# Breakaway "safe cat" collar didn't come off.



## Lenkolas

I got collars for my cats. I just wanted them to wear ID tags in case they manage to escape one day... I knew about the dangers of collars so I wanted to get breakaway ones. The best ones I could find. 

My boys had been wearing the blue fish "safe cat" collars for a week. Everything seemed fine. I tested how easily those buckles opened before making them wear them, and they seemed perfect. These collars were brought to me from the US, since I haven't been able to find breakaway collars here... 

Today I arrived home before going to school, and Ice had his lower jaw under the collar. His bottom jaw was pinned to his neck, his tongue was turning purple. It unbuckled the collar -it worked immediately. Ice's paws had some blood on them, his nose was bloody too. I cleaned him the best I could with a cotton ball and water. I checked his mouth: no missing teeth, no apparent wounds. It seems is tongue is swollen. I gave him some canned food and he ate it. Then he started cleaning his paws. I am staying home to observe him, if anything looks bad I'll go to the E vet.

So...what is it with the breakaway collars that don't actually come off. 
I am so sad and I feel so sorry for poor little Ice. He's not that little anymore, actually he weighs 3.4 kilos (almost 7.4 lb - 7 lb and 8 oz). So that stupid collar was supposed to come off. 

I'll never make them wear a collar again. I'm just thankful that I got here in time. That's the only thing that matters now. Poor baby. I feel so guilty.

And of course I am very, very angry. I was so excited about these collars. I made someone bring them all the way from the US. 

Well, thank you for listening guys :? I hope this never happens to your kitties.

I bought the fish ones at petco
https://secure.petco.com/Shop/Product.aspx?SKU=1256084

And I bought these too at amazon.
Amazon.com: Red Dingo Cat Collar, One size fits all, Orange: Pet Supplies










These are brand new. I wanna throw them in the garbage.










Ice a few minutes ago. I was in tears when I was trying to clean him, and he looked at me and started purring and licked my face. He's such a sweet boy. He's now chasing an (imaginary?) fly with the rest of the boys. He seems fine.


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## blondie1483

This makes me want to go home (I'm at work now) and hug my cats. I feel so bad for Ice! I only put the collar on T or L before I take them outside on their harness - they're indoor only other than our leash-and-harness trips outside. 

I wonder if the collar was too big for Ice? I wonder how he got his mouth around it?

That must have been so traumatizing for all involved. I'm so happy he - and you - are ok.


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## The Divine Miss M

SCThose collars suck. I don't know how many times I had to rescue my nephew's cat. You have to apply pressure in just the right way for them to snap. The girls are getting chipped instead. How' s Ice feeling?


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## SomeRandomChick

I had the same experience with my last cat, though I was luckily home when it happened so I immediately noticed his distress.

Those collars are unfortunately meant to break away when the weight of the cat is hanging from it - I think maybe getting the lower jaw stuck, the cat doesn't have enough leverage to create the power necessary to break the collar away. Since mine got stuck like that, I haven't collared a cat - too afraid! As long as they're indoor and chipped, I hope for the best.

Poor Ice, give him an extra snuggle or two. So happy you got to him in time!


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## Vivid Dawn

We have ID collars at the shelter, and I have been trained how to put them on properly, so that they don't get stuck like that.

The cat needs to be sitting or standing, with it's chin raised/lifted a bit. Collars should be snug enough that you can put 1 or 2 fingers underneath it. No tighter or loser than that. I guess if they have their head tucked down, it makes the neck muscles expand or something, and makes the collar looser, and I guess makes it easier to get at for chewing. I dunno, I didn't ask specifics, just got told to always have the chin up when I put them on.

When I got Zinny her collar, I had to get a kitten one that specifically said "up to 6 pounds", because she -barely- weighs 6 pounds. Most of the regular collars all said "for cats over 6 pounds", and some of the cheaper ones didn't have any guide at all. I figured I would spend a little extra to be sure I was getting the right kind.
Of course, she lost it after a week of having it on. I'm sure it's dangling from some bush or tree limb somewhere in the feral's thicket.
Now I just keep her inside.... but that's mostly since she stayed out for 4 days in a row! Fine, if she can't obey her sunset curfew, she doesn't get the privilege of going out at all! _*huff*_


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## melysion

Gosh, thats scary. Poor Ice!!

