• Home
  • TRAINING FOR BEGINNERS
    • EXERCISES
    • PETS
  • CBD
  • PRODUCTS
  • TRENDING
  • PET NEWS
  • PET TRAVEL
  • Advertise Here
No Result
View All Result
Plugin Install : Cart Icon need WooCommerce plugin to be installed.
  • Home
  • TRAINING FOR BEGINNERS
    • EXERCISES
    • PETS
  • CBD
  • PRODUCTS
  • TRENDING
  • PET NEWS
  • PET TRAVEL
  • Advertise Here
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result
Home PETS

Don’t Use an AirTag to Track Your Pet, Experts Say. Try This Instead

Doggone Well Staff by Doggone Well Staff
June 13, 2025
in PETS
37 2
0
Don’t Use an AirTag to Track Your Pet, Experts Say. Try This Instead
32
SHARES
356
VIEWS
Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
Dog Food topper - Getquelle365


Apple AirTags help keep track of your keys and bags, but can they help track your pet? It seems simple enough to place an AirTag on your pet's collar so you can track them 24/7. It's certainly an option, but it might not the best one. After all, it does have limitations and risks of its own.

Reliability and safety both must be factored into the conversation when it comes to deciding whether or not to strap an AirTag to your pet. To learn if AirTags are acceptable for pet tracking, we spoke with two experts. Here's everything to know. 

What is an AirTag?

Apple AirTags were created to help keep track of personal items by using a “secure Bluetooth signal that can be detected by nearby devices in the Find My network,” according to Apple.

The small devices, costing $29 per tag, are often used on suitcases, purses, backpacks and key chains. Apple's website doesn't mention using AirTags on pets, probably for a good reason.

Dog Food topper - Getquelle365

Read more: Best Apple AirTag Accessories of 2024

Why you shouldn't use an AirTag to track your pet

Although AirTags may seem like a convenient and relatively cheap way to keep track of your furry friends, experts advise against it. 

If AirTags are attached to a pet's collars, there's a chance it could lead to a medical emergency, said Dr. Shannon Vawter, medical director and veterinarian at Thrive Pet Healthcare Wedgewood in Nashville, Tennessee. 

“There's a battery in there, and if the dog or cat ingests this — which there's several articles and reports in our veterinary magazines where people have cited that this has happened — then we have to do a surgery called a gastronomy or an enterotomy and go fish that tag out,” Vawter said, adding that the battery is dangerous because if it starts “to corrode or open up with that acid inside, it'll burn a hole right through their GI tract.” 

Vawter said the emergency surgery to remove the AirTag could range in price between $2,000 and $5,000, adding that dogs are more likely to chew or eat an AirTag, but that cats could also be at risk of doing so. 

Tracking limitations are another reason experts caution against them.

“An AirTag has very limited tracking capabilities and accuracy in rural areas, the exact place that you're likely to need it the most,” said Maleki Burke, founder of Snootiful Hound, a company that created escape-proof harnesses for sighthounds. Because AirTags depend on nearby Apple devices, Burke said that if your pet is lost in a rural area, the location may not be accurate or available. 

“This is especially problematic if you're trying to track a dog that has wandered far away from populated areas,” he said.  

Expert advice: Better ways to track your pet

Both Vawter and Burke recommend that the first line of action to keep your pet safe is to get them microchipped. A microchip is a small, permanent chip that's equivalent to the size of a grain of rice and is embedded into the pet. According to Pawlicy Advisor, a pet insurance marketplace, microchips for dogs cost between $25 to $60. If you adopt your pet from a shelter, it may be chipped beforehand. In that case, the shelter would provide you with the microchip identification number during the adoption process. 

“Any pet can get a microchip at any age, and it is not much bigger than a vaccine needle,” Vawter said. “We do it all the time with distraction, like giving them some cheese or a little bit of peanut butter, and they don't even know they get it.” 

