25 May 2020

Why you should put your phone number on your dog's collar

| NoAddedMSG
Join the conversation
23

This is a reminder as to the importance of putting a tag with your phone number on it on your dog’s collar. Sure, you dog might be micro chipped but that is not always going to be helpful. Last night, coming home in the dark and rain, I chanced about a large elderly black dog standing in the middle of the road at high risk of being run over. This was in Reid – a suburb with nothing much in the way of street lights, so not a good location for a dark coloured, obviously deaf, dog with no road sense to be chilling out on his own. He had a collar but no tag, so an unsuccessful door knock later, I rang Domestic Animal Services, as per the suggestion on the ACT RSPCA page.

Domestic Animal Services do not collect lost dogs after-hours. I was informed my only option was to take the dog to a vet who would (presumably) take over responsibility for him. This was not an option as I was on my bike and still a fair distance from home where the car was. Too far to get this dog to walk with me all the way home. So, I spent the next 40 minutes wandering Reid with this dog, making sure he didn’t get run over (he really had no road sense at all), and hoping he would find his own way home. Eventually I found a local dog walker who recognised him, and volunteered to walk him home.

After a 45 minute detour on the way home, in the rain, I was pretty pissed off at the owner of that dog. If he had a tag on him, I could have called the owner straight away. I also wasn’t overly impressed by the response from Domestic Animal Services.

So please, put a tag on your dog with a number that will be reliably answered on it. Otherwise you really are relying on them being found by someone with the means to transport them to a vet.

Join the conversation

23
All Comments
  • All Comments
  • Website Comments
LatestOldest

Gerry-Built said :

2.0 said :

I cant stand people who give away animals just because it diesnt suit their lifestyle of circumstances anymore.

Funny thing about life; It doesn’t always go to your plan… and you cannot predict exactly how things will be years down the track. Well; apparently you can… but not everybody can…

I don’t think 2.0 is saying that at all, they are just pointing out that some people think animals are disposable and don’t think it through properly before they get one.

Of course you can’t predict the future, but if there’s even a slight chance you’ll be changing living conditions, going to live overseas, or anything else which means you can’t keep the pet, then you really shouldn’t get it in the first place! A dog in particular is a 15-20 year commitment. That’s what you sign up for and that shouldn’t change, except for totally unforeseen circumstances.

screaming banshee11:00 pm 20 Apr 12

So, don’t get attacked by a dog outside of business hours then. Another pathetic example of this city’s municipal services.

Nice work -MSG

Aw, you deserve to be peeved, NoAddedMSG – and *I* am grateful on behalf of your hairy friend’s owners .

@ 2.0… how old are you, twelve??!!

GardeningGirl8:13 pm 20 Apr 12

canberra_cath said :

I agree completely. We spent many months deciding what dog would best suit us, and found the perfect dog through a fostering organisation. When my husband went to pick her up tonight, the collar he had purchased was too big. On the way home he stopped by the pet shop to get a new collar, and she managed to escape from the car. No collar or id, however she is microchipped. If anyone finds a small black labrador kelpie cross in the Belconnen area (heading toward Page / Florey), please advise the rspca or domestic animal services. And when we get her home we will put so many forms of id on her, she won’t be able to move, let alone make a quick getaway…

Poor thing, I hope you find her soon! Have you checked with the place where you picked her up, is it possible she headed back there?

canberra_cath7:57 pm 20 Apr 12

I agree completely. We spent many months deciding what dog would best suit us, and found the perfect dog through a fostering organisation. When my husband went to pick her up tonight, the collar he had purchased was too big. On the way home he stopped by the pet shop to get a new collar, and she managed to escape from the car. No collar or id, however she is microchipped. If anyone finds a small black labrador kelpie cross in the Belconnen area (heading toward Page / Florey), please advise the rspca or domestic animal services. And when we get her home we will put so many forms of id on her, she won’t be able to move, let alone make a quick getaway…

GardeningGirl11:18 am 20 Apr 12

Good on you NoAddedMSG for persevering! I had a similar situation, minus the bicycle and the rain. Made all the logical phone calls and was left with the option of walking the dog to the nearest vet to be scanned (the tag said the dog was microchipped but nothing else). Luckily the dog recognised his home as we were walking, but not before I had developed a blister from the new shoes I was wearing.

eily said :

The yellow tag is the ACT dog registration number. The green (as used now) is for microchipping rego; it has the phone number of the company and a reference number so you can get details without having to go to a vet etc to have that dog scanned.