He needs lots of love and treats to make him feel better 

Toby always had a breakaway collar and I never had a problem with it. And I've just ordered Ridleys collar from the same company:

[ame]http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B003V4ARRI[/ame]

He will be getting chipped as well (as was Toby). Perhaps I'll put the collar on him at the wekeend though so I can keep an eye out initially in case of any problems!


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## Lenkolas

Thank you guys. He is doing fine. He slept besides me all afternoon. Now he's around playing with the boys. He just ate some canned food and some treats, it doesn't seem to be anything wrong with his jaw or his tongue...I'll keep an eye though. I'm giving him extra love and that's already too much to say! :love2

Thank you for all your advice. Thank you for your experience Vivid :wink I'm pretty sure I did all that you said... The sitting and the 1 or 2 fingers...and Gatito, Chikis and Rulos were just fine with the collars. Rulos managed to get it off once, but that's because he rubs himself against....everything, so I guess that's how it happened.

I guess Ice's collar slid...and that's how he managed to get his jaw caught. Or it started sliding through the course of the days...I don't know. And these collars were supposed to be fine for cats over 6 pounds (it says "over 6 pounds")...I think it is just exactly what Chick said: the cat doesn't have enough leverage to create the power necessary to break the collar away. Exactly.
Truth is, I won't be trying for a second time. This was it. I almost fainted when I saw his bloody nose. I kept focused all the time but I was shaking. My poor little odd eyed baby...

My cats are indoor too...I just wanted to have ID tags on them in case they escape. My sister came to my apartment the other day when I was not here and Gatito dashed out the door. But I just couldn't even think of the idea of trying collars again after what just happened.

Well...Ice sends purrs and constant Siamese-like answers to your talking -mew - mew - mew and some cute chirping if you happen to sneeze too  Thank you all guys! The most important thing is that he is fine.

Back to his favorite spot, two minutes ago.










Hey Melysion, I'm sorry about Toby, I hope you're doing better  warm thoughts for you! You are a great person.


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## catinthemirror

This exact same thing happened to Moxie within the first few weeks she had her collar on. I guess she was trying to chew it, and she got her lower jaw under the collar and couldn't get it back out. It was the middle of the night when it happened, so she woke me up by jumping on the bed wheezing and gagging - I thought something was seriously wrong with her and have never woken up so scared in my life. Her collar was supposed to be a breakaway collar too, but it didn't break when she got stuck and wouldn't break even when I tried to pull it apart. I had to cut it off with scissors. Thank god it traumatized me more than it did her, because about five minutes later she was curled up on my feet grooming herself and purring. 

Actually when my other cat, Sassy, was younger her breakaway collar failed her too. While my family was out she somehow managed to get her ID tag caught inside the slats of a metal floor register cover. She got scared enough to rip it right out of the floor, dragged it all the way down the hall (we could tell from the scrape marks on the floor as well as the dents in the wall), and hid under my bed for god knows how long before we came back and freed her. 

After that I spent forever in the pet store testing the breakaway clasps on all the collars, trying to find the ones that come apart the easiest. I didn't like any of the ones I tested. They only come apart at a certain angle, or with a significant amount of pressure. My cats both wear breakaway collars, but the breakaway part is pretty much redundant because I now keep their collars more than loose enough to slide right off in an emergency. Moxie can easily get her jaw under it to chew it if she wanted, but the important thing to me is she can then get her jaw back OUT. Thankfully, once I loosened up her collar she seemed to be much less annoyed by it and stopped trying to chew it at all. 

I know the rule is to fit one or two fingers under your cat's collar, but I can fit my whole hand under my cat's collars to give them scritches (I do have small hands though). The collars fit more like necklaces, but I haven't had any problems with them coming off or getting caught on anything. And again, if they ever did get caught on anything the collar would just slide right off their heads. Even though my cats always wear their collars I just don't trust breakaway clasps at all anymore. 

I hope Ice is feeling better (actually I'm sure he is - I hope you're feeling better atback These things really seem to get to us more than them).


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## Lenkolas

catinthemirror said:


> I hope Ice is feeling better (actually I'm sure he is - I hope you're feeling better atback These things really seem to get to us more than them).


