People who use collars on their cats have some extra considerations to ponder when deciding whether or not collaring is such a great idea. For one thing, cats tend to get themselves into some sticky outdoor situations, including climbing trees to escape perceived threats and real predators. A cat in a normal sort of collar could get hung up in a tree and find himself unable to get down. Tragically, many indoor/outdoor cats fall victim to just that scenario each year, and because they have wandered out of sight or hearing range, they often never make it down from the tree they get stuck in, usually by the collar that was meant to protect them in case they got lost. Collars with identification tags are important for all pets who live outdoors, since if the pet were to be found by another person, that person would know that this pet belongs to someone, and would have a way to contact the owner and return the pet. So, if you have a cat who spends time both indoors and outdoors, what can you do to help protect him from being lost or taken in by someone else without jeopardizing his health if he gets trapped in a tree?
Thankfully, there are breakaway collars available for cats. In fact, most of the major US pet retail chains no longer carry the old style cat collars, but only the new breakaways. Unfortunately, many of these breakaway collars do not stay on properly. My cat, who just got one the other day, has taken it off of himself about four times. Another safety option i nthis case is to have your cat micro chipped, so that if he is found and turned in to the local shelter, he can be scanned and you can have your cat returned to you in no time. You can also install an electronic cat door in your home that only responds to that cat’s micro chip, so that other animals cannot enter. This is important not only for your cat, but for home security as well, since you wouldn’t want unknown animals or wild ones like raccoons and skunks entering through a regular pet door.
