Anyone use a tracker on their dog, any tips ?

[Ridgeway]

As a third woofer is in the planning and as it may well be type that could easily go off on a hunt (our last Boarder terrier was a legend at this) we wondered about the modern dog trackers that are now available. We did use a small goat bell on the Boarder but once he was out of ear shot then it was game over until he decided he’d had enough… the trackers i guess should be more useful although i wonder how good they really are ?

 

[Bolti]

Always thought about one for the cat. Would love to have known what he got up to.

 

[tkk]

Get a gps tracker. Two companies I know of , Tractive and Pawfit. I use Tractive, mostly reliable but depends on phone reception, some blind spots.Has overseas use. Overall Ive found it good. Some reviews criticise customer service but Ive been ok.

 

[The Saints]

We've had a lot of experience of these as we spend 7-8 months of the year house-sitting.

A growing number of owners have their pets fitted with trackers. With varying success. Some owners have spent a lot on their system only to find that it really doesn't do what they expected.

I'm not sure which brands are best but some are very accurate, around 10 metres or so. Others will give you the nearest village...!

Some are not good at getting a signal through trees, so if you're surrounded by woodland it wouldn't be much use.

If you're in the suburbs then an Apple AirTag might be of more use.

Sorry I can't be more specific but it would obviously pay to explore which ones have the best recommendations.

There's got to be a FaceBook page devoted to these things...!!

 

[Bill-H]

I had Tractive for my two dogs for the first time we took them abroad, they were not pinpoint accurate, especially in wooded areas where their signal got masked by the trees (maybe same in heavily built up areas?) There could be a quite a few seconds delay before their position was relayed to the phone app by which time they had moved away from the recorded spot. One tracker was more accurate than the other. Ok on open ground but youcan see where they are half the time anyway. A dog walker my friend uses has half a dozen and attaches one to each dog when they are off lead - great for the owners to see their little fluffykins running about while in the walker's charge.
We don't bother with having them now as our dogs are quite obedient and the worry of them getting lost while away has faded. We have got our mobile phone numbers (+44 etc) engraved on their id tags

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[Branston]

We've had a lot of experience of these as we spend 7-8 months of the year house-sitting.

A growing number of owners have their pets fitted with trackers. With varying success. Some owners have spent a lot on their system only to find that it really doesn't do what they expected.

I'm not sure which brands are best but some are very accurate, around 10 metres or so. Others will give you the nearest village...!

Some are not good at getting a signal through trees, so if you're surrounded by woodland it wouldn't be much use.

If you're in the suburbs then an Apple AirTag might be of more use.

Sorry I can't be more specific but it would obviously pay to explore which ones have the best recommendations.

There's got to be a FaceBook page devoted to these things...!!

I find pitpat very good. No extra charges after purchase. Fairly accurate once satalite picks up signal , sometimes a minute or two wait.

 

[Ridgeway]

Wow some great feedback, many thanks for that.

Yes in our case we walk through dense forest so it does make me wonder just how good a tracker would be, doesn’t sound too encouraging on that front. Maybe i can install an aerial on the dogs tail

 

[BrochMike]

Trackers are notoriously a waste of time...

However, lots of recall training will pay off.

We have a very inquisitive Jack Russell who can disappear in the woods extremely quickly. Rarely does he not respond when called (and will even return to whistle at longer distances).

Edit: we learnt a lot after 'losing' his predecessor for hours at a time (deer are irresistible). Much better to get the dog to look for you than have to go hunting for them!

 

[Downsie]

I used a Tractive for a while. Yes, definitely not good in woodland but my main reason for giving up with it was that it would only work if I had my phone out even in freezing weather, seemed to stop tracking as soon as it was in my pocket. I’ve found an Apple Airtag to be much more practical in use ….. and much cheaper, subscription to Tractive was quite a lot if I remember rightly.

 

[Onemanandhisdog]

Wow some great feedback, many thanks for that.

Yes in our case we walk through dense forest so it does make me wonder just how good a tracker would be, doesn’t sound too encouraging on that front. Maybe i can install an aerial on the dogs tail

Doubt it will be much good for you, I listen to internet radio walking my mutt in woods and that loses signal in certain places which helped make my mind up not to bother.

