Did you know that over 19 million dogs wear a collar daily, according to the American Pet Products Association (APPA)? As a dog owner, this statistic didn’t surprise me too much. We have all been taught that our dogs should wear their collars daily. Not only are they stylish, they keep our dogs safe in case of emergency by giving others information on how to bring our dogs home, and a great way to bring our pups out quickly on a leash. What many of us don’t think about however is that our dogs’ collars can also be dangerous. Every year, there are over 26,000 collar strangulation accidents occurring in homes and establishment throughout the country. As a dog owner, this seems like a very scary number!
So, how exactly does this happen? As stated above, on accident, and sometimes even to the best dog owners. Some of the most common strangulation accidents occur:
- In crates or kennels
- Playing with other dogs
- Fences
- On heating/cooling vents
- Shrubs
- Branches
According to PetSafe, we are not the only ones who have had experience like this.
“A survey of veterinarians, trainers and doggy daycares found that more than 50 percent have experienced a collar-related accident with a dog. The number one most common way collar accidents occur is when dogs are playing together and one dog gets snagged in the collar,” said Toni Mark, KPA-CTP, MA, Training and Behavior Education Specialist for PetSafe Brand.
When Rylie was a tiny puppy, we had our own scare with a collar. Rylie, while she was crate training, somehow found a way to get herself caught in her crate. We were ready to take a pair of metal cutters to get her loose until we figured out there was a way to get her out. Honestly, we aren’t even sure how our cute puppy accomplished this feat, especially in what we thought was a breakaway collar (Ivi’s old breakaway collar was still too big so we got an ‘emergency one’ at a pet store). To say the least, it was a very frightening experience for all involved, with even Ivi trying to do everything she could to comfort her new baby sister.
With Ivi, there was only one collar we trusted to keep her safe as a pup and we have now started using with the girls indoors – the PetSafe® KeepSafe® Break-Away Collar. These collars use PetSafe’s patented break away safety buckle system, which releases once pressure is applied to the collar, allowing dogs to get free in a situation where they would be choking or harmed. As well as the safety buckles, the collar is also designed to make walking safe and easy since it has two metal loops to keep the collar together while walking, making walking safe for you and your dog while guaranteeing that the collar won’t come loose from pressure on the leash. To learn more, make sure to watch the awesome video below about the PetSafe® KeepSafe® Break-Away Collar or check out our KeepSafe Break-Away Collar review from last year.
Disclosure: Budget Earth did not receive monetary compensation for this review, but did receive products for review purposes. All opinions on this product are my own honest assessment, and may differ from our readers’ opinions.
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About Susan Bewley
Susan Bewley is a professional writer who has been writing content online & in print format for over 10 years. As well, she is an alumni of the University of Louisville with a Masters Degree in Special Education. When not working as an online business consultant or ghost writing, she can be found writing on Budget Earth, on her own novel, or working with various entities in the pet industry.
I had no idea that this was a common occurrence! We only put our dog’s collar when she’s out on a walk.
Very good looking collar, I think its so important to find the right
collar for your pet.
This is such a great idea. The safety of the pets collars is so important. Thank you for all this information.
I am an absolute believer in the breakaway pet collars for both my dog and cats. I would hate the thought of something preventable happening that could be so devastating.
We always used a break away collar with our dog that wore one every day, I heard a couple stories from other pet owners and went out and got one.
We are very lucky our girl, now in first year of University, has wanted to be a vet since she was 3..so all of your great advice has been overly researched and applied
I had no idea that these types of incidents were so pervasive. The only time our dog has her collar on is when she’s on a walk.
Duh. I thought I had commented on this post already.
Scary never gave this a thought.Going to switch to this safer collar for our dogs.Thanks for the information.
This is so important to know! The same applies to cats, too! thanks for the great post!
This definitely hits home for me. When I was a teenager I had a puppy basically ban itself from its collar in her cage. Scariest thing ever. Please take care of your babies!!
Wow. This is actually the first time I’ve thought about dog collar safety! I can’t believe your little pup got caught in the dog crate. Thank you for highlighting this topic today!
I love break away pet collars, except for when the situation is critical for your pet and you reach down and try to ‘collar’ your dog with your hand and the collar comes off. It takes a while to remember that in such instances you have to grab their neck instead of the collar. This happens when another dog enters your fenced yard, or a predator is there and would not have your dog on a leash. However, break away collars are really important because the stress on your dog when he has become tangled is hard on both the pet and the owner.
Over 26,000 furry friends’ deaths from their collars a year!! This IS unacceptable!!! I am glad that this never happened to any of my pets or anyone else’s that I know!! I would have freaked out and felt guilty!!!!
This definitely was pin worthy material!! More pet owners should know about this hazard and about the PetSafe KeepSafe Break-Away Collar. Thanks for making me aware!! ?
im waitig to go to pet co to get them for the odg i am afriad the coyete or coon pick up my dogs
Wow!! That is a frightening amount of strangulations from Dog Collars. I used to collar my Dogs until A friend of mine told me that some breeds of dogs can choke on a colllar, I never knew about the strangulations too! Thankyou for the info I will share! I think this is a very important post!!