Using a Paper Collar on a Cat
Even well-fed cats will roam far and wide in search of people willing to trade food for affection. A cat that visits you regularly isn’t necessarily a stray needing help, and a paper collar is a good way to find out.
A paper collar is a temporary and humane solution designed to assist in identifying the ownership or residency status of a wandering feline.
The main purpose of a paper collar is to gather information about the cat’s origins. A collar can be made by cutting a strip of paper and affixing it gently around the cat’s neck.
CatInfo.net provides a free paper collar PDF you can download and print. There are six paper collars on our download. This is what an individual CatInfo.net paper collar looks like…
See this page if you haven’t printed a web page from your browser before.
The CatInfo.net makeshift collar asks the cat’s owner to contact you and provides a space to write your phone number. If the cat has no owner, you won’t receive a call. If it does, the paper collar alerts the owner that their cat is seeing other humans behind their back!
Paper Collar Gotchas!
The intentions behind using a paper collar are noble, but there are potential problems and challenges associated with this approach.
Cats are naturally agile and inquisitive creatures. They might attempt to remove the collar themselves, leading to the risk of injury if they get entangled. That’s why our paper collar has slits you can cut and use to loosely attach the collar. Don’t use tape or some other means of securing it.
If the cat returns without its collar, simply replace the missing collar with a fresh one. This is preferable to having the collar snag on something leaving the cat struggling to free itself.
Some cats might be particularly skittish around humans, making it challenging to approach them and place the collar without causing undue stress. Never attempt to put a collar on such a cat, and be sure to see this article about feline body language.
No Tape
Don’t use tape or other means of securing the collar. You don’t want. the collar to snag on something and trap the cat.
Persistence
As a cat can remove a paper collar relatively easily, be prepared to try several times before assuming a cat is unowned.
Caution!
Only attach a paper collar to a friendly cat. You’re likely to suffer a scratch or bite if you attempt to collar a feral or frightened cat.
No Response
A paper collar will likely dissolve in the rain or come away if the cat decides to explore damp foliage. You’ll almost certainly have to replace the collar following a bout of rain.
Paper collars may not yield the desired result even in the driest of places. Stray cats can often be feral or have no clear ownership. People who feed community cats may not have detailed information about each cat’s background.
This can lead to a lack of response or misleading information, hampering the process of reuniting the cat with its owner or finding it a suitable home.
Summing up Using a Paper Collar on a Cat
A paper collar can be a helpful tool when encountering a stray cat, aiding in the effort to collect relevant information. It’s wise to approach the process cautiously and consider the potential risks.
Collaborating with local animal shelters or rescue organizations can ensure a more comprehensive and effective approach to assisting stray cats in need.
You can download and print CatInfo.net’s free paper collar here.