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[Coolcats]

Wow some great feedback, many thanks for that.

Yes in our case we walk through dense forest so it does make me wonder just how good a tracker would be, doesn’t sound too encouraging on that front. Maybe i can install an aerial on the dogs tail

It is now unlawful to let dogs off their leads on 'open access land' (such as moorland, forests, lakes, or beaches) in England and Wales until August 1, according to experts. Those who fail to keep their dogs on a lead between March 1 and July 31 could face a fine of up to £1,000.

This regulation aims to protect ground-nesting birds and livestock, as well as ensure the safety of dogs.

Four places you're now breaking the law by letting your dog off its lead

Dog owners are being warned to keep their pets on a lead while out on their walks, as it's now illegal to let a dog off its lead on "open access land" in England and Wales until August 1

www.nottinghampost.com

 

[Gordo]

We recently got the latest small Tractive - works great but the battery is nowhere near what they claim / best we manage is two days. I’ll wait til it gets worse and claim under warranty. We got it for our younger working cocker who has managed to wrap her ear round a barbed wire fence in the past and took us ages to find her in the bushes as she just sat there petrified.

 

[bigtwin]

works great but the battery is nowhere near what they claim / best we manage is two days.

Have you set up the power saving zone?

Ian

 

[Guigsy]

I've got Tractive AND a Bluetooth tracker on the cats. They are indoors. So when they are out in the back garden unsupervised, or when we take them in the van, they get their collars on.

Tractive is good. The battery lasts 2-3 days when out and about. But it lasts weeks if it can see a home WiFi. The advantage is it works almost anywhere. The disadvantage is it only gets you down to a couple of dozen metres. And the beep and flash function is pretty weak.

They've also got Tile Bluetooth trackers. They are nice and loud and batteries last more than a year. If I can't find them with the Tractive, then the Bluetooth tracker is a backup that fills in some weaknesses and provides some redundancy.

Plus, when they've got all that weight on them, they can't go far.

 

[Nick wright]

As a third woofer is in the planning and as it may well be type that could easily go off on a hunt (our last Boarder terrier was a legend at this) we wondered about the modern dog trackers that are now available. We did use a small goat bell on the Boarder but once he was out of ear shot then it was game over until he decided he’d had enough… the trackers i guess should be more useful although i wonder how good they really are ?

I use a apple air tag on his collar

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[SwissBob]

Trackers are notoriously a waste of time...

However, lots of recall training will pay off.

We have a very inquisitive Jack Russell who can disappear in the woods extremely quickly. Rarely does he not respond when called (and will even return to whistle at longer distances).

Edit: we learnt a lot after 'losing' his predecessor for hours at a time (deer are irresistible). Much better to get the dog to look for you than have to go hunting for them!

Can't agree that they are a waste of time. Ours got his harness caught on a fallen tree while scenting. Without his Pawfit we'd have lost him. I would rather say they have their uses.

 

[Mick Kennedy]

We use an Apple airtag and it works fine. Only had to track our dog once and that was in a wooded area and we found him ok. Well, we got close to him, then he could hear us calling and headed back to us.

 

[Billybob56]

Another vote for Apple air tag. We have one on our Parsons Terrier, she is very easily distracted

 

[vzac]

We gave up on the cats tracker ( can not remember which one). I check the tracker, first it showed it n the map it was about 3 miles away. Re set it and showed it was in china. All the time I was looking at it in the garden. Sent it back got my money back. For me it was to heavy for the cat and accuracy was only good if you want to know which planet the cat was on.

 

[Gordo]

Have you set up the power saving zone?

Ian

I've got Tractive AND a Bluetooth tracker on the cats. They are indoors. So when they are out in the back garden unsupervised, or when we take them in the van, they get their collars on.

Tractive is good. The battery lasts 2-3 days when out and about. But it lasts weeks if it can see a home WiFi. The advantage is it works almost anywhere. The disadvantage is it only gets you down to a couple of dozen metres. And the beep and flash function is pretty weak.

They've also got Tile Bluetooth trackers. They are nice and loud and batteries last more than a year. If I can't find them with the Tractive, then the Bluetooth tracker is a backup that fills in some weaknesses and provides some redundancy.

