Dog Trackers

The Love of Pets & Other Fun Stuff
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The following text is an extract from an article today in a UK newspaper.

As the UK’s pet-tech boom turns collars into data-links, the British pooch is undergoing a digital transformation that goes far beyond wearing a smart coat or being pictured drinking a puppuccino on Instagram.

The market for wearable technology for dogs, such as GPS devices, is said to have “exploded”. The gadgets enable owners to locate runaways or keep an eye on their dog walkers from afar. Some technology will even send an alert if a pet steps outside a virtual boundary.

The devices are linked to phone apps and owners can see data such as distance walked or run, all programmed to take account of dog breed and leg length.

Fi, the American market leader that is now available in Britain, is collaborating with Strava and says thousands of dog owners sync their pet’s activity on the app. Jonathan Bensamoun, the chief executive, said, “The UK has moved faster than any market we’ve entered.”

The brand’s technology uses AI to monitor eating, scratching and barking. Fi memberships cost from £99 for a six-month plan up to £339 for two years.

FitBark app showing a dog’s health overview with daily stats like sleep, walked distance, and health percentage.
The makers of FitBark say the app gives owners peace of mind.

The UK market leader, PitPat has sold 250,000 devices to pet owners and it also partners with insurers and clinicians to monitor pet health. An activity monitor costs £49 and a GPS tracker £169 with no subscription.

Andrew Nowell, the founder, said everyone who uses the app does so differently. “Some people love to know how far their dog has gone — that their spaniel went three times as far as they did — so there’s that whole kind of Strava intrigue.” Others, he said, were motivated by health reasons, for example monitoring recovery after surgery.

“We’re careful to never reward for doing more,” he said, “We reward against the goal, because the last thing we want is some poor dog being dragged four or five times around [a route] because someone wants to be at the top of the leaderboard.”

Nowell said the pet tech market “has exploded”. “We grew 70 per cent year on year in 2025 and we grew 50 per cent year on year in 2024,” he said. PitPat is working on a device that is small enough to attach to cats.

Experts warn that smart technology will not replace proper training. Ian Walshaw, the managing director of Dogtra, which makes GPS devices for working animals, said: “Each week I speak to people who have become over-reliant on GPS as a means of recovering a dog,” he said.

“GPS should never be seen as an excuse to allow a dog to run out of control simply because its location can be tracked.”

The RSPCA also voiced concerns about recall technology such as virtual collars and fences. Lauren Bennett, a scientific and policy officer at the society, said: “GPS trackers can be a beneficial resource to help locate missing animals and provide reassurance to owners. These should not be used as a reason to allow dogs off lead who do not have reliable recall, or to replace recall training.”

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We arrived at a sit to discover there was a system in place to stop the dogs from escaping the garden, a collar and boundary wire system. I felt very uncomfortable applying the collars each time the dogs were let out into the extensive gardens…. but followed all the instructions to the letter including the complex stages of getting the collars onto the dogs (treats plus various other instructions). The dogs obviously weren’t at all keen but tolerated the collar training but you had to get it just right…to not be bitten we had been warned! Anyway we survived the sit, but added another question to our growing list….

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  • Wales: The Animal Welfare (Electronic Collars) (Wales) Regulations 2010 explicitly ban the use of electric shock collars.

  • England: A ban was proposed for February 1, 2024, by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra), intended to prohibit the use and possession of remote-controlled, noxious spray, or electric shock collars. While many sources indicated this ban was set for 2024, recent 2025 updates suggest the statutory instrument was not fully approved, leaving its enforcement status, and the legality of purchasing, in a grey area, according to

    some industry sources and campaigners.

  • Scotland: While not explicitly banned, the Scottish Government considers the use of electric collars an offence under the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006.

  • Northern Ireland: No specific legislation exists, but their use can fall under general animal welfare regulations

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This thread seems to be muddling three separate things:

• GPS tracking for dogs (these aren’t supposed to shock dogs and some come with health tracking as well)

• Invisible fences for dogs (with collars to work with fencing systems, to keep pets in)

• Shock collars (these are sold with remotes, so pets can be shocked correctively for training out certain behaviors)

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Maybe, but there’s a lot of cross over in functionality between wearable tech devices for dogs. An app that tracks dogs, geo-fences and shocks probably either exists, or is in development.

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Probably, but lumping them all in together muddles discussions about their use. And with sitters in particular, if they’re trying to avoid such, it’s better to understand the difference when asking hosts. Someone might for instance be fine with the first type, but not be OK with the other two, for example.

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The general point is about tech and dogs … and so we all now need to add an additional question to our video chats. It’s good for sitters to be aware of the scope and depth of the pet tech industry.

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The thread was specifically about dog trackers originally and specifies dog trackers in the subject field. Then it veered off. Tech for pets is a big category and being clear on what individual devices do helps people avoid confusing questions and answers, which serves pets better.

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I mentioned on an earlier post that I was recently looking after 2 miniature Yorkies. They didn’t walk far but were to be taken out several times a day and on leash. They had thick leather collars with air tags embedded which I had to leave on 24/7. About 2-3 times a day they vibrated. I have no idea why the owners needed to check where they were while I was there with them as they were only going to be in the house or with me on leads in the grounds!

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We recently completed a repeat sit at a property with over 70 acres where the dog normally has free access to roam. In the past she’s always stayed within the boundaries and returned home on her own. It’s a beautiful location, with lovely pets and a great host, so it’s one of our favourite repeat sits.

However, the dog is now elderly and has developed cataracts, is going deaf, and may be starting to show a little age-related dementia. The host mentioned that recently she’s occasionally been found wandering off the property.

