Dog Collar Danger is real and is More Common Than You Think
Freak accidents happen. It seems dog collars get caught in many things, and strangulation by collar has even caused some dogs to lose their lives. Dog collars getting caught or stuck happens so often that break-away collars were invented to prevent this from happening. Taking a few steps to make sure it doesn’t happen to your dog is worth its weight in gold.
They say that on average,15% of people asked by professionals have had an incident with a dog collar getting caught on the wires of their dogs’ crate, fence, furniture, and even while playing with another dog.
Dog Accidentally Strangled by Collar During Playtime
About 20 years ago while two dogs wearing collars were playing together one dog playfully pulled on the other dog’s collar and her muzzle got tangled. Well, the tangled dog panicked and started pulling away, which caused the other dog to choke. His collar was strangling him. Thankfully, someone nearby had a pocketknife and cut the tangled collar, which freed both dogs.
Strict Collar Removal Policies Set
Many pet-related businesses have strict rules on removing collars in certain situations. I know at my veterinary clinic it is mandatory to remove all collars from any patient kenneled—even during a hospital stay. Large retail grooming chains also have strict polices requiring dog collars to be removed before dogs are placed in their kennels. Their collars are then placed outside of the dogs’ crates.
Dog Collar Safety
Dogs should wear a collar under supervision only. That means you should take your dog’s collar off whenever he’s crated, playing with another dog or left unsupervised in your home or out in the yard. It’s just not worth the risk.
If You Must, Use a Break-Away Collar
If you’re not comfortable with your dog running around naked, there are a couple of break-away collars on the market. Break-away collars look and feel just like regular flat buckle collars and feature a spot for ID tags too. The difference is break-away collars will unsnap and free your dog when it snags onto something.
Over the last 15 years, break-away collars have vastly improved. Back in the day, the break-away mechanism was super sensitive. If a dog sneezed while wearing this collar, his collar would unsnap. As of today, break-away collars are a great safety option. Most are versatile and have two D-rings that can be used during leash walks, which disables the break-away option. Once the leash is removed, the break-away collar option is in place.
Get Your Dog Microchipped
The main reason dogs wear a collar is to carry ID tags with their pet owners’ contact information. Collars and ID tags work, but it’s not a bulletproof option, so please microchip your dog. Collars can be taken off and ID tags can be lost, but a microchip is underneath your dog’s skin. It can’t be removed. I can’t say enough good things about microchips; they’re absolutely invaluable.
By Clarissa Fallis Jan 28, 2013 Preventing Dog Collar Accidents
Here’s what you can do to prevent a collar-related mishap and keep your pet safe. Collars can present a real danger to your dog’s safety. Most people think they are protecting their dog from getting lost when they put a collar on their dog. They fasten the collar with identification and rabies tags to ensure that if someone were to find their dog unattended, he or she would know who to call and that the dog is vaccinated. Sadly, what most people don’t realize is that while they are trying to protect their pet and keep them safe, they are actually putting the dog in danger of a fatal collar accident. Every year, thousands of dogs lose their lives in an entirely preventable collar accident. Not surprisingly, the most common collar accident is strangulation, and while you may think this occurs infrequently, the awful stories of fatal accidents are mounting. According to a survey from the North American Veterinary Conference in 2003, 91% of veterinarians reported having seen or heard of one to five dogs injured or strangled by their collar within the last year. They also believed that only one in four dog owners knew the risks associated with putting a collar on their dog.
Places Dogs May Get Caught
The most commonly reported strangulation-related collar accidents are listed below, in order of frequency:
Fence: This occurs when dogs are peering over, jumping over or digging/crawling under the fence and the collar gets caught.
You can see in this picture how easy it would be for the dog to hook its collar on the fence.
Play: When dogs play with one another, they typically will mouth at each other’s necks. The dog’s lower jaw and teeth can easily get stuck on another dog’s collar. While they try to free themselves, one dog may suffocate, while the other is left with a broken jaw.
Here you can see how the jaw of one dog could get in the collar of the other dog.
Crate: Statistically, this is just as common as play strangulation; it occurs when the identification tags get stuck in the bars of the crate.
It's not hard to imagine these tags or even the buckle getting caught in the wire of this kennel It happens a lot more than you think.
Branch: While a dog may love romping through the woods, branches can easily snag the collar and strangle the dog or puncture his neck area.
It would take nothing at all for this dog to snag its collar on a branch sticking up.
Heating/Cooling air vents: Like crate strangulation, the hanging identification tags can get stuck in air vents, and while the dog struggles, he ends up doing more harm than good.
A Tragedy Spawns Safer Collar Design
In 1995, Chinook, a Samoyed mix, was on a hike with his family. He lagged behind for a couple minutes while taking interest in a scent. After he didn’t catch up, his family went to search for him, but when they found him, it was too late: Chinook had gotten tangled in a branch and, while trying to free himself, had flipped over and twisted the collar, causing fatal airway constriction.
The more he fought, the tighter the collar cinched around his neck. Airway constriction is almost always the cause of death when fatal collar accidents occur.
Driven by grief, Chinook’s owner, Tenney Mudge, created a collar that makes collar strangulation impossible. In 1996, she patented the Petsafe KeepSafe Break-Away collar[/easyazon_link], which was quickly picked up by Premier Pet Products, Inc. Unlike a conventional flat collar, the Break-Away collar is designed to release under most circumstances where pressure is put on the collar or when twisting occurs.
Dog wearing Petsafe Keepsafe Dog Collar
If you were to walk your dog using this collar, just clip your leash to both “D” rings. Clipping your leash to both rings deactivates the break-away safety clip. To avoid strangulation by your dog’s identification tags, just attach your tags to one “D” ring and not both.
Watch this video to see how the KeepSafe Break-Away collar works:
More Ideas to Prevent Collar Accidents One alternative to the KeepSafe Break-Away collar is one made by Tazlab that stretches when it is not hooked to a leash. Much like the Break-Away collar, when you attach your leash to both “D” rings, the stretch function is deactivated. The collar can easily slip over the dog’s head when nothing is attached to the rings.
Use a harness instead of a collar.
Take your dog’s collar off when he is in the house or backyard.
Avoid dangling identification tags and invest in a tag that slips onto the collar and lies flat or get a collar that has safety information embroidered onto the collar.
Don’t chain your dog outside, but if you have to, use a harness and make sure there are no obstacles in which your dog could get tangled.
Don’t ever tie your dog out on a raised surface such as a deck or in the back of a pick-up truck.
When taking the proper precautions, you can tremendously decrease the chances of your dog becoming a victim of a collar tragedy. Collar accidents occur on a regular basis under the most normal and careful of circumstances with every type of conventional collar. National Animal Safety and Protection Month in October helps to highlight how we can protect our dogs from senseless and devastating collar accident tragedies throughout the year. ©2022 Petful® / Super Copy Editors LLC www.petful.com
You can also read Collar Safety Awareness for the Dogs You Love By Tenney Mudge, Inventor of the KeepSafe® Collar
Blog > A Clear And Present Danger
Dog Collars: A Clear and Present Danger
Question the safety of your dog’s collar, listen to your gut feelings and be proactive to protect your dog from a very clear and present danger of collar strangulation accidents.
For more information about the KeepSafe Collar, check out our website which contains an informative video: KeepSafe Collar
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