We Killed Another Rubit

I was probably inevitable, but the very first Rubit I purchased has finally given out on us. It survived six years of continuous use, and it didn't wear out in the place I expected. Still, the Rubit did finally wear out and now I'm looking for a new tag holder.

This is, in fact, the second Rubit we've killed. The first was Brisbane's purple heart-shaped clip, which was found on the living room floor bent out of shape. The assumption is that it got caught on something and was pulled off the collar. Which I'm glad Ranger wasn't hurt during the incident, it leaves me questioning the strength of the Rubit and how likely it is to get stuck on things.

Rubit casualty number two is Brisbane's original black Rubit Curve, most recently worn by Sisci.. Again found laying on the living room floor. This time though, the point of failure wasn't obvious. The wire gate closure on the clip has actually worn out and lost its spring, allowing it to fall open just enough to slip off a thin collar ring.

I am surprised that this is how the Rubit failed, as I was expecting the metal to wear through either at the top or the bottom where the split ring and D-ring rub. I'm also extremely relieve that this happened at home, and not in the middle of the hills where we spent the entire day grazing sheep.

I still love the Rubit's ease of use, but after two failures in three months I am hesitant to replace our broken ones. Brisbane and Ru's tags are currently being held by LINKS-ITs, but I'm looking for something faster and easier to change for Sisci.

Product Review: LINKS-IT Dog Tag Holder

I got this LINKS-IT dog tag holder for Ru because it's shorter than our previous holder and doesn't dangle the tags down quite as low. It is a unique plastic doodad that doesn't use any sort of split ring. LINKS-IT comes in nine different colors, we have a pink one and a purple one.

Photo by Erin Koski

This is a totally unique invention that has a crazy number of uses. Allergic to metals and need a fastener that won't give you a rash? Right here. Need something non-magnetic, that won't set off a metal detector? Got you covered. Want something that won't wear on your expensive dog tags or stain your dog's coat? LINKS-IT was made for that.

It's surprisingly complex for such a tiny thing. Opening a LINKS-IT is a bit tricky, it requires a fair amount of fine motor skill. When unlocked, the middle bit swings out and one side opens up. This is supposed to be virtually impossible for a small child to open.

The diamond shape means the tags hang nicely at the bottom and the whole thing moves a lot less than on a ring. The less dog tags move, the less wear occurs. They're quieter too! The locking bar going across the middle makes it tough for toenails, teeth, or anything else to get caught on the LINKS-IT. As an added bonus, you can't accidentally clip a leash to it.

Photo by Erin Koski

So far this has been a fabulous option for Ru. It's super lightweight, and short enough to keep the tags close to his collar. The pink collar is nice and bright. That said, it's kind of a pain to use. An empty LINKS-IT is easy enough to open and close, but when you add a collar on one side and a couple of tags on the other, it becomes significantly more of a hassle.

The hassle is magnified when you add more than two tags, or a larger dog collar. I replaced Brisbane's purple heart-shaped Rubit with a purple LINKS-IT, and I can just barely get it closed around everything. I definitely can't pop it on and off like I did with the Rubit, moving the tags with the LINKS-IT takes time, planning, and can't really be done with the dog wearing the collar unless you have a small dog with one tag.

Pros: Strong, durable, and metal-free. Made in the USA. Lots of color options. Relatively easy to open with enough manual dexterity, impossible to open by accident. More secure than a Rubit, stronger than a metal jump ring, safer than a metal S-hook.

Cons: Difficult to open and close with multiple tags or large collar hardware involved. Requires two hands and significant fine motor skills to use. Less convenient for fast changes than a clip-style tag holder. Tags with smaller holes do not fit at all.

Bottom Line: Since we have a zillion collars and the dogs wear different ones almost every day, I switch tags a whole lot. The LINKS-IT is great for Ru's identification tag and license. It's not so great for Brisbane's ID tag, license, daycare tag, Furcode tag, and microchip tag.