How not to lose your pet: cat and dog trackers

If you’ve ever called your pet and heard silence, you’ll know the sinking feeling I got when I’d just moved house and my little Scottish Fold, Hat, was nowhere to be found.

Both my cats were indoor moggies, and weren’t used to going outside at all. I’d carefully brought them over to the new place, got them settled in, and then — lost one. Panicked, I thought of all the times I’d propped the door open to move furniture about — it only opened onto a communal corridor rather than the street, but what if Hat had somehow found his way downstairs and the front door happened to be open?

I searched the whole place. Everywhere. Called his name, shook treats, opened a tin of tuna. Nothing. Which led to the somewhat humiliating experience of running down the road shouting “Hat! HAAAAT!”

Guess where he was?

Down the side of my bed. Fast asleep, chilled as you like.

I never, ever want to feel that sinking feeling of loss again. If you feel the same, tech can help. There’s a choice of dog trackers available that can also be fastened to a cat’s collar, although be warned they can be really pricey depending on features. If you want live GPS tracking — which is what you need to find a missing kitty, really — it’s going to cost you a bit more. For instance, Vodafone’s V-Pet tracker is £55, but you need to pay £4 a month on top to keep the data connection going.

Some people improvise with something like a Tile Tracker or Chipolo, but they’re not really designed for this purpose and have some pretty severe limitations, like not being waterproof or only having a 100-foot Bluetooth range (and we all know how reliable Bluetooth is).

Of course, the easiest and cheapest thing would be not to lose your pet in the first place, but tell that to Hat. Little scamp.

Main image: Pexels