While there’s an ongoing debate about whether or not your cat should be let outside, there isn’t much debate on if your cat should wear a collar. The only discussion on this topic is what is the best kind of collar.
There are a huge number of collars out there. They range from purely decorative to purely functional. Various features are available too: safety releases, D rings, embroidered name plates, metal name plates, personalization, etc.
So which should you choose? This article is focused on finding the best personalized cat collars with safety releases (for more info on safety releases read below) out there today. Every collar in this article has a breakaway safety buckle and you can personalize it. This means you can add your cat’s name and info right to the collar before purchase!
The Best Personalized Cat Collars Quick Guide | |
|---|---|
Key Highlight | Product Name |
Best Overall Collar | |
Great Value | |
Tons of Colors | |
Best Combo | |
Most Bling | |
Most Reflective | |
Lots of Writing Space | |
Best w/ Jingle Bell | |
Best Basic Tags | |
Best Value Tags | |
Cutest Cat Tags | |
Additional Information | |
Kitty Convict Personalized Cat ID
That being said it’ll work just fine for cats that are allowed outside, but you’d probably want another collar for outdoor cats just to avoid any confusion if people see your cat and think it is lost.
Features worth noting on this collar:
- You have two options here, you can directly personalize the collar or you can personalize the tag for the collar.
- If you go with direct embroidering it comes in black and has up to 22 characters of text space
- Each tag allows up to 4 lines of personalized text, each line takes up to 18 characters of text. The tags are about 1 inch by 1 inch.
- There is only one color available, orange. It is used becuase it is bright and reflective and a single color is used to indicate the cat is outside and isn’t supposed to be outside.
- The collar is 3/8″ wide and adjustable from 8-inches to 12-inches in length.
- A safety clasp ensures that if your cat gets caught on anything they are released without any injury.
Click Here To Find The Best Deal
Go Go Cute Cat Personalized Nylon Cat Collar w/ Bell
A few things worth noting:
- They are made of nylon and canvas and will hold up to even the most adventurous cats.
- They are embroidered for long lasting good looks. You have room for up to 25 characters of customization.
- There are 5 options for the collar color: Blue, Black, Pink, Red, Purple.
- There are a total of 11 thread color options: White, Grey, Red, Orange, Green, Yellow, Light Blue, Blue, Black, Pink, Purple.
- The collars are adjustable for cats with necks about 8″-12″ and are 3/8″ in width.
- Each collar comes with a bell & ring to attach licenses, the bell is removable.
Click Here To Find The Best Deal
GoTags Personalized Safety Release Cat Collar
The key features on this model worth noting are:
- The collar is made of no-snag nylon material so it is less likely to get caught on things outside.
- If it does get caught it has a safety release clip to let your kitty out without any danger.
- The collar is 3/8″ wide and adjustable from 8-inches to 12-inches in length.
- There are 5 different Collar Color options: Black, Blue, Red, Pink or Orange.
- There are 15 different Thread Color options: White, Black, Navy Blue, Red, Neon Pink, Baby Pink, Sky Blue, Purple, Neon Yellow, Neon Green, Orange, Gold, Turquoise, Cotton Candy, Jolly Rancher.
- You can add up to 22 characters to the collar to personalize it.
Click Here To Find The Best Deal
GoTags Reflective Cat Collar With Stainless Personalized Tag
While the collar itself isn’t personalized, it comes fully equipped with a tag of choice to carry all your kitty’s info.
A few things worth noting:
- Your cat’s ID is laser engraved onto a stainless steel pet tag, you can choose between a cat face or a paw print.
- Each tag allows up to 4 lines of personalized text, each line takes up to 15 characters of text.
- The tags are about 1 inch by 1 inch.
- There are 5 color options: Black, Blue, Orange, Pink, Red.
- The collar is 3/8″ wide and adjustable from 8-inches to 12-inches in length.
- A safety clasp ensures that if your cat gets caught on anything they are released without any injury.
Click Here To Find The Best Deal
DayDay Patch Cat Collar w/ Tags & Breakaway Safety Release
They’ve also included a jingle bell for extra flair (Office Space anyone?) to make some noise and warm people your kitty is around.
Key features worth noting on this collar:
- There are 6 colors to choose from (for the collar/bell combo) : Hot Pink, Blue, Gold, Purple, Orange & Multi-Color
- Cool cat shaped safety buckle and D ring for the personalized tag.
- Your cat’s info is lasered onto a stainless tag to ensure it lasts long and won’t wear and tear even in the roughest conditions.
- The laser engraving is clear, permanent, and attractive on a polished mirror-finish surface.