That sounds sensible, if only all dogs had that.

2.0 said :

I cant stand people who give away animals just because it diesnt suit their lifestyle of circumstances anymore.

Funny thing about life; It doesn’t always go to your plan… and you cannot predict exactly how things will be years down the track. Well; apparently you can… but not everybody can…

Mattenagger said :

On the subject of dog registration. Can anyone explain the purpose of the yellow and green tag? I asked one of the guys that works at the pound and his explanation was “the yellow tag is like a number plate and the green tag is like the rego sticker”. I couldn’t understand the logic behind this. Presumably a number plate is for quick, easy idenitification of a vehicle possibly from a distance. Considering the green and yellow tag are exactly the same size I don’t understand the need for both. They’re quite cumbersome on a dog’s collar and I have often found my dogs chewing the tags to bits. I was given 1 set of replacement tags for free but am not game enough to enquire about another new set.

The yellow tag is the ACT dog registration number. The green (as used now) is for microchipping rego; it has the phone number of the company and a reference number so you can get details without having to go to a vet etc to have that dog scanned.

Either that or somebody’s very lazy and hasn’t removed the second tag from the time a few years ago (quite a few years ago) when our dogs had to wear two tags. Yellow- rego. Second colour- proof you had paid your yearly fee (that’s when we still had to pay annually, that is). Which sounds like the explanation you got from the pound guy.

With lost (ie dog chewed tags) what you could do is get a metal tag engraved with your details on one side and your ACT dog rego number one the other. Or even two small tags, one for each.

When we found a lovely goldie once after a thunderstorm she had no tags but her owner had thoughtfully written their address and phone number on the inside of the collar. The only problem with that was they had written it a long time before and on a wet leather collar it was very had to read. We could make out the street name but not much else.

But they had her in the lost/found the next morning, so very happy puppy.

Zeital said :

i have 3 numbers on my dogs tag so if she ever does get out at least one person will pick up if the other is busy. the last few times i have found wonders in my suburb they have had numbers and its so much faster to get the dogs back to people that way.

if only everyone was as smart…..

+1 – less likely to occur now with the prevalence of mobile phones and micro chipping but years ago I once found a stray dog with a phone number but no address. After several days of phoning I discovered that the owners had been away and the neighbours had been feeding the dog who lived outside and, even though they could hear the phone ringing constantly, they didn’t have access to the house to answer the phone.

Mattenagger said :

On the subject of dog registration. Can anyone explain the purpose of the yellow and green tag? I asked one of the guys that works at the pound and his explanation was “the yellow tag is like a number plate and the green tag is like the rego sticker”. I couldn’t understand the logic behind this. Presumably a number plate is for quick, easy idenitification of a vehicle possibly from a distance. Considering the green and yellow tag are exactly the same size I don’t understand the need for both. They’re quite cumbersome on a dog’s collar and I have often found my dogs chewing the tags to bits. I was given 1 set of replacement tags for free but am not game enough to enquire about another new set.

i only got a yellow tag when i registered my dog which is a ‘for life’ thing. its basicly another form of keeping track of the dogs owned my people/household as you can only have up to i think its 4 before you have to pay more to have more then that etc etc

Mattenagger said :

I have often found my dogs chewing the tags to bits. I was given 1 set of replacement tags for free but am not game enough to enquire about another new set.

clearly you need to bite the bullet but not let your dogs do likewise – have their teeth out and feed them congee the rest of their days; at least the tags will be safe…

i have 3 numbers on my dogs tag so if she ever does get out at least one person will pick up if the other is busy. the last few times i have found wonders in my suburb they have had numbers and its so much faster to get the dogs back to people that way.

if only everyone was as smart…..

On the subject of dog registration. Can anyone explain the purpose of the yellow and green tag? I asked one of the guys that works at the pound and his explanation was “the yellow tag is like a number plate and the green tag is like the rego sticker”. I couldn’t understand the logic behind this. Presumably a number plate is for quick, easy idenitification of a vehicle possibly from a distance. Considering the green and yellow tag are exactly the same size I don’t understand the need for both. They’re quite cumbersome on a dog’s collar and I have often found my dogs chewing the tags to bits. I was given 1 set of replacement tags for free but am not game enough to enquire about another new set.

Apart from the fact that It’s the law:

Dog registration is compulsory in the ACT and dogs must always wear their registration tag or a dog tag that displays their registration number.
http://www.tams.act.gov.au/live/pets/keeping_dogs_in_the_act

DeskMonkey said :

2.0 said :

DeskMonkey said :

yes and if you sell your dog or give it away make sure the new owners update the tag! I got a call from the pound who had found my old dog that I had given up a year earlier.

