What do you consider to be the most important information on your cat’s ID tag? How is the information laid out? What do you leave off? Some cats do not accept a tag on a collar and therefore you can put the tag on a harness. Sandy (a regular visitor to this site) writes the information on her cat’s halter in black indelible ink.
My cat doesn’t like wearing a collar so I place his ID tag on his harness together with a radio transmitter (I have the receiver). It’s called belt and braces! The weakness in the system is human error!
After three months in my new home my cat went back to my previous address
Unfortunately, when he got lost he was not wearing any form of identification but he is micro-chipped. He wasn’t wearing it because he hates wearing a collar and at that time I simply took it off and did not replace it with a harness. This was negligent of me and it made it harder to find my cat. I now have a customized backyard cat enclosure which precludes the need for an ID tag because it is 100% secure (?).
The picture on this page shows how my cat’s ID tag information is laid out. I got the idea from Amazon. It is a form of shorthand as you can see. I think it is useful to state that your cat is microchipped as it ensures that it is scanned and that the cat is identifiable through another form of ID.
The address is in a very short form but completely usable because the postcode identifies the location of your house very accurately so all you need is the house number to pinpoint it. The phone number is for a mobile phone (cell phone) so you can pick up calls anywhere and act quickly to recover your cat.
Because there are so many cases of chips not being scanned here I have the cats name, my phone number, my email and I am chipped, I am loved.
The choice of what you put on your cats tag or collar or harness may be relevant to where you live.
I wanted to share my answer because I have a somewhat different perspective on whether to
keep a cat indoors, let them decide, or give them the option of a halter and leash. I wonder if the majority of people don’t consider a harness/leash, or in the case of many of your readers, they have more than one cat, and it would involve very creative thinking to make everyone happier.
Also, I always put my information on the halters in black indelible ink, and is the reason I always try to get solid lighter colors for legibility. The one she has now isn’t solid, but the information is still legible.
I’ve never used a tag on Mitzy after she let me know she didn’t want it when I first tried.
I’ve seen plenty of ID tags and posters for lost cats. The name is usually the first and largest item. I’d like to know how other guardians view this. (I’m forever a “misfit”, with totally different views” than most.)
I’m forever curious about various perspectives on “all things cat”.
I’ve heard that many people find a halter and leash too difficult. Just as they think switching a cat from dry to wet or raw isn’t possible with their “addicted” cat. I think it’s their approach more than anything. Of course a cat will resist being controlled, just as they resist being kept indoors, for their safety. Like anything new, going slowly and rewarding behavior is best. People tend to give up if things don’t work immediately with cats.
My cat was a feral, living on the streets for a year. When I adopted her, she wanted to go out, so we came up with a way for her to do that safely. I instinctively knew that a dog halter would be uncomfortable, so I researched various cat halters. I found a wonderful style and fabric with Velcro closures. I carefully selected a light brown color, so my ID information would show up.
She’s now 8 yr. and has gone for walks every day, except in heavy rains. She’s outgrown 3 halters. The leash is still the same, and it’s RED for a reason. If she gets away from me, chasing a bird or other cat, and I can’t see her, I can usually spot the leash. I recommend this to everyone.
I usually get my halters on EBay or Etsy. They’re cotton/poly mix with Velcro fasteners. You’d need to have your cat wear it in the house, with rewards, before attaching the leash, with more rewards, and ultimately taking the cat out, with a favorite toy, like DaBird.
There’s no reason to have a cat suffer being indoors, when all it takes is for you to be willing to take the next step.
I’m including a couple of pictures of her in her current halter, which is actually a very small size dog halter.
BTW, although she’s microchipped and spayed, I always write my name, the street we live on, and my email and phone number. Her name is unimportant; she won’t come when called, especially to a stranger. People seem to think the cat’s name is most important, but I think it really doesn’t matter, because if someone finds your cat, they’ll give a description, or send you a photo from their camera. Wish more people did that when they see a cat that they think is lost.
I like Michael’s idea to post that Gabriel is chipped. Space could be saved by just saying “Chipped” I haven’t taken a picture of the halter alone that shows how I’ve printed my information all across it. If I grab it, she’ll think we’re going for a “walk”.
We use Nextdoor in our community, and it helps re-locate so many lost pets. It’s invaluable, and tops any service you may pay for. Most lost cats aren’t very far away the first few days, and neighbors can be on the lookout if they have a picture.
I’m not sure why the second picture didn’t load, but I’ll try again.
This is a great question that I’ve given thought to. The cats I have now don’t need tags, but new ones definitely do. Precautions I’ve thought about are not to put their name on. Doing so gives a potential cat kid-napper an advantage to befriending my cat. I also don’t put my address, as that only calls attention to where that or your other cats could be found if they are impressed by how I’ve raised them, or if they’re bothered by seeing my cat roaming and decide to make trouble with the authorities. I think the best info would be that the cat is chipped, my phone number and the city our home is. If it’s kidnapped and driven somewhere, or becomes an accidental stowaway aboard a vehicle, anyone would have just enough info to assure it’s return.
And this moggie is my ‘Angus’ and as ye can see both have heart shaped name tags.
Wish I could afford to microchip my moggies but not at $30 a piece and on their tags I only have their name and my phone number,pic is my ‘Innis’
It’s unfortunate that your cats aren’t chipped because of the expense. Our local shelter offers micro,chipping free for cats, and $10 for dogs. My cat was chipped and spayed there, before I adopted her. The shelter also does cat spaying free. They have a non-profit organization that provides some funding. They’re called the Shelter League, but it seems to be unique to our shelter.
They also provide some funding to help local seniors who live in the city, with vet bills. I’ve received help twice.
Unfortunately Sandra where I live (Upstate NY) everything is expensive so much so that when one of my moggies gets sick/hurt I have to create a fundraiser which is taxing on me because I hate asking for help especially when school is on summer break of which I work for so no school then no work and medications are crazy expensive,our shelter does spay/neuter/microchip all the cats/kittens but all mine were rescues and not adopted from the shelter so tis out of pocket for me when I rescue and now I have a feral female who had kittens under my porch,I have tried to trap her for the last 2 yrs but she unfortunately is trap savvy but once I get the kittens to the SPCA they too will be fixed and microchipped.