Product Review: Freeze Tag

Freeze Tag is the perfect holder for dog tags. I've been looking for the ideal tag holder for years, and I've finally found it. This amazing little device holds tags securely and silently, without dangling too far from the collar. It's fast and easy to change from collar to collar without losing any tags, and it's easy to add new tags as well. Freeze Tag comes in three bright colors.

Photo by Erin Koski

As you probably know, I own an infinite number of dog collars and like to change them often. Obviously a standard split ring wouldn't do for all those wardrobe changes. We've been through a bunch of different tag holders, and along the way I've come up with six requirements for my perfect tag holder. It must be:

• Quiet
• Reliable
• Holds tags close to collar
• Easy to change collars
• Easy to add/remove tags
• Tags don't fall off when switching collars.

Doesn't seem that hard, right? Wrong. Every single product was missing at least one of these...until now. The Freeze Tag people gave this to me at SuperZoo 2016 to try out, and it is amazing.

Tiny Hardware

Freeze Tag has a little screw that runs through the holes in the tags, and a nut that attaches to the end. It's long enough to accommodate multiple tags, as long as you don't have anything super chunky like the Bog Tag. (Which doesn't fit, I tried it.) This holds the tags together securely, keeping them quiet and also preventing them from rubbing together and wearing the engraving off.

A silicone loop attaches to the screw on one end, and then pops over the nut on the other side. It's easy to get on and off, but also takes enough effort that I'm not worried about it falling off on its own. The loop is wide enough to fit around any collar hardware, but keeps the tags up close and doesn't allow a lot of movement. Of course, the tags are all still readable with this holder.

It Has Everything

The Freeze Tag dog tag holder is pretty amazing. It fills my entire wishlist. I can add or remove tags at will, but I don't have to worry about them falling off when switching collars. It holds the tags close to my dog's collar, so they aren't flopping around or making a racket when she herds sheep. It has a reliable design, and has stayed on through six months of herding, hiking, and cattledog gymnastics. What more could I ask for? I need to order one for Zip, who is still wearing a noisy tag holder.

For some other innovative ways to attach tags to your dog's collar, check out my reviews for the Rubit, Tagnabbit, and LINKS-IT.

Product Review: The BoG Tag

The BOG Tag is the ultimate gender identity tag for your dog. Got a pretty boy dog? An imposing girl dog? Tired of correcting people about your pet's gender? Want to spare yourself and everyone else an awkward conversation? This tag says it all. The Boy-or-Girl tag is lightweight, eye-catching, easy to see, and doesn't jangle or rattle against your dog's other tags. It makes a statement, and that statement is, "I'm a boy!" or "I'm a girl!" or "My owner cares about gendering their dog!"

Photo by Erin Koski

Ok, I first saw the BoG Tag online, and I laughed a whole lot. I guess the whole point is to avoid awkward conversations in which you must inform someone that they got your dog's gender wrong.

I routinely dress Ru in frilly pink dresses, so I'm not so much trying to avoid awkward conversation as ambushing the unsuspecting with it. I get perverse pleasure out of telling people that he's a boy, and I don't mind a bit when people call my girl dogs boys.

That said, when I was given a BoG Tag of my very own at SuperZoo, I showed it to my father and learned that he does indeed feel awkward when I misgenders someone else's pet. So I guess the tag isn't just for overly-sensitive pet owners, it's also for members of the public who really do care about that sort of thing.

Photo by Erin Koski

Pros: Large enough to be clearly visible, but lightweight enough even for tiny dogs. Made from plastic, so it doesn't make noise when bouncing around with other tags. Such an attention-getter.

Cons: I have some concerns about long-term durability. Possibly this should be worn just for outings and not 24/7.

Bottom Line: I put this on Ru every time we leave the house, because I find it hilarious. It goes really well with a pink dress and rhinestone collar, and means I don't even have to interact directly to tell people that my dog is a girly boy who likes being pretty. Though I was mostly amused at first, it has actually turned out to be a really great idea, especially for dogs that are constantly assumed to be the wrong gender.

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.

Product Review: Boomerang CollarTags

Boomerang CollarTags are probably the most durable identification tags out there, and they're not just for dog collars, either. These non-dangling bits of ID are available both for traditional buckle-collars and for any type of strap that doesn't have a nice end to slip through the slots. The standard CollarTags fit single-ply nylon straps, there is also one with extra wide slots for double-ply nylon and heavy leather collars. CollarTags are made from heavy stainless steel with deep engraving. They are available in five sizes to fit straps 3/8-1" wide.

Photo by Erin Koski

Boomerang makes some fabulously high-quality dog tags that are surprisingly inexpensive given that they last forever. Seriously, this tag has a longer projected lifespan than your dog. Boomerang tags are also super easy to read, which is impressive. At work I see tons of scratched up, worn out aluminum vending machine tags that are completely failing to serve their purpose.

