Choosing a Pet ID Tag for Your English Toy Terrier

Picking a pet identification tag for your English Toy Terrier is like buying an insurance policy – you do it with the hopes that you’ll never use it. The “possible cost” of not having a pet ID tag is more costly than the “real price” of purchasing the pet tag itself.

The type of pet identification tag that you buy is crucial, so take 5 minutes or so to consider it. Whimsically picking a collar tag just because it’s inexpensive or pretty usually ends up being a regret, long-term.

Think about this prior to buying any pet identification tag for your English Toy Terrier:
1.What is the amount of risk to your English Toy Terrier?
Missing English Toy Terriers are certainly common – we’ve all seen “Lost English Toy Terrier!” signs tacked around town, or deceased English Toy Terriers lying on the edge of the road. If your English Toy Terrier is a master at jumping the fence, or cannot help following a smell, or young and energetic, or is not properly trained, the risk of a missing English Toy Terrier is high.

But losing your English Toy Terrier isn’t the only risk.

Sometimes English Toy Terriers get stolen. A pet thief may snatch Fifi or Fido hoping to get a reward for its return, or to use in pit battles (even small or gentle dogs are at risk – they can be used for “bait”), or for use in religious rituals.

And what is the risk to your English Toy Terrier if something happens to you, its owner?

If you’re a senior adult with a English Toy Terrier, especially if you live by yourself or are in poor health, there’s a good chance that at some point someone else will need to care for your English Toy Terrier, maybe with short notice. And anyone can be struck by tragedy or disaster which renders you incapable of caring for your English Toy Terrier.

In this instance, will your English Toy Terrier’s temporary or new caregiver know that Fido hates cats, or needs medicine, or even whether or not Max is housetrained? A pet identification that contains more than your phone number and name would be extremely helpful.

2.What level of danger are you comfortable with?
Some English Toy Terriers are just more important to their owners, and the risk of losing that particular animal demands a specific, more expensive kind of pet ID tag. Risk is proportionate to value.

Keep in mind that there are many ways to determine the value of your English Toy Terrier. It may be monetary (e.g., a purebred English Toy Terrier) or occupational (e.g., a guide dog).

But for most English Toy Terrier owners, the sentimental attachment they have with their English Toy Terrier sets its value. For many, English Toy Terriers are family, impossible to replace and dearly loved.

3.From your responses to the two previous questions, what do you need in a pet identification tag?

Pet identification tags come in varying shapes, sizes and materials and hold varying amounts of info. Some have artwork or logos, also. Usually pet identification tags are meant to be hung from a collar.

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

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

One of the most recent entrants in the pet ID market is the high-tech USB drive that hangs off your pet’s collar (or is attached to their cage) and which holds 64MB of data (including comprehensive medical and diet information). The tiny USB drive is encased in a sturdy polymer case and can be used in any computer, where it is automatically updated and easy to print sections for sharing with your veterinarian or pet sitter. There are also bluetooth trackers, but their range is severely limited, because of bluetooth technological limits.

Don’t forget to check out these other articles about English Toy Terriers

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