The only mis-information that I have passed on was that I said you had 11 dogs and you currently have 10. My intentions were to point out how having this many dogs can contribute to all kinds of "accidents". If anyone feels that I've veered this off topic then I apologize. This thread can continue on the subject of collars and safety.

IMO
There is simply no safe way to leave any dog loose in any yard with any collar...period. Other dogs or not, eventually, this will catch up with you.

Please don't bother telling me about the dozens of dogs you have done this with...makes no difference. Sooner or later, you WILL have a dog injured or killed doing this. Hell, I never liked using a collar on a PSD for building searches...much less loose in my (fenced) back yard!

10 dogs in one household, together? DAMN!

a couple of years ago i learned my lesson about tags dangling off a collar and the danger they pose. As I mowed the lawn on one part of the yard (two different fenced area in the back yard) , my GSD at the time was jumping up and down along the fence. next thing I knew he was dangling off of the fence and choking. I jumped over the fence to help him. I could not get the stupid tag undone from the fence and was unable to un bucle the collar to free him. I ended up cutting the collar off of him while I lifted him up so that he would not be strangling. I am glad I had something to get that collar off of him and was outside with him at the time. I now keep the collars lose fitting so that they can easily slip off the head and I only put their tags on the collar we use on our walks or when working. When they go into their kennels the collars are removed. They also all have micro chips if they get lost without a collar on. what I need is a pouch or something that his not danglind in order to put their required to carry rabbies vaccination license (it is a fine here if they are out without the tags).

Philipe, You can have the Rabies Tag rivited(sp) directly to the collar. I have a friend that trains service dogs and all his collars are that way so that they are legal and at the same time safe and quiet in public. If you want to find someone to do it locally I would suggest a leather works, shoe cobbler, or tack store. If they don't offer it, they will know who does.

Barbara, Thanks for the heads up. I guess it is one of those things we all think will never happen to us. I had been leaving collars on my dogs until my male GSD started "leading" my Giant around by her collar and took it off for her (lupine collar with quick release snaps) It never really occured to me that the s hooks were so dangerous.

Talk about these types of accidents brings a story to my mind. I gave my cousin Shannon a puppy from my female for Christmas one year. When Asha was about 2 years old Shannon went away for the weekend and left her with her sister April. Asha was playing with April's Rottweiler while she was in the bathroom getting ready for work. Asha was wearing a fur saver. She heard screaming and ran out to find Asha choking to death because the fursaver was caught around Ansel's lower jaw. It twisted so tight she couldn't get her fingers anywhere around Asha's collar. She grabbed Ansel and tried pulling the collar off his jaw and he clamped down on her finger going most of the way through it. By this time Asha was unconscious and basically dead. My cousin ran bleeding to the neighbors and they brought back a fence cutter or something similar to cut the collar. When she returned Ansel was dragging what appeared to be a dead Asha. She was blue and her eyes were rolled back in her head. They thought she was dead for sure. They cut the collar and amazingly she gasped for air jumped up and ran to her crate. Other than being a bit dazed for a minute and small scratch on her neck she was fine but had no one been home at her neighbors Asha would have died and Ansel would have had serious jaw damage. My dogs never play with collars or walk in the woods with collars on etc. Basically only when I train them do they wear collars. They each have a tattoo. This was a very scary incident but it did have a good ending and I am thankful for that. Lesson well learned... No playing with collars on...

I haven't had any bad experiences as of this post.
The chance of this happening is so great that I will most likely remove collars unless working dog
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I say it agin "sometimes we over look the most simple things" <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

Thanks for bringing this too my attention. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />