# cat collars



## Lily (Mar 14, 2004)

is there a reason that cats dont like collars? or maybe its just my cat.. whenever we put one on him he totally freaks out and does everything he can to get it off.. im not sure if a majority of cats like them or not.. and if anyone has any suggestions on how to maybe get him to wear one.. lemme kno!!


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## Zalensia (Aug 25, 2003)

persistance!
ive yet to meet a cat who is happy in a collar. They go nuts trying to get it off, mine ended up a few times getting it stuck in thier mouths.

They way i did it was whenever i was home, and not in bed i put the collar on- that way i can detangle them, if i went out- even for 10 minutes take it off. Eventually you can go to leaving it on over nigt- soon they will not make a fuss at all about wearing it- well a majority do!


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## ospunkyo (Sep 3, 2003)

I've given up on making my cat wear a collar. She is an indoor only cat, and she's not the neatest girl, so the two tags that are on it would always get coated with food when she ate, and then they'd stick together and it was really...well, not pretty. 

Norville wore a collar for several years, but eventually decided he didn't like it and was not going to wear one anymore. So he didn't.

When I was in college, I was a foster mom for a kitten for few hours. I put a collar on him and he immediately FREAKED out - scratching at it and trying to bite it. Within moments, he got his dang jaw caught in it! I was able to maneuver him out of it, but good grief that scared me! I've always been very careful with collars on kitties after that.


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## AngelZoo (Aug 24, 2003)

Most of my cats in the past hated collars, but my 3 now have no problem with them and never have.


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## garfield (Aug 2, 2003)

I put a collar on my cat that had a bell on it, and she would just always try and eat the bell and would often times succeed in getting the collar off. so I would tighten it, and she ended up with a bald spot from all of the itching, which resulted in me removing the collar and she had a huge patch of missing hair, that would bleed because she would go crazy scratching it. it has taken 4 months, but finally she is back to looking normal. She is an indoor cat, but I like to keep a collar on her incase she ever did escape to the outdoors, but I have given up. she does wear a collar when we travel though.


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## Anne Gro (Apr 25, 2004)

You cannot expect a cat or a kitten to accept a collar right away. It takes time and patience. 
Put the collar on, keep the cat on your lap and pet it, give it a treat. Take the collar off. Repeat after a while, maybe the next day. Put the collar on distract the cat with a toy or a treat, pet it, take the collar off. Gradually increase the time with collar on. Distract the cat every time it tries to get out of the collar, and give him a treat only when he is calm. It will work, but it takes time. Have you ever tried clicker training? That will do the trick. My kitties are ok with a harness and leash now, and they did not particullarly enjoy it at first. So now I can take them for a walk outside.


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## artemisa (Mar 27, 2004)

But make sure it's one of those stretchy collars or with that breakaway clip, just in case he does get entangled on something he can slip out. Also, if it has a bell that could be what's bothering them. Mine wears a collar sometimes and seems like he's gotten used to it and it does have a bell, he doesn't mind too much. I will try to take the bell off when I can though, that's gotta be annoying :?


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