Lost pet: a nightmare for every pet owner.
We recently shared some facts and figures about lost pets in the United States in our other article "Lost Pets: Today is a good tag day!"
Losing a pet is one of the biggest fears of every pet owner. According to the American Humane Association, one out of three pets get lost at some point in their life, and over 80 % of the missing pets are never found. Only 15 % of dogs and 2 % of cats in shelters without a proper tag or chip will be reunited with their owners.
But numbers alone cannot express one thing: the worry and uncertainty, as well as the suffering that both animal and owner feel when this terrible event occurs.
We think this is a good reason to make sure our fur friends are never lost!
How to make sure you don’t lose them in the first place?
Who doesn't know them from animal films: thick heavy devices that are placed on the neck of wild animals in order to be able to locate them later by means of tracking devices.
Modern technology has made enormous progress in recent years and has not left out the tracking sector. Nowadays, there are a number of solutions that can be used to identify and locate pets.
Microchip & Tattoo:
Microchips and tattoos are very common and reliable identification methods. They are tattooed in the pet's ears or injected under the skin and remain linked to the animal for life. When a lost animal is brought to a veterinarian, shelter or animal welfare organization, the stored data can be read and the owner located. At least in theory! Unfortunately, these deposited data are often no longer up to date, whether by change of owner or relocation. In addition, one is dependent on these methods to bring the animal to a place where chip or tattoo can be read. Just call the owner in the park as soon as you have found an animal? Impossible!
Regular PetTags:
Regular pet tags are great, simple tools for getting lost pets back to their owners. Tagged with a name and phone number, anyone who finds your lost pet can contact you directly and arrange a drop-off.
Unfortunately, it is not possible to update the pet tags: a new phone number means: new pet tag. Moreover, this information is publicly viewable. One just has to get close enough to your pet, and it is conceivable that your personal information could fall into the wrong hands and you could receive unwanted calls or contact.
GPS Trackers
GPS trackers use the same technology as your car's sat nav or smart phone. The animal receives a tracking collar. By means of a GPS signal the position of the animal can now be tracked exactly, i.e. the animal can actually no longer get lost. Unfortunately, GPS trackers also have some disadvantages: they are expensive to buy, need to be recharged regularly, you need a sim card to be able to share the location of the animal and of course they only work as long as there is GPS and an internet connection. In addition, they represent a certain "value" and it may well be that your tracker will be stolen sooner or later.
Bluetooth & Mobile Trackers
Bluetooth trackers like Apple's new AirTags are a great new technology: instead of GPS, they use Bluetooth to locate their position. The smartphones of random people walking by within range exchange information with the tracker invisibly to the owner and publish its position on the Internet. In the best case, triangulation can be used to determine the tracker's position very precisely, and without high power and data consumption.
These trackers are small and inconspicuous and are actually made for pet collars. Unfortunately, there is a catch: they are not approved for use on animals at all. Bluetooth trackers like Apple's AirTags are used to find lost objects like keys, etc. They may be a wonderful addition, and give the owner more peace of mind, but you shouldn't rely on this one technology alone.
The problem: the system only works if there are enough supported cell phones within range. Certainly no problem in the city, but what about parks, forests or rural areas?
Yepitag: the elegant tracking solution:
YepiTag uses the QR-technology for pet identification. QR stands for "quick response" and uses a unique code that can be read and understood by any modern smartphone. Robust, easy to use and very reliable, this method requires nothing more than a cell phone with internet reception to identify a found pet, receive important information and most importantly contact the owner. Now, anyone with a smartphone can identify a found pet, receive helpful information about it and send a message to the owner that will include the current location of the pet, based on the finder's GPS coordinates.
With YepiTag, you'll have the advantage of a regular pet tag, being it's easy use and robust design together with tracking functionality and the possibility to set different privacy options.
Unlike other pet tag solutions, your name, telephone number and other sensitive information will only be shared if you allow it. This way, you won't have to be worried about giving away important data in case the tag is lost or stolen.
Even when your pet is safe and sound, YepiTag can make raising your pet a lot easier: in fact, the smart pet tag also allows pet owners to easily share all kinds of information about their pet. Whether it is weight and growth details, vaccination status, favorite foods or even the last time you took a walk. Based on the information you save in YepiPet, the app automatically generates a fully customizable health report that can be easily shared through YepiTag. From now on, friends, family, groomers or veterinarians will have all the info they need to know about your pet at the palm of their hands.
Conclusion:
Bluetooth trackers are a great thing, but you shouldn't rely on them alone. The risk is too great that there simply aren't any phones around to pick up the signal.
With QR-based solutions, like YepiTag you have the benefits of modern technology combined with the simplicity of the good old dog tag.
Want to play it safe? Just combine YepiTag with AirTag! This way, your pet will be perfectly protected on every outing.