Thank you so much catinthemirror! He seems to have forgotten all about it, you are absolutely right! I was just thinking about how I was quietly sobbing while I cleaned his bloody paws -I felt so sad!- and he started licking my face and rolling over for a tummy rub. Cats are just amazing.

Loose collars are an interesting idea. Maybe in the future...


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## Nan

I used to keep a collar on Sophie & it was fairly loose. She never got her jaw stuck but she did get her leg stuck though it a couple of times. Later when she lost the desire to go out, I stopped putting a collar on her. Since Harli& Lily are chipped and stay inside,I haven't bothered with collars.


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## Vivid Dawn

I had considered making my own collars, when I was still letting Zinny outside. I figured if she was going to lose them so often, I didn't want to be paying $15+ for collar and ID tag all the time. So I was just going to get some 'silk' ribbon and attach little velcro dots to it, along with a little ID tag printed off my computer and laminated with clear tape.
Though now that she's inside for good, I guess I don't need to make those. But I'm sure velcro would probably come apart much more easier/quicker if the jaw thing happened.


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## spotty cats

Precisely why there are no collars in this house, the risks far outweight the benefits.

Mine are all microchipped, which is law in some states here but would have been done regardless and all kittens leave here 'chipped.

So glad your boy is ok!


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## love.my.cats

How scary for you (and Ice!). So glad you came home and fond him. 
Both my cats are indoors and are micro chipped but I still feel better having collars on them just in case they do get out. I tried a few collars with Sammy and he would use his paw to stretch them into his mouth where they would often get caught. I ended up finding a collar with no elastic/stretch and he's had that one with no issues for about 5 years now. I bought them from someone on ebay but I cant seem to find them on there anymore which is a shame cos I love them.


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## Meezer_lover

We have the Safe Cat brand as well, and the same thing has happened to Yoshi. He is indoors only and we have only put the collar on when we're home and supervising him. It happened a few times, where he got his jaw stuck like that. He really just doesn't like having a collar on and will try and bite it to get it off....seems unavoidable to me. 
I recently got a Red Dingo brand collar to try that (which is really the same thing just better quality). Yoshi had actually taken the collar off within just a few minutes....though he didn't get his jaw stuck.

Bottom line, probably no collars for us. I sometimes put his harness on so he gets used to that. He still tries to get it off, but he can't get his jaw stuck because of the way it's designed.

That must have been the worst feeling, coming home to Ice like that. I would have freaked out.


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## Shenanigans

I had the EXACT same issue with one I had when I first got Apollo! They are supposed to break away, but it definitely did NOT. Luckily for us both, I was home when it happened, but I was still in tears by the time it ended, and Apollo was a little traumatized for a minute. It happened seconds after I put it on him, he managed to get his bottom jaw under the collar and it got stuck between his teeth. *I* had a really hard time getting it to unbuckle, so how is it supposed to be a safe "break away" collar if I couldnt get it open?? I vowed to neverput a collar on him again. Now he's harness trained. 

I'm so sorry you and Ice had to go through that! I know it's scary as heck. At least you were able to help him and he doesn't seem too freaked out by the situation. You're lucky to have such a forgiving little man :]


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## Time Bandit

Oh how scary! :shock: I hope little Ice is feeling better. I have about a dozen breakaways, but I only use them when we're going out on leashes and harnesses and fully supervised. Alice also tries to bite the collars off, so I always worry she's gong to get her jaw stuck too. Only naked kitties in this house!


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## Claiken

We had it happen to Boo once, but i cant even blame the collar/collar company. it was when we first got her, she was SO incredibly skinny, the tightest setting was still too loose. The one night i heard a crazy amount of jingling... it woke me up, i went to investigate. she was SO SO small that there wasnt enough pressure on the collar to break away, and she was so skinny/malnourished/weak at the same time. So, we left it off for a good while until she grew and got stronger. Since then though, no issues. Ive always used the '2 fingers' rule.

Boos was "the safety collar" tho. Simba has 'safe cat'. why?? The difference in pitch of the bells. Yep, im that freaky, i can tell whos coming ahead of time lol

for me a collar means "i ahve a home" for those who wouldnt think to check chips. So, mine still wear them. but issue free.


