Losing your pet is a very traumatic experience. Wondering where they have gone and how are you going to find them again is a very upsetting thing. So it is very important to give your pet the best chances of finding their way home again by helping them "speak" with a pet tag that can assist their rescuer. Pet id tags are an inexpensive way to help ensure that your pet is returned to you. Even pets that you believe will never leave your house should wear a pet id tag because they might slip out a door or open window or if there is an emergency at your home and they are removed they will have on identification. This point was driven home to me when our 20 year old blind and deaf dachshund who rarely left her bed in the kitchen disappeared one day. The door had been left open for a few minutes and she had decided to go for a walk by herself she ended up heading for a very busy street and got lucky that someone picked her up. She was not wearing a pet tag at the time because we never thought she would be able to get so far away from us - so she ended up at the shelter. It was a very trying 24 hours seaching for her. So we now make sure all the pets have on id tags at all times because you just never know what might happen.

Pet tags come in many different materials such as brass, aluminum, and plastic, many shapes and lots of colors which can be customized with your pets important information. When deciding what to put on your pet id tag think about what is the crucial information to get your pet back to you.

Key information to include on a pet id tag:

• Pet's name - this can be very helpful to the person finding the pet to help reassure the pet.
• Phone numbers - this should be a number where you can be reached easily such as home, work or cell phone numbers. I usually put all my pertinent numbers on my pet's id tags.
• Address - if there is room on the tag this can help someone determine if the animal lives near where they were found and can easily bring the animal right back to you. It is not necessary to put the zip code on your pet tag since your pet will not be mailed back to you.
• Medical Information - this is important information to include on your pet id tag if your pet is on any medicine or has any health issues such as deafness or blindness.
• Also remember when you are traveling it is a good idea to have a tag that has information that pertains to where you are or make sure that it has a phone number that can reach you right away - not the number where you live.