Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My cat just got his caught in his mouth, so it went around his neck and his mouth. He was licking himself when this happened and the collar was just loose enough to grab him.
He panicked because he thought he was choking. I had to hold him down and force his jaw closed to try and loosen the collar all the while, he was scratching and freaking out. By the time I got him free, I looked down and my hands were full of scratches and puncture wounds. Normally, my cat would never hurt me, but he was scared for his life.
I'm just glad this happened while I was here. I hate to think what he might have done if I wasn't.
I won't be putting another collar on him. That's it.
Not to mention if it gets caught while climbing through a tight spot... I've never liked collars. All of my cats are micro-chipped and collar free. I think collars take away from their naturally graceful appearance and it impedes them in the long run.
All of my cats wear collars and ID tags. They are also micro-chipped. The collars and tags gives an instant visual recognition that they are pets and not strays, while the chip requires specialized equipment to read and decode it.
There are various kinds of safety collars. Some are break-away, and some are stretchy. All of them are designed to come off under the cats weight, and most of them will release if the cat gets his jaw or foot caught in them.
I also have them pretty loose around the cats' necks and can drag them off or put them on right over their heads. Of course they hate that.
Once in a while one of them will pull somebody else's collar off while wrestling and he will walk around with it like a trophy.
All of my cats wear collars and ID tags. They are also micro-chipped. The collars and tags gives an instant visual recognition that they are pets and not strays, while the chip requires specialized equipment to read and decode it.
There are various kinds of safety collars. Some are break-away, and some are stretchy. All of them are designed to come off under the cats weight, and most of them will release if the cat gets his jaw or foot caught in them.
I also have them pretty loose around the cats' necks and can drag them off or put them on right over their heads. Of course they hate that.
Once in a while one of them will pull somebody else's collar off while wrestling and he will walk around with it like a trophy.
though, I totally understand how you feel, I'm with Fat Freddy on this one. When my two got out for the first time, I was VERY LUCKy to come home and see my female exploring the front yard for the first time. I dropped everything and got her to come to me. I've never been more scared than that moment. What if I hadn't come home early that day? Where would she have gone? My roommates are careless and left the screenless window open multiple times adn they got out. Don't get me started on how angry I got....No one at home noticed she was gone. It was then, I realized I had no choice but to collar them and Id them with microchips; both.
Though, that same situation happened to my male and he got his jaw caught in teh collar twice, and my female got her paw caught, I still keep them on. I just keep them loose and use the most loosest clipped collars so if they do get caught again, they will be unsnapped easily. I took off the bells too so it's not so annoying to them. I don't need the bells. If I need to find them, I just call for them. I know my aunt thinks bells on collars is animal abuse. Whatever.
it sucks, but for me, it's neccessary. I just can't trust my roommates to pay attention like I do. Hence why I usually just lock them up when I or my boyfriend Chris is not there to supervise.
I'll tell ya one good thing about them, I've been able to monitor my male's weight gain by how many times I have to re-loosen the damn collar! Gez, my little tubo!
My cat is unusually intelligent. He won't run away and stays in the area that I tell him too. He has a microchip. I remember another instance where I found a stray cat with a collar that got looped around an arm. It wore the skin down to the bone. Horrifying....
How's your cat today, Greenie? I hope he has recovered from his trauma.
Quote:
Originally Posted by GreenMachine
I think cat collars are dangerous for cats.
My cat just got his caught in his mouth, so it went around his neck and his mouth. He was licking himself when this happened and the collar was just loose enough to grab him.
He panicked because he thought he was choking. I had to hold him down and force his jaw closed to try and loosen the collar all the while, he was scratching and freaking out. By the time I got him free, I looked down and my hands were full of scratches and puncture wounds. Normally, my cat would never hurt me, but he was scared for his life.
I'm just glad this happened while I was here. I hate to think what he might have done if I wasn't.
I won't be putting another collar on him. That's it.
My Hubby as a boy rescued a cat strangling on it's own collar. The kitty tried to jump a chainlink fence and the collar caught on the wire poking up at the top of the fence. Hubby unhooked the cat and set it down and after a few minutes kitty went on his/her way. He has been adamant about our cats not wearing collars.
Years ago we discovered that our missing cat Oscar had been adopted by a lady up the street. She saw him with no collar and opened the door and he went right on in. After we sorted out what had happened, we agreed to visitation rights and I changed my mind on collars after speaking with the vet. Doc said that I could get some elastic loosely stich the ends together and that the thread would break away if the cat ever got caught on a fence. We've been through a lot of elastic collars, but one's had any trouble with them yet.
PS. elastic collars are not snug on the neck, there is enough room for 2 fingers to slip between the elastic and neck without even stretching the elastic. Single thread is used and only sewn twice then knotted off.
My Hubby as a boy rescued a cat strangling on it's own collar. The kitty tried to jump a chainlink fence and the collar caught on the wire poking up at the top of the fence. Hubby unhooked the cat and set it down and after a few minutes kitty went on his/her way. He has been adamant about our cats not wearing collars.
Years ago we discovered that our missing cat Oscar had been adopted by a lady up the street. She saw him with no collar and opened the door and he went right on in. After we sorted out what had happened, we agreed to visitation rights and I changed my mind on collars after speaking with the vet. Doc said that I could get some elastic loosely stich the ends together and that the thread would break away if the cat ever got caught on a fence. We've been through a lot of elastic collars, but one's had any trouble with them yet.
PS. elastic collars are not snug on the neck, there is enough room for 2 fingers to slip between the elastic and neck without even stretching the elastic. Single thread is used and only sewn twice then knotted off.
You know, that makes a lot more sense that these clip collars. I swear I can't get some of them off let a lone my cat's weight. Hm, there could be potential here.
How's your cat today, Greenie? I hope he has recovered from his trauma.
My cat is fine, as usual. However, my hand is full of scratches.
One time my cat got caught in a broken window. I was horrified and tried to rescue him. Blood was everywhere, and I thought for sure my cat was bleeding to death. I finally smashed the window, wrapped him in a towel and brought him indoors. It was then I saw the hole in my wrist -- the blood was mine, not his! I had slit open my wrist trying to save him. Meanwhile, my cat ran under the bed while I went to the emergency room. Typical.
I'm conflicted about collars.
I don't like them and I doubt that cats like them.
My cat is microchipped, but what if she gets lost and then gets "adopted" by someone who thinks she has no ID?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I agree....
