Buying a Pet ID Tag for Your Chow Chow

Picking a pet ID tag for your Chow Chow is like buying an insurance policy – you do it with the devout wish that you won’t use it. The “possible cost” of not having a pet ID tag is more expensive than the “actual price” of buying the pet tag itself.

The kind of pet identification tag that you buy is crucial, so take 5 minutes or so to think it through. Whimsically purchasing a collar tag because it’s cheap or pretty usually ends up being unwise, down the road.

Think about this prior to purchasing any pet identification tag for your Chow Chow:
1.What is the amount of risk to your Chow Chow?
Lost Chow Chows are very common – we have all seen “Lost Dog!” signs setup around the city, or deceased dogs lying by the side of the road. If your Chow Chow is a pro at hopping the fence, or can’t resist tracking a scent, or young and vigorous, or isn’t correctly trained, the chance of a lost Chow Chow is high.

But losing your Chow Chow isn’t the only concern.

Sometimes Chow Chows are stolen. A pet thief may snatch Fifi or Fido hoping to get a reward for its return, or to use in dog fights (even small or gentle dogs are susceptible – they can be used as “bait”), or for use in satanic rituals.

And what is the risk to your Chow Chow if something were to happen to you, its owner?

If you’re a senior adult with a Chow Chow, especially if you live by yourself or are in poor health, there’s a good chance that at some point someone else may need to care for your Chow Chow, maybe with little notice. And anyone can be hit with a disaster or tragedy which renders you unable to care for your companion.

In this case, will your Chow Chow’s temporary or new caregiver know that Rover hates cats, or requires medication, or even whether or not Max is housetrained? A pet identification that contains more than your name and phone number would be extremely helpful.

2.What amount of risk are you comfortable with?
Some Chow Chows are simply more important to their owners, and the risk of losing that pet demands a specific, higher priced type of pet ID tag. Risk is proportional to value.

Keep in mind that there is more than one way to assess the value of your Chow Chow. It may be monetary (e.g., a purebred Chow Chow) or occupational (e.g., a guide dog).

But for most Chow Chow owners, the companionship attachment they have to their companion determines its value. For many, Chow Chows are family, impossible to replace and dearly loved.

3.From your answers to the two previous queries, what do you require of a pet identification tag?

Pet ID tags come in various shapes, sizes and materials and hold varying amounts of info. Some have logos or artwork, too. Many pet ID tags are designed to be attached to a collar.

At a bare minimum, a pet identification tag should contain the phone number, name and address of the Chow Chow’s owner in a legible, durable format. Plastic tags are lightweight but easily chewed. Stainless steel tags are durable and don’t rust or fade. These traditional types of tags can bought from any animal doctor or pet store. They’re inexpensive but the amount of info they hold is limited to the size of the tag.

Luckily, there are many more options for pet identification tags for your Chow Chow these days, such as microchipping, tattooing, digital display tags, pet registry web sites and voice recorded pet id tags.

One of the most recent entries in the pet ID market is the high-tech USB drive that hangs from your Chow Chow’s collar (or is attached to their kennel) and which can hold 64MB of data (including comprehensive medical and diet information). The tiny USB drive is encased in a sturdy plastic case and can be used in any computer, where it is easily updated and easy to print sections for sharing with your animal doctor or pet sitter. There also exist bluetooth devices for tracking, but their range is small, due to bluetooth technological limits.

Don’t forget to check out these other articles about Chow Chows

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