CollarTags are not your average dog tags. These things slide onto the collar and lay flat without dangling or making noise. They are ridiculously secure and can be attached to basically anything with 1" or thinner straps. Harnesses, leashes, halters, backpacks, luggage, climbing equipment, you name it. The slots in the tag are open in the middle, so there doesn't need to be a free end to thread through the tag. They're a huge pain to put on, but Boomerang guarantees they won't fall off so it's worth it.

Pros: Solid, heavy, durable. Easy to read even after years of use. No hardware to rust or break, unlike riveted plate tags. Guaranteed against loss, damage, wear, and anything else that would make it non-functional. Less likely to get caught on things than dangling tags. Totally silent, the quietest dog tag.

Cons: Not as pretty as my Dog Tag Art tags, so we have both. The adjustable collar tags don't work on my nice leather collars, need to get different tags for that. Not as obvious as a dangling tag, someone who finds my dog may not spot the CollarTag and may assume my dog is not wearing identification.

Bottom Line: Forget dog tag silencers, this is where it's at.

We Killed a Rubit

Rubits were my favorite quick-changing tag clips for a long time. I love the design, and for a while I was pretty sure they were indestructible. I did begin to worry about Brisbane's original Rubit Curve because it had thinned over a span of six years, but it's currently holding Sisci's tags and has been used on my various foster dogs almost continuously.

The one we killed had only been in service for two years. It was a large purple heart Rubit. Although it was holding Brisbane's tags, Ranger was wearing it when it failed because I usually put my dogs' tags on visiting dogs.

I don't actually know what happened to this thing. It's bent open so that the wire gate can't reach the other side, and the split ring is also pretty bent. This was on the floor with the tags still on the ring when I got home from work a couple of weeks ago.

The most likely answer is that the tags or the Rubit itself got caught on something and Ranger struggled until the clip bent far enough for him to get free. It apparently wasn't too traumatic an experience for him because he acted fine that evening and didn't seem injured or out of sorts. Once I found the tags I checked him over to see if he had a sore toe or dewclaw that might have gotten hung up, but I didn't find anything. I don't know what else he could have gotten caught on since the tags were just laying in the open and not stuck anywhere obvious.

Whatever happened, I'm taking it as a reason to try a different type of tag holder for Brisbane. I've been using a plastic Links-It to hold Ru's tags for a while now, so I went ahead and ordered one for Brisbane. I'll let you know how it works for us. Have you tried any quick-change tag-holders?

Dog Tag Silencers

There are a lot of different ways to prevent dog tags from making noise. Working at a daycare and boarding facility, I have seen a ton of creative ways to silence that jingling. I've even employed one or two of these methods in the past, but I don't anymore because I realized something. The sound of my dogs' tags don't bother me when they are just bopping around the house.

Photo by Erin Koski

The only time the sound of jingling tags starts to bother me is when a dog is scratching. Most tags are attached to the collar right beside the buckle, and when they start scratching really good with a back foot, the tags whack into the buckle and make a ton of noise.

The solution for this is not to make the tags quieter. The solution to noisy dog tags is to figure out why the dog is scratching and then fix it.

I have seen tag holders that consist of little neoprene bags that velcro around just the tags. Some wrap around the collar with a little pocket to hold the tags without attaching them to the collar itself. Many high-end collars now include a little rubber disc that goes on the split ring between the tags to keep them from banging into each other. At work I have seen a number of dogs with their rabies, identification, and license tags all taped or rubber banded together. Brisbane's Dog Tag Art tag came with a little rubber rim. There exist flat ID tags that slide or rivet onto the collar, and I've also seen regular tags riveted on.

Many of these products and hacks help reduce wear and help keep the tags readable for longer, which is a reasonable goal. I also see a whole lot of completely unreadable tags worn flat from rubbing against their neighbors on the dog's collar. However I'm pretty sure that the itchiest dogs have their tags duct taped together to keep them quiet.

Dogs itch for a lot of reasons. They may have fleas, a food allergy, or an environmental allergy. Figuring out the problem may be as simple as a dose of flea medication, a change of food, or may require a trip to the vet. Still, it's worth solving. If your dog is keeping you up all night scratching and jangling their tags, imagine how unpleasant it must be for them! Muffling the tags just makes them suffer in silence.

How do you attach your dog's tags?

Product Review: Dog Tag Art

Dog Tag Art allows customers to design their own dog tags, or choose from zillions of user-submitted designs for a unique identification tag. The tags come in size Large (1.25") and Small (7/8"), and fit up to four lines of text.

Photo by Erin Koski

When I first saw these tags, I assumed they were just painted aluminum like the cheap tags in the insta-tag machines at the pet store. I see a lot of those on dogs around here, and around half of them are scratched or worn to the point of being totally illegible. Rubbing against other tags all day, everyday takes its toll on ID tags.

Dog Tag Art tags are something totally different, though. They are made with a steel core coated in a durable polymer that looks and feels like porcelain. The edges are smooth and round. The entire tag feels solid.