Plus, when they've got all that weight on them, they can't go far.

Our Tractive is on home wifi. I did a test with it on a table, so clearly in its ‘home zone’ and still only 2 days’ battery. Ill talk to them as it’s a great piece of kit otherwise.

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[Gordo]

We use an Apple airtag and it works fine. Only had to track our dog once and that was in a wooded area and we found him ok. Well, we got close to him, then he could hear us calling and headed back to us.

Airtag only works if it’s in bluetooth range of an iphone or maybe with a slow dog. Fine if you’re somewhere with lots of people, no use otherwise. When we used one and tested it (on our local common) the dog was often 100m+ away from where the Airtag had last been picked up by a phone.

 

[pandas]

airtag vote from us - we use it for our bikes. Doesn't have to be in bluetooth range of your iPhone

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[Backlanes]

Our Border Collie has great recall but is easily spooked by noises such as distant gunfire or bird scarers at which point she bolts and hears nothing from me whilst ‘in the zone.’

We have a Tractive unit on her collar. It gets us close enough to her to call her in, assuming the noise has stopped. It’s a bit big and clumsy but she’s grown up used to it. And it’s pretty pricey if you never need it but gives some peace of mind.

We charge it every night to keep it in the top half as it will eat battery when precision-mode is activated and it may take hours to track her down, no point in low battery being another worry.

We’re on the second unit, the first was replaced under warranty (good service) after about a year when the battery contacts failed - salt water ingress I think - she loves the sea.

Best advice was above, recall training is worth every minute.

 

[paul-hunt]

As a third woofer is in the planning and as it may well be type that could easily go off on a hunt (our last Boarder terrier was a legend at this) we wondered about the modern dog trackers that are now available. We did use a small goat bell on the Boarder but once he was out of ear shot then it was game over until he decided he’d had enough… the trackers i guess should be more useful although i wonder how good they really are ?

We use PitPat very good with no subscription

 

[1090alex]

We use PitPat very good with no subscription

Hi,
I'd recommend you look at Pettracer.
It's has GPS and also uses a radio signal for instances where there might be no GPS signal. Doesn't meed a phone signal only wifi for the home station.Also has an led light on the collar which you can switch to flashing mode from your phone to help find Rover in the dark.
The app is excellent and not difficult to use.
The Company's customer service ,should you need help is superb. Not cheap, but with tracking devices you definitely get what you pay for.
Alex

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[akadingbat]

Tractive trackers are brilliant and very accurate. I have had several over the years and they even replace them for free if they stop working. If attaching to a harness I use cable tidies as my dog goes through undergrowth etc. it gives amazing peace of mind. Would not be without one.

 

[bigtwin]

Our Tractiv is on home wifi. I did a test with it on a table, so clearly in its ‘home zone’ and still only 2 days’ battery. Ill talk to them as it’s a great piece of kit otherwise.

But if the App doesn’t show the status as being in the home zone and in ‘power saving mode’ then it will still be actively tracking and using battery power.

Ian

 

[KNWH]

Got anything I could fit to Mrs KNWH so I don’t keep losing her in supermarkets?

 

[optimus-prime]

+1 for Tractive. Battery lasts for weeks if on WiFi (motorhome or home). accuracy is pretty good, once off WiFi and GPS turns on and connects to the mobile network. Subscription can be paused twice a year for up to 8 months if I remember correctly.

 

[quentinsf]

Yes, I put an Airtag on our spaniel's collar (and on pretty much everything else too, as it happens, including a concealed one as a backup tracker in the van). Very easy, very cheap and it's not hard to find cases designed to hold them on collars.

For those less familiar with the technology, though, it's worth mentioning that the only GPS location you can get from an Airtag shows when it was last in bluetooth range of an Apple device (anybody's, not just yours). So if your dog runs off and gets lost in the middle of the Yorkshire moors or some other unpopulated area, it's not going to help very much. A proper GPS tracker that talks to the phone network is much better for that, though it has other challenges of cost, weight and battery life.

But we added ours when the dog got lost on a crowded beach and couldn't find us... it would have been perfect for that.

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