How to Buy a Pet ID Tag for The English Setter

Buying a pet ID tag for your English Setter is like buying an insurance policy – you do it with the hopes that you’re never going to use it. The “possible price” of not having a pet ID tag is more costly than the “actual cost” of purchasing the pet tag itself.

The kind of pet identification tag that you buy is vital, so take 5 minutes or so to consider it. Whimsically buying a collar tag because it’s cheap or pretty usually ends up being unwise, in the long term.

Consider the following before choosing any pet id tag for your English Setter:
1.What is the level of risk to your English Setter?
Lost English Setters are definitely common – we have all come across “Lost Dog!” signs setup around town, or dead English Setters lying on the side of the road. If your English Setter is a pro at escaping the fence, or cannot help following a smell, or young and spry, or isn’t properly trained, the chance of a lost English Setter is high.

But losing your English Setter isn’t the only risk.

Sometimes English Setters get stolen. A pet thief may steal Fifi or Spot 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 cult rituals.

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

If you’re a senior citizen with a English Setter, especially if you live alone or are in ill health, there’s a good chance that at some point someone else will need to care for your furry friend, maybe with short notice. And anyone can be hit with a tragedy or disaster that leaves you unable to care for your companion.

In this instance, will your English Setter’s new or temporary steward know that Fido hates cats, or requires medicine, or even whether or not Max is housetrained? A pet ID tag that contains more than your name and phone number would be very helpful.

2.What amount of risk are you ok with?
Some English Setters are just more important to their owners, and the chance of losing that particular animal demands a specific, more expensive type of pet ID tag. Risk is proportional to value.

Realize that there are many ways to assess the value of your English Setter. It may be financial (e.g., a purebred English Setter) or occupational (e.g., a guide dog).

However for most English Setter owners, the companionship attachment they have to their English Setter determines its value. For many people, English Setters are family members, dearly loved and impossible to replace.

3.Using your answers to the two previous questions, what do you require of a pet ID tag?

Pet identification tags come in various materials, shapes and sizes and can contain varying amounts of information. Some have logos or artwork, as well. Usually pet identification tags are meant to be hung from a collar.

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

Fortunately, you have many more options in pet ID tags for your English Setter these days, such as tattooing, microchipping, digital display tags, voice recorded pet identification tags, and pet registry websites.

One of the most recent entries in the pet identification game is the high-tech USB drive that hangs off your English Setter’s collar (or is attached to their cage) and which can hold 64MB of data (including complete medical and diet information). The small USB drive is encased in a sturdy plastic case and can be plugged into 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 severely limited, due to bluetooth technological limits.

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

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