Pets are for life!! not just a convenience.

I cant stand people who give away animals just because it diesnt suit their lifestyle of circumstances anymore.

Sorry but I can’t justify keeping my dog after she’s grown up in a house with a large yard, and moving her into my new house with a kennel and no yard. It’s not fair on her and I did the best that I could to her by giving her to a loving family with a large property.

Do presume to know my circumstances before you judge.

No not judging you at all, just giving my opinion.

I have heard of so many people getting a cat/dog while renting then give them away after a year because they find it too hard to find another place that would accept pets. and others who get ‘cute little puppies’ then give them away when they realise that they do infact grow up.

I do understand that there are some circumstances where there is no other option.

2.0 said :

DeskMonkey said :

yes and if you sell your dog or give it away make sure the new owners update the tag! I got a call from the pound who had found my old dog that I had given up a year earlier.

Pets are for life!! not just a convenience.

I cant stand people who give away animals just because it diesnt suit their lifestyle of circumstances anymore.

Sorry but I can’t justify keeping my dog after she’s grown up in a house with a large yard, and moving her into my new house with a kennel and no yard. It’s not fair on her and I did the best that I could to her by giving her to a loving family with a large property.

Do presume to know my circumstances before you judge.

2.0 said :

DeskMonkey said :

yes and if you sell your dog or give it away make sure the new owners update the tag! I got a call from the pound who had found my old dog that I had given up a year earlier.

Pets are for life!! not just a convenience.

I cant stand people who give away animals just because it diesnt suit their lifestyle of circumstances anymore.

For life… I guess he should have put the dog down instead.

DeskMonkey said :

yes and if you sell your dog or give it away make sure the new owners update the tag! I got a call from the pound who had found my old dog that I had given up a year earlier.

Pets are for life!! not just a convenience.

I cant stand people who give away animals just because it diesnt suit their lifestyle of circumstances anymore.

Sterling effort to reunite the poor dog with its owners. Bit of a pity that DAS were unhelpful, but that seems to be par for the course with most of the staff there.

The only time I have found a dog wandering the streets it also didn’t have a name/number tag but it did have the registration tag on its collar. I called the phone number on it and ended up with the Canberra Connect call centre (it was a Sunday morning). The person I spoke to was really helpful and actually contacted the owner using the registration database and put me onto them so I could ask them where they lived. The owner was out of town but gave me their address and I walked the dog home and put it back in its yard.

Well done on taking the time and trying…

We seem to have our immediate region’s escapee dogs gravitate towards our High School. Perhaps they find the sound of groups of kids inviting? Or perhaps the amount of rubbish the kids leave around (and therefore possible snacks)?

However, the number of these dogs without tags is concerning. I’d much sooner have a call telling me my dog has turned up somewhere and to pick them up then pay the pound fine. I’d also suggest a small gift to the person who found your dog; who has probably just saved you $70-$300 (according to GovCo)…

yes and if you sell your dog or give it away make sure the new owners update the tag! I got a call from the pound who had found my old dog that I had given up a year earlier.

kudos for taking the time to lend a paw to this lost mutt… thankfully it ended happily [enough]. let’s hope the owner read riotact.

i once had a hound, very much a non-roamer, for some unbeknown reason trundle off and end up from a northside start in tuggeranong, muddied and pongy and cold, in the garage of very thankfully wonderful folk who braved the muck and smell and called the number on her tag at 6.30am after she’d been chasing roos or god knows what all night… very one-off behaviour, but it can happen.

Good call on this one. We found a little dog wandering out the front of our house a few weeks back with no tag. Took them to the vet who couldn’t locate a microchip, so they said the only two options were to leave him at the vet and they would take him to the RSPCA the next afternoon, or take him home and then to the RSPCA in the morning. As it happens, we left him at the vet. The next day about lunchtime a lost dog notice went up on the pound website, so we called the owner to let him know that the dog was at the vet. We got a ‘um ok I’ll go pick him up’ not even a word of thanks. I simple tag with a phone number could have made this process a lot simpler and would have meant the dog could have slept in his bed, and not in a strange new place for a night.

Daily Digest

Want the best Canberra news delivered daily? Every day we package the most popular Riotact stories and send them straight to your inbox. Sign-up now for trusted local news that will never be behind a paywall.

By submitting your email address you are agreeing to Region Group's terms and conditions and privacy policy.