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## Lenkolas

Thank you so much everybody for your concern and all your good thoughts!  Ice is doing great. It is all forgotten now. I still think I won't be trying the collars again. 

Yeah Meezer, it was the worst feeling  I was sobbing and my whole body was shaking, but I got into "focused mom" mode to check for injuries and anything worth a trip to the e-vet...


Guilty mom bought some toys. Ice and the boys are very happy.



















All of my cats  Gatito seems happier with the box and the wrapping paper.













Time Bandit said:


> Only naked kitties in this house!


Only naked kitties here too :smile:


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## The Divine Miss M

Claiken said:


> We had it happen to Boo once, but i cant even blame the collar/collar company. it was when we first got her, she was SO incredibly skinny, the tightest setting was still too loose. The one night i heard a crazy amount of jingling... it woke me up, i went to investigate. she was SO SO small that there wasnt enough pressure on the collar to break away, and she was so skinny/malnourished/weak at the same time. So, we left it off for a good while until she grew and got stronger. Since then though, no issues. Ive always used the '2 fingers' rule.
> 
> Boos was "the safety collar" tho. Simba has 'safe cat'. why?? The difference in pitch of the bells. Yep, im that freaky, i can tell whos coming ahead of time lol
> 
> for me a collar means "i ahve a home" for those who wouldnt think to check chips. So, mine still wear them. but issue free.



I agree to me it means "I have a home." I'm just too afraid to allow it.


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## Heidi n Q

Breakaway collars are meant to break away to prevent the cat from hanging/strangling. 
A cat does NOT have enough strength/leverage to remove the collar if they get their jaw under it. This is why it is very important to make sure they cannot get their lower jaw under the collar. If the collar 'slips' at all in size, discard for a different one or make some adjustments (_thread/tape_) so the collar cannot shift larger. 

_We have 9 housecats and only one is collared because she is deaf. Husband and I need to hear if she is around our feet to remind us to look for her because she cannot hear us tell her to move._
_This was my first experience with a collar on a cat. I do not like the way it makes her fur look, but I appreciate knowing where she is when she is winding around my feet in the kitchen and IF she ever got outside, we would be able to hear her bell to locate her._
_When Jingle reaches adult size I plan on permanantly sewing her collar to the correct size for her._


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## mistapurr

I'm so glad everything turned out fine (only because you got there in time)! You should write to the manufacturers- I'd be livid also!


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## mistapurr

Posting again now that I have more time at work.. Ice is so beautiful! I'm not sure if microchips are widely used in Chile (if not most vets/shelters won't have them were your cat to turn up lost), so I can see why you want the collars on in case of escape.

My female cat once got her jaw caught in one of these collars.. it was very stressful for her and me to try to unhook her lower jaw and canines from it as it was drawn so tight it was hard to unclasp.


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## Penny135

The thing about breakaway and all collars is that 1-2 finger rule. You should not be able to slip more than one or two fingertips thru it for it to work correctly. If its looser than that you can have these problems. I have had my cats jaw get stuck too in one. It was not being operated corrctly. It was to loose. It didnt look that way but it was by the finger rule.


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## Lenkolas

mistapurr said:


> Posting again now that I have more time at work.. Ice is so beautiful! I'm not sure if microchips are widely used in Chile (if not most vets/shelters won't have them were your cat to turn up lost), so I can see why you want the collars on in case of escape.
> 
> My female cat once got her jaw caught in one of these collars.. it was very stressful for her and me to try to unhook her lower jaw and canines from it as it was drawn so tight it was hard to unclasp.


Thank you mistapurr!  Ice is only 5 months old. It seems he'll be a big cat!

widely used, not at all. Microchips are way more common for dogs here. Even if I microchip them, I don't think everyone would check for them in a lost pet.
I live in a 4th floor. I just imagined that _if_ they manage to escape somehow (hallway at least) having and ID tag would have made things easier. 

I could make sure the collars don't slide again, but I just don't want to anymore...I couldn't live with myself. So no collars.



> I recently got a Red Dingo brand collar to try that


The other ones that I got are Red Dingo. But I won't be trying those ones either. They are brand new. I'll give them to someone with adult, less active cats.


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