- The collar is 3/8 inches wide and adjustable from 8-inches to 12-inches in length.
- You get 25 characters of space to include on the tag for your cat’s name and phone number
Click Here To Find The Best Deal
GoTags Personalized Extra Reflective Cat Collar
A few other features worth noting:
- The reflective strip is extremely visible even with just a little bit of light. It can be seen from 0ver 100 feet away.
- Your cats details are lasered directly into the reflective strip and you have a total of 25 characters of space to work with.
- The color of the lasering will appear black on all collars.
- There are 5 color options: Black, Blue, Orange, Pink, Red.
- The collar is 3/8″ wide and adjustable from 8-inches to 12-inches in length.
- A safety clasp ensures that if your cat gets caught on anything they are released without any injury.
Click Here To Find The Best Deal
FlowerTown Personalized Nylon Cat Collar
- Your cat’s details are embroidered onto a piece of fabric that is then sewn onto the collar.
- You have a total of 25 characters of space to work with.
- There are 6 color options: Black, Red, Purple, Blue, Light Blue, and Pink.
- There are 12 different options for the embroidery: Yellow, Blue, Black, Red, White, Pink, Light Blue, Orange, Green, Purple, Brown, Blue.
- The collar also has a jingle bell and a D ring for additional tags or items you want to attach.
- The collar is 3/8″ wide and adjustable from 8-inches to 12-inches in length.
- A safety clasp ensures that if your cat gets caught on anything they are released without any injury.
Click Here To Find The Best Deal
GoTags Personalized Nylon Collar With Bell
The key features on this model worth noting are:
- The nylon webbing has smooth, tapered edges for a comfortable fit for your feline friend.
- The safety release clip ensures your kitty gets out of any sticky situations out without any danger.
- The collar is 3/8″ wide and adjustable from 8-inches to 12-inches in length.
- There are 5 different Collar Color options: Black, Blue, Red, Pink or Orange.
- There are 15 different Thread Color options: White, Black, Navy Blue, Red, Neon Pink, Baby Pink, Sky Blue, Purple, Neon Yellow, Neon Green, Orange, Gold, Turquoise, Cotton Candy, Jolly Rancher.
- You can add up to 22 characters to the collar to personalize it.
Click Here To Find The Best Deal
GoTags Personalized Stainless steel ID Tags
That being said, they don’t bring a lot else to the table from a personalization standpoint. What they do however bring is a wealth of community support on being some of the best tags on the market.
They have over 15,000 reviews on Amazon as of the time I am writing this and an average rating of nearly 5 stars. If you want a verified and well respected product you can’t do better.
Key features include:
- Nine different shapes to choose from: Bow Tie, Flower, Heart, House, Ranger Badge, Rectangle, Round, Star, Bone (not for cats)
- Two sided engraving and up to 8 total lines of text so you can fit tons of information about your pet
- The tags are made of stainless steel and user laser engraving, these will hold up in almost any conditions
- Shapes average about 1.3 inches by about .9 inches
Click Here To Find The Best Deal
GoTags Personalized Stainless steel ID Tags
Even if your cat has a microchip not many individuals have a scanner available. This means that tags are the fastest and easiest way for people to figure out who owns a cat and get in touch with the owner.
Key features of these tags:
- Your cat’s ID is laser engraved onto a stainless steel pet tag that is made to last for years and years.
- The lasering looks black in the photos, but it will appear with a mirror finish.
- Each tag allows up to 4 lines of personalized text, each line takes up to 20 characters of text.
- The tags are about 1 inch by 1 inch.
- Will easily attach to the D ring on any standard cat collar.
Click Here To Find The Best Deal
Cat and Mouse Shaped Stainless Steel ID Tags
- Your cat’s ID is laser engraved onto a stainless steel pet tag that is made to last for years and years.
- The lasering looks black in the photos, but it will appear with a mirror finish.
- Each tag allows up to 4 lines of personalized text, each line takes from 16-18 characters depending on the shape you choose.
- The tags are about 1 inch by 1 inch.
- Will easily attach to the D ring on any standard cat collar using the split ring included with each purchase.
Click Here To Find The Best Deal
Why Should Cats Wear Collars?
There is one simple response to this question. If your cat gets outside or gets lost a collar is the easiest way for someone to identify your cat and get in touch with you as quickly as possible.
Collars are by far the easiest way for a fellow human to identify a cat and the owner of the cat. Especially if the collar itself is personalized with the cat’s information.