Because of this, she couldn’t have quite the same freedom for a while. But on our most recent sit the host had fitted her with a trackable (not shock)device on the collar. This meant she could go exploring again while we could see her location on our phones. If she had crossed the boundary, the host would get an alert.

It was also really helpful when we needed to go out, as we could quickly locate her and bring her inside — she can’t hear us calling anymore, so that part used to be tricky.

The trackable collar worked really well in this situation. It felt like a great solution for the dog, the host, and the sitters.

The host said only turn on the tracker when you let the dog outside - no need to have it on indoors ( and then because it wasn’t on all the time it didn’t need to be charged so often )

Also the host didn’t require that we use it - but offered it as something that might be useful , which it was .

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That might be an anti-stalking feature — Apple has created one to avoid people unknowingly being stalked with AirTags. But of course, I don’t know the device your sit dogs were using specifically. Generally, best to ask your hosts.

Apple Airtags on pet collars - anti-stalking beeping feature
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We had neighbors who used a nonshocking collar with an invisible fence, because neighborhood properties were large. Their dog had nonfunctioning hind legs and wore a wheeled harness to move about. Good thing for that collar and fencing, because the dog move relatively slowly and could easily be hit by a car if wandering off their property. But she loved walking around and greeting neighbors and neighbor dogs. So sweet.

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I completely agree that being clear is paramount and, as a sitter, I appreciate all the information I can get so that I can make better choices and make the best use of tech devices if needed.

I’m afraid I differ here. The heading is indeed dog trackers but the article that @TheEnglishFlaneur shared deals with several tech devices

We can have as many threads as we like but I, for one, welcome all the information I can get on pet smart technology and its impact on sitting, be it on this thread or another.

Thanks for all your contributions. I’m looking forward to reading more posts. My knowledge on this topic is extremely limited.

@Silversitters, I would like to know a bit more about the monitoring process. Did you have to download an app on your phone and were given access by the owners? Did you have to accept a long list of cookies?

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For the tracking / monitoring in real time - We didn’t need to download anything - The host gave us a link via WhatsApp and that was it we had access -

( Come to think of it although the sit has finished but I could probably still track the dog right now if I wished to !! )

The device fitted to the collar and was switched on and off by pressing a small button .

For the virtual fence alert that they have crossed the boundary - you need to download an App .

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It makes sense that threads will overlap. The thing that concerns me is no segue or clear differentiation among products and how they function. With developing tech, many people don’t know the differences to begin with and confusion tends to put people off unnecessarily. Like we’ve already seen that before on other threads — some knee jerk reactions, which don’t help pets.

And really as much as we all discuss here, it can be just as important or more so to discuss with (potential) hosts, because they can not only provide details about the devices, but how and why they use them. On various threads, there’s often assumption of ill intent. That tends to permeate.

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No, they were air tags as they told me if I lost one of the dogs to let them know and they could see where it was. I was very unlikely to lose one in the house or outside when on a lead but, hey ho!

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So maybe it was the anti-stalking feature that you noticed. Some creepy people were secretly slipping AirTags into others’ cars or belongings, to stalk them surreptitiously. AirTags now trigger every so often, to make people aware that they’re being used.

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Apple Airtags on pet collars - anti-stalking beeping feature
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I use the latest AI-powered Tractive device on my dog. Tractive is a GPS tracker and advanced health/activity monitor all in one. It gives me the following:

• Real-time, exact location tracking (even in the house)

• Instant alerts when he leaves or enters designated safe zones (virtual fence)

• Live tracking with speed data (including vehicle movement -specifically where and exactly how many Miles Per Hour the vehicle is moving)

• Activity tracking—distance, duration, calories burned, and sleeping

• Bark detection and behavior insights

• Heart rate monitoring and sleep tracking

• Anxiety and stress level indicators

• Health alerts for unusual patterns or changes

• It’s has a bright flashlight I can switch on and off via the app

• Audio control (I can emit sound from his collar via the app)

• Fully waterproof

• I recieve a quick notification if the tracker has been removed from my pet

• Location history so I can see where he’s been over time

• Nationwide (and often worldwide) coverage with no distance limits

I can see everything & check in on him at any time. It needs to be charged once every 6-8 days. If my dog is being watch for less than 7 days, I don’t mention it to the sitter. If I’m gone for longer, I tell them they will need to charge it and show them how. I have pet sat for owners who have these type of devices and applaud them for being responsible. I am an owner, have one myself, and love it. The device won’t be coming off my pet anytime soon! :blush:

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I am absolutely against shock collars, either the the ones that shock, vibrate, or make strange sounds. Don’t get me started on the ones that puff citronella when a dog barks (wth?).

These new collars that track dogs can be useful, especially if you have acreage. But for an otherwise healthy dog, that has a secure yard to roam, a decent recall, and handlers that don’t take the dog off lead in inappropriate places (say a canyon with steep hillsides where you’ll never chase the dog down), I’m not sure I see the point. If there is a specific health condition these can monitor…then OK. But for a healthy dog - meh. Frankly a better investment is a flat scale that fits your dog. Since keeping your dog at a healthy weight is far more useful and actionable than tracking heart beats.

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On our own pet, we used a FitBark device for multiple years. And a 1-800 tag in case lost. We found the FitBark quantified exercise in a helpful way (active dog on lots mountain trails) - the ‘problem’ that we were solving was comfort that we were not overexercising dog, as we loved hiking trails and he loved coming along :). At that time, FitBark used passive GPS. Perhaps current model has great tech.

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