I would do it in a heartbeat - not that I let dearly beloved Psycho Kitty roam free. But I want to move to a farm in a few years and I would happily tag my farm kitties. After all, nothing works like a cat to control rodent populations! In light of the current concerns about certain types of plastic, though, he may want to see if there's a way to accomplish the same idea using a metal or metal plated disc.

Meri Gray October 9th, 2008 08:58:00 AM

I think it's a great idea! I have one cat that's allowed to go outside when the dog and I go for a walk. He also visits our elderly neighbors across the street, and while the risk is low, I do worry that someone will think he's a stray. I'd love to be able to put a "tag" on his ear to identify him.

Ideally, it would be attached like an earring (you could even use those earring punchers that are used to pierce human ears), but look like a little ID tag... attached at both sides, punched through the ear. Very thin, numbered (like a microchip) or engravable with a phone number. It would need to be flexible and breathable... maybe rubber, like those bracelets people wear?

Marisa October 9th, 2008 09:20:00 AM

Seeing what my barn kitties crawl through, and having had a few earrings -- not always the dangly ones -- catch on things in my life, I'm leery of even a small, light, low-profile tag. Owwww! Total ear mobility is very important to cats, and anything light and flexible enough not to impede this is likely to be too flimsy to last.

I also think cats, being meticulous groomers, are generally of the nature to worry at something clamped to their ears, and not stop doing so. They are unlike cattle, say, in this regard.

Why not a very colorful ear tattoo -- bright orange, green, or blue, just a solid block inside one ear for recognition at a distance, and for owned cats, an ID number or just the word "microchip" or "Avid chip" or some such inside the other ear?

This could be done with the clamp-type tattoo units while the animal was under anesthesia for neutering, and would be very fast. It could also be done to an awake animal, though with a cat I would not choose to be in range (read: the same county) when this is done.

H Houlahan October 9th, 2008 09:43:00 AM

I also think the grooming issue with cats would make even the smallest, lightest tag of any material a problem. As a frustrated kitty would likely scratch an ear to remove it, it could easily end up with an infection - and that is just an ugly cycle that could create horrible problems, especially for ferals. I do think the tattoo idea is a very good one, and think that if TNR groups and vets could try to coordinate colors for owned versus feral cats (state or regional effort), it would be a big help.

Kate Hathway October 9th, 2008 10:02:00 AM

We were thinking rubber with a solid screwback, unlike the plastic and metal tags that currently exist (and that most cat owners and feral colony workers don't favor).

Dr. Patty Khuly October 9th, 2008 10:45:00 AM

I share the concern that it would get caught on something. Possibly a very small tattoo instead?
This whole discussion would be unnecessary if people followed the wiser path and kept their cats inside, where they would be so much safer. My brother lost one cat this year and another was hospitalized near death for weeks after being mauled by dogs -- all within the span of a few months! I could not rub salt in the wound but I seethed for the cats inside.

Susan October 9th, 2008 11:28:00 AM

Can you tattoo with fluorescent ink? Maybe the inked-up among us can help the rest of us out with that one...

Dr. Patty Khuly October 9th, 2008 11:34:00 AM

I don't think it would work due to what others have said, too: cats, especially ferals, get into the tightest spots and into fights all the time. Any sort of attached tag, no matter how small, runs the risk of getting caught on something and yanked out of the ear. I'd think this would cause more problems and pain than ear notching or tipping does. Great idea, but I don't think it's practical.

Heifzilla October 9th, 2008 11:43:00 AM

As a pre-vet student, and ex-body piercer, I must say, this is a bad idea.

In humans, cartilage piercings can take 6 months to 2 years to heal, and they've got one of the highest complication rates of any piercing. Now imagine a feral cat with no way to keep an open fistula clean - its asking for trouble. Cartilage piercings can go from healing nicely to full blown infection in a week. You're looking at a hard-to-clear infection and keloiding.

In addition to the healing time, you have to worry about what body piercers refer to as the "cheese cutter" effect. Basically, this is the ability of smaller gauge piercings to migrate out, or rip out easily, like a wire cheese cutter. This, combined with how thin a cat's ear is, is asking for a ripped-out tag. In order to prevent this, you'd have to use a biopsy punch to install a pretty large (about 4-8mm tag,) instead of a standard earring-thickness tag. Considering the size of tissue you'd be removing, you might as well just use the biopsy punch to notch the ear.

The material of the tag would be something else to consider. "Acceptable" materials would be high-grade stainless steel, titanium, pyrex glass, or high-grade silicone. The metals would be expensive and heavy (would weigh down the ear,) while glass would be hard to design in a one-piece tag. Silicone might work, but its not non-porous like the other materials, and could adhere to the inside of the healing fistula. Since its flexible, it could be designed in a one-piece tag, with no moving parts, but it could also be pulled out, if the cat was determined enough.

Ear tagging works for animals like cattle, because they're pretty sedentary, don't groom their faces, have thick ears, and are under human care, so if something goes wrong, they're monitored. I don't think it'd work well for cats, and since you'd have to remove a sizable piece of tissue to make it anywhere close to viable, you might as well take the irritant (tag) out of the equation, since that will prolong healing time, and just dermal punch, notch, or tip the ear.

Linnea October 9th, 2008 12:32:00 PM

I think cats would tear these out--either through grooming or through accidents.

One of the cat welfare groups here does tattoo cats they have caught and neutered--the cats have a very visible black J (for Just Cats) inside the ear. Its done with a gun while the cat is under anesthesia for surgery.

There ARE flourescent tattoo inks, but these tend to fade when exposed to sunlight--most people with ink apply a lot of sunscreen to their artwork to keep it looking bright as possible. They also get them touched up from time to time. I would think a single black letter would work best.

Actually--what would work BEST would be to somehow organize all the little shelter organizations int eh country into coming up with some sort of nationwide standard for identifying these cats, be it tattoos or ear tipping or whatever.

kiko October 9th, 2008 12:43:00 PM

I work for a vet's office and I am ok with the ear tipping process also. Yes, it would be favorable to tag these animals. The only issue with ear tipping is feral cats fight and rip their ears off anyway, how do you tell the difference from affar if it was surgically cut or lost in a fight?
The only issue with tagging is that cats get into everything and I could see them easily ripping the tag out of their ear when stuck in a tight spot. On the other hand lots of wild life and farm animals are identified with brightly colored ear tags. I think it is a valid point!

Brittany October 9th, 2008 02:08:00 PM

I just read the comments about tatoos. I think that is perfect. You don't have to do different colors. Maybe left ear tattoo for feral right for domestic. I have greyhounds and their tatoos are easily read. My 11 yr old hounds ink is a little hard to read now, but even in black pigmented skin you can still tell there is something there.

Brittany October 9th, 2008 02:17:00 PM

I love the idea, but had the same concerns of an earing . I also thoght right away that a colorful tatoo would be a great idea. I hate to say I had never heard of "ear tipping" before. I own 1 cat that is a stray I adopted, but we did have a large "neighborhood" cat the whole block fed untill he died at a very old age and I always wondered how his ear got sliced off at the tip in suh a perfectly sraitt line! DUHHH!
Kudos to your son for wanting to end ear tipping!!!!!!

Lori F October 9th, 2008 02:27:00 PM

Flourescent pigments tend to fade quickly in UV light.

Bright blue is probably the best balance between visibility and durability.

When I used to flank tattoo dogs with a pen (before microchips basically killed that sideline), I could only get black ink. But I know that the pigment used for the clamp-style ear tattoos comes in a pretty vivid green.

Next time you get a GSD or Rottweiler that has been bred in conformance to the German breed-survey system come in, check out the ear tat -- a