There are also several movements among pet owners (for example the #KittyConvict Project) that make it easy for other cat owners to recognize a lost/escaped cat. This means fellow pet owners are more likely to make an effort to help return a clearly lost pet.
Research shows that cats that get lost are far more likely to be returned to their owners if they have a collar on when they get lost.
Will My Cat Really Wear a Collar?
Many owners simply assume that their cat won’t wear a collar because they’ve mostly seen cats that don’t have collars on. There may be an adjustment period to get your cat used to a collar, but most cats will wear a collar if you as an owner insist on it.
Research has shown that owner perception is the biggest indicator of whether or not a cat will wear a collar. Basically, if owners don’t think the cat will wear a collar then they simply won’t try to get the cat to wear a collar.
But reassuringly, the most recent research shows that over 72% of cats wore a collar through the end of a study period. So if you are dedicated to getting your cat into a collar you can make it happen!
There’s no specific trick to getting a cat to wear a collar. As with most things, it requires time and persistence (and in a lot of cases treats). You’ll want to introduce your cat to a new collar slowly and gradually expand the amount of time the cat wears the collar until they wear it all the time.
Why Only Collars With Safety Releases?
Cats are climbers and explorers and like to squeeze themselves into tight places. Collars without a safety release can easily get caught on tree branches, splintering wood, a hanging nail, etc. There are a laundry list of things a collar could get caught on in the wild, or even inside the home.
If a collar gets caught on these objects and doesn’t release easily then your cat could be seriously injured, trapped, or even strangled.
Enter safety clasps, buckles and releases. There are also the more uncommon elastic straps that serve a similar purpose, but aren’t as highly recommended these days. All of these are designed to ensure your cat has an opportunity to get out of an otherwise dangerous situation.
The short of it is, collars keep your cat safe if they get lost, but safety releases bring an extra layer of safety if they get stuck on something while out and about.
What if My Cat is an Indoor Cat Only?
Many cat owners don’t encourage their cats to wear collars because the cat is “indoor only.” The unfortunate thing is that the bulk of cats that get lost and don’t make it back home are cats that escaped from an indoor only life.
They may have snuck out the door or been spooked while the front door was open and simply scampered off. Most indoor cats will get outside at some point in their life so a collar is a great added layer of safety.
Unfortunately you can’t put a collar on your cat once they are already out the door. Indoor cats should have collars on even if you never intend to let them out.
What if My Cat Already Has a Microchip?
Microchips are one of the most effective tools ever created in tracking pets and ensuring they make it home to their owners when lost.
However, microchips aren’t something that an average individual can scan/read. And many people, non pet owners in particular, aren’t even familiar with their existence. The Humane Society recommends that even microchipped cats wear a collar with tags or identification included.
This means that for the microchip to be useful your cats has to make it it to a veterinarian, shelter or animal control center of some sort. Added steps mean added complexity and every additional step means your pet is less likely to make it home to you.
Now don’t get me wrong. I highly encourage you to mircochip your pet. It is an absolute necessity. But a collar will be something almost any person can read and use to get in touch with you the second they encounter your cat.
How to Measure Your Cat For a Collar
Average collars tend to measure between 8 and 12 inches for an adult cat. This will easily accommodate most cats out there, but for those of you with smaller or extra large cats you may have to look for something special.
Measuring your cat for a collar is a necessity to ensure the collar won’t simply slip off at any point and also to make sure it won’t choke your cat. Cats are also rather resourceful when it comes to their own comfort and you don’t want them to be able to easily shove the collar off.
Measuring your cat’s neck is easy, you can check out this short video how to for a simple overview. All you’ll need is a piece of string and a ruler. This video may help if you’ve never done it before:
Wrapping It Up On Cat Collars
The market is loaded with pet products, in particular about 1000 different variations of cat collars. There are nylon, leather, personalized, standard, accessorized, etc. The list goes on and on.
Each type of collar has advantages and disadvantages worth considering. No matter which path you choose you should aim to include the personal details of your cat on their collar to ensure they find their way home quickly and easily in the event of an escape.
You should also ensure your selected collar has a safety release just in case your cat gets into a sticky situation and the collar gets caught on something. There are several kinds of safety releases, just be sure to choose a collar with one. Note every collar on this page has a safety mechanism.
Don’t be afraid to try multiple types of collars! Some may irritate your cat far less than others and some are more effective for being seeing in the dark than others. There are a bunch of options and you should choose what’s right for your cat based on their personality and behavior.
If you keep a collar on your cat and it has personal details tell us which one it is below! If you’re having trouble getting your cat to wear a collar let us know too by leaving a comment below.
StuffCatsWant.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