Brisbane's Dog Tag Art tag still looks brand new, partly because it came with a free tag protector that keeps the edges from getting dinged while preventing the center from rubbing against the other tags. The company guarantees that their tags will be readable for life, but I still expected mine to get scratched up and look terrible before long. My expectations have been exceeded in every way.

Pros: A nearly infinite number of designs to choose from, and if none of those will do, I can always design my own. Guaranteed to remain readable for life or it will be replaced, this company stands behind their products. 

Cons: I wish there was room for more lines of text, I like putting down their microchip numbers, street address in case they escape from home, and city/state in case they get lost while traveling.

Bottom Line:  I think Ru might need a brontosaurus or Flying Spaghetti Monster tag. I am also considering making them some travel tags with the extra info that didn't fit on the allowed four lines.

Product Review: Tagnabbit Tag Clip

The PetMate Tagnabbit is a clip designed to attach identification tags to a collar. Rather than using a split ring, the tags go onto the clip itself.

Photo by Erin Koski

This is the second tag clip I have tried, and I'm afraid it cannot compare to my beloved Rubits. The design is wonderful, not strictly utilitarian. I love the little decorative pawprint. The swivel is interesting, it helps the tags lay flat and nicely shows off decorative tags.

The idea is that the tags go on the big loop. and the small loop clips to the collar ring. Obviously I put mine on backwards, the big side was too big to fit through some of the holes in my tags. The small side was too small to fit on some of my collars. A nice thick D-ring is too thick for that little clip.

While the Tagnabbit is a nice idea, it does not seem to be a functional product. Mine lasted through an entire trip to the beach and began rusting almost immediately despite being rinsed immediately afterward. Apparently I was one of the lucky ones, because both the Amazon product page and the manufacturer's own product page are both filled with people complaining that they lost their dog's tags when the product either fell apart or fell off. Both sides of the clip as well as the swivel have been implicated as points of failure.

Pros: Attractive and fun product with a very low price tag, this thing can be found for $3-5. I bought mine on clearance for $1. Eliminates split rings entirely.

Cons: Falls apart and loses tags extremely easily.

Bottom Line: ID tags, rabies tags, and microchip tags often cost $10 each. Sparkly rhinestone tags and custom art tags cost a lot more. I stopped using the Tagnabbit as soon as I read reviews for it and realized just how bad it is. I don't need to spend $30 on replacement tags, this $3 tag clip just isn't worth it.

Product Review: Rubit Dog Tag Clip

The Rubit is a device for attaching tags to a dog's collar. It is strong, light, durable, and makes it very easy to switch between collars. This is very important if the dog's owner is mildly obsessed with collecting collars and changing them on a daily basis.

Photo by Erin Koski

The Rubit comes in three sizes, a ton of colors, and three different shapes. Some of them are also available with rhinestones or spikes. I bought a black Medium Curve Rubit and a pink Small Curve Rubit for my dogs almost four years ago, and they have worn them on a near-constant basis the entire time. A couple of months ago I purchased a pink Small Heart with Rhinestones for Ru because he could stand to be a little more fancy. As you can see, it is absolutely adorable.

I love how simple, strong, and decorative these clips are. They are extremely lightweight, which is very important for a 6lb dog. Most of Ru''s collars are 3/8" wide, and I like to clip the Rubit directly to the collar to keep the tags from hanging too low. The small Rubits are too small to clip to the rings of most of Brisbane's collars, but there is nothing his Medium Rubit can't handle.

Photo by Erin Koski

Since I have used our original Rubits for several years, and recently purchased a third one, I have been able to make a couple of interesting observations. First, the quality of the split ring for the tags has gone way down. Our original Rubit Curves still have their original split rings that are holding up wonderfully. However, the ring on the new one bent and nearly fell off despite holding the exact same tags Ru had been wearing with the first one for years. A lot of people on Amazon have left reviews complaining about this issue, and for good reason. Lost tags are a pain in the butt to replace. I caught the unwinding ring in time and replaced it with one of the tons I have around because they come with every single tag and I only use one per pet.

The other observation I've been able to make concerns Brisbane's Rubit Curve. When we were setting up these photos, I noticed that the top of the black Rubit is significantly thinner than the top of the pink one. After four years of hikes and beach trips, it is actually wearing out. Brisbane still wears it on a regular basis, so I will be looking to replace it eventually. I'll probably get a round one next time just because we don't have one yet. It's possible that this issue has been addressed in the years since this Rubit was purchased.

Pros: Easy to use, makes swapping tags simple. Small size prevents tags from hanging too low. Durable and long-lasting even after many dips in the ocean. Plenty of size, color, and style options.

Cons: At the moment the split ring provided with the product seems to be completely inadequate for the task of holding dog tags, it should be replaced with a ring that came with a dog tag. The colors eventually fade and rub, and I've seen at least one spiked Rubit that was missing a couple of spikes.

Bottom Line: This is my favorite tag clip and I will definitely be buying another one for Brisbane in the future. They are simple yet stylish, and I love how compact and light they are. I will be checking in with the company about Brisbane's thinning Rubit Curve.