French bulldog being scanned by a veterinarian for a microchip

DjelicS/Getty Images

When someone finds a lost pet and brings it to an animal shelter or a veterinary office, the pet is scanned for a microchip. Microchips contain information about the pet and the owner's personal information so they can be reunited quickly. If you need to update your pet's microchip information, visit the American Animal Hospital Association's microchip registry lookup. Enter your pet's microchip ID to find where it is enrolled, then request to update all necessary information. 

The microchip is great for someone who finds your pet, but you may still want to pair it with a device that can actively track them. That's where a GPS collar can come in handy. 

“Let's say your dog gets loose, the chances are, in the short term, they're not going to go too far,” said Burke, who personally uses the GPS tracker Tractive for his dog. “If you have a GPS on them and you can track them, you can get them back in minutes.”

Like many GPS collars, Tractive requires a monthly subscription. The basic plan is $13 a month or $8 a month if you sign up for a year-long subscription.

Vawter also recommends a GPS tracker over an AirTag because they're typically flat and built into the collar, rather than dangling off the collar. 

“They're very large, so they'd be difficult to eat or bite into,” she said. “The other thing is, they're relying on satellites, not people's phones or Bluetooth. The only negative about a GPS — and that's why I still want a microchip — is the GPS has a battery, and it's short-lived.”

Vawter added that if your pet keeps escaping, talk with your veterinarian to find the root cause of why it's happening in the first place.

The bottom line

AirTags are great for your keys and other personal belongings, but there are safer and more foolproof ways to track your pets. 

“Make sure your dog is microchipped,” Burke said. “But also, if you're worried about your dog escaping, just get a GPS. The peace of mind is worth its weight in gold.” 





Source link

Dog Food topper - Getquelle365
Tags: AirtagDog as PetDontexpertstrack
Tweet8Share13Share3Share
Previous Post

Missing doodles found after statewide dog-hunt; $2K reward paid

Next Post

Dog With One Ear Finds Comfort in Plushy He Made Just Like Him

Doggone Well Staff

Doggone Well Staff

Next Post
Dog With One Ear Finds Comfort in Plushy He Made Just Like Him

Dog With One Ear Finds Comfort in Plushy He Made Just Like Him

Youtube Channel

Currently Playing

Jealous Dog Want Attention Compilation NEW

Jealous Dog Want Attention Compilation NEW

00:06:28

Best Of Funny Guilty Dog Compilation 2014

00:05:32

Best Dog Birthday Surprise: DIY Ball Pit for Maymo

00:01:39

How a little microchip changed this dog's life!!! Please share this important video. #dog

00:05:48

Follow Our Page

Popular Post

    Follow Us

    Category

    • CBD
    • EXERCISES
    • Home
    • NEW POSTS
    • PET NEWS
    • PET TRAVEL
    • PETS
    • PRODUCTS
    • TRAINING FOR BEGINNERS
    • TRENDING

    Tag Cloud

    Adoption Animal Animals Attack breeds Care Cat Cats County Day Death dog Dog as Pet Dog Owner dogs Family Fire food health Home house Humane Life Local Love Man Meet news Owners Park people Pets Police Puppy Rescue Safe Shelter Society Stray Tips Top Vet Ways Week Woman

    Recent News

    MACAU DAILY TIMES 澳門每日時報Five myths about spay/neuter surgery and the truth about your pet’s health

    MACAU DAILY TIMES 澳門每日時報Five myths about spay/neuter surgery and the truth about your pet’s health

    July 7, 2025
    Hot dog survives locker ordeal at Germany’s Neuschwanstein Castle, World News

    Hot dog survives locker ordeal at Germany’s Neuschwanstein Castle, World News

    July 7, 2025
    • DMCA
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Disclaimer
    • Contact Us
    • Cookie Privacy Policy

    © 2022 Doggone Well - doggone well.

    No Result
    View All Result
    • Home
    • TRAINING FOR BEGINNERS
      • EXERCISES
      • PETS
    • CBD
    • PRODUCTS
    • TRENDING
    • PET NEWS
    • PET TRAVEL
    • Advertise Here

    © 2022 Doggone Well - doggone well.

    Welcome Back!

    Login to your account below

    Forgotten Password?

    Retrieve your password

    Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

    Log In