My fool-proof, dog-proof setup for collars and tags

Pit bull: "Mwuahahahaha!" Angel: "Fear not, tiny camouflage-patterned Quiet Spot tag bag! Whoa, pit bull — am I seeing things, or is that Michael Jackson over there?" [pit bull runs off] Angel [whispers over shoulder]: "Hey, MJ, seen the Nicholas brothers yet? Dance jam tonight? Awesome!"

The heartbreak [and dollar suck] of dog-tag loss was suffered recently by Pet Connection's Phyllis DeGioia and her good boy Dodger. Only the tags were lost — not the dog, thank heavens. Read about it here.

I love the Quiet Spot tag silencers and thought I'd share my tag 'n' collar setup. It's fool-proof, if I do say so myself: if I can manage to keep tags safe with this method, trust me, it's fool-proof.

What I use:

• Steel key rings, available at any hardware place, sizes 1" or so to whatever. These are cheap, so I always have several rings of different sizes.

• Quiet Spot tag silencer[s]. They do exactly what they're supposed to do, which is end tag noise, and they are as tough as nails. My dogs have worn them in the ocean, in the mountains, crashing through brush while working livestock, etc. and we've never killed a tag bag yet. My local pet supply place carries them, and you can order them online.

• Boomerang CollarTags. I keep two of them on each dog's collar. I'm a huge fan of CollarTags: they've been in the sidebar since I started this blog, and on my dogs' collars since before that. They really are the best dog ID tags you can buy, and no, I'm not paid to say that. One CollarTag has: DOG'S NAME/my cell #/my home #/MICROCHIPPED/CITY, STATE. The second CollarTag has: REWARD/LOOSE = LOST/alternate phone number[s]/MICROCHIPPED. Did I mention all my dogs are microchipped?
  

• Collar. For my dogs, I like the sturdy nylon collars with steel buckles. I've seen those plastic quick-release thingies fail under pressure. Nothing like watching an untrained dog break his collar at the sight of sheep, yikes.

OK, on to the setup.

The little photo at top left shows how the tags go on the key ring. Yes, that's a St. Francis medallion. I am not terribly religious; however, I am deeply superstitious. Also: city tag, microchip tag, rabies tag, etc.

Once you have the tags on the key ring, put the Quiet Spot bag over the tags and fasten the three little arms OVER the key ring, like so:

Back view, with blurry Smoky nose... and front view, below, with himself. OMG, he is so adorable :~))) The scratch on his nose is from crashing through some rose bushes in the backyard saving everyone from a giant tiger that ekscaped from the zoo.





Once the tags are on the key ring and the Quiet Spot is 1) holding the tags and 2) fastened to the key ring itself, just thread the collar through the key ring as seen in the photo at the top of the post, and you're good to go.

In the unlikely event that the Quiet Spot bag works its way loose, the tags will still be fastened to the key ring, which will still be fastened to the collar.

But wait! Isn't the key ring likely to slide right off the collar whenever the collar's unbuckled?

You bet, especially if you happen to be as absent-minded as I am.

CollarTags to the rescue! Since you'll be using them anyway, let the CollarTags keep the ring in place. First, make sure the key ring isn't large enough to slide over the CollarTag. Then put one CollarTag on the collar, then the key ring + Quiet Spot, then the second CollarTag, like so:

I guarantee that tag bag will stay put.

"Aaaaaaahhhhhhhh!! Beat it! Just beat it!!"

I also love fancy custom collars. Check out these sites:
Paco Collars
Blocky Dogs