel you must leave a collar on your dog when it is playing with another dog, make sure it has a quick-release buckle, or better yet a safety or breakaway collar, which will release under pressure.

 

WATCH OUT FOR TAGS ON COLLARS

 

Dangling tags can catch on crate wires, fences, you name it! You can tape tags to the collar so they don’t dangle, or look for a dog tag “pocket” that holds the tags flat against the collar. Slide on ID tags are available from a variety of sources, including this one” tinyurl.com/idtagslider. Alternatively, you can use a collar with your number stitched on it, or use a light-weight ring for the tags that will bend and release under pressure.