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Review - Collars for Cats?

  • Samantha
  • Mar 31, 2015
  • 5 min read

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I have noticed, on Instagram, that there is a sudden craze about collars and bow ties for cats. In all honesty, I am not a fan of putting collars on cats. First off, they get stuck or the collar gets lost and secondly, they always land up scratching at them and looking all scruffy from the collar bunching up their fur.

I know you are looking at my photo and thinking, “So, why all the collars?” Well, our complex insists that all cats have to wear a collar with a tag at all times. Isabella, as you know from our previous posts, is an indoor cat only. She is chipped, but she does try to bolt out the door from time to time. Therefore, since we are forced to keep a collar on her, we thought, “What the hell? Let’s just go with it!”

So I have been on a hunt to find collars for cats that are cute and funky, but of course, they are really hard to find – not as hard as the harness, but such a limited choice. Nothing cute like my American friends.

I have however found that VIP Pets at Northgate Shopping Centre stocks a great variety, but I seem to have bought all the ones I like there. Below are some of the collars we have:

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Numbers 1 and 2 are from Dischem and they are Isabella’s favourite collars. They are anything between R6.00 and R8.00 but are normally marked as R14.00, which is a total bonus! They are soft and they hang just right. Once her name tag is on the collar, the bow is on the back of her neck so she doesn’t chew on it all the time. It does have safety elastic that is hidden under the bow so if she gets stuck on anything the soft elastic will pull easily and come right off. It must have been designed by a cat owner!

You will see on Number 2 I have got a tag for her with her name, Ray’s cell number, as well as my cell number. It was very difficult to find a place that does really nice pet tags. You can get ones from the flea market, but they are normally very big and not so pretty, or, you can get the Rogz ones that you write on and stick them together, which are really cool but, my hand writing isn’t the greatest.

I have found two places that do very nice tags. First, VIP Pets in Northgate does them in store and they have a nice range. I got mine online from Fourpaws. They have the cutest tags and plenty of options, but what really sold me was the fact that you can have three lines of text, which is quite rare. So stoked and WOW! What an amazing service too! I ordered my tag on a Saturday afternoon and Tuesday morning it was waiting for me at work when I got there.

Number 3 is a red velvet collar with gold bell and buckle, as well as 1 safety elastic. This is Isabella’s Christmas Collar. You will see it has a Lindt Bear heart charm on it; that was a gift from my mom. This collar is great as the buckle does not have holes so you can size it to fit your cat perfectly. This is great for us as Isabella was really small when she came home with us and most of her collars we had, we’ve had to make a hole to fit her and cut the rest off, otherwise it sticks out all the time and she chews on it.

Number 4 is an adjustable collar, so it wraps around itself, like a bag strap, and you can let it out to fit your cat. It has a slide-in clip that doubles, but as it has a safety clip, it works really well. I have found that, at times, may be a bit too loose because I keep finding it, lying around the house all the time; My Little Houdini. This was from VIP Pets Northgate too.

Number 5 was just a cheap one from Lifestyle Pet Hyper for Belly to try out when she first came home. It was the very first collar she ever wore. I got it because it has felt on the back and is very soft, therefore, easier for her to get used to. It also has a buckle that doesn’t need holes like Number 3.

Number 6 is such a cute collar with different types of fish on it. Isabella has never worn it because it does not have a safety clip of any sort and I won’t put it on her. This was also from VIP Pets in Northgate, I was silly not to check it, and only saw that there wasn’t a safety clip, once I had taken the tags off and was about it put it on.

Number 7 is a Rogz collar that my mom got Isabella for Christmas. It has flowers on it, with Pink safety elastic and a hole-less buckle like Number 3. So very cute and girly. You can see it also has a special tag on it that says, “If the tiara fits...” That was her Christmas present from my aunt. This is a very nice collar, but because her neck is still so small, and we have to wrap it around quite a bit to fit her, the strap lands up sticking out quite a bit and she chews on it all the time. I have cut the excess off, but she still manages to slip it out and chew on it.

Number 8 is Isabella’s “Big Girl” collar. It is far from fitting her, but it was the first collar I ever bought her, as it is pink with white fluff and has a sliver crown on it. I cannot wait for the day this collar fits. This one is from Rogz, I found it at Lifestyle Pet Hyper and it has a buckle that needs holes, this is why it doesn’t fit yet, and has a safety elastic too.

I have started loving collars on Isabella. She looks so cute and girly. I wish we could get the collars that they have in America, but I am so apprehensive with ordering online, with our country’s postal strike, it will have to wait for a while. If you are not from South Africa, take a look at some of the online stores below. They really stock some beautiful collars and bowties. In can’t wait until I can place my order!

And many more on Etsy

Always look at the collars you are buying and make sure that they have some sort of safety release on them. I find the elastic ones are best, but be careful because some of them are much too tough, so give them a tug and see. If your cat is safe inside or if you are positive that they cannot get out of your garden, then rather don’t get a collar, as cats do get stuck in small spaces when they have collars one. Make sure your cat is Micro chipped. Your vet can do this and they are reasonably priced.

If you know of any great stores in South Africa that sell pretty collars, please leave a comment below and I will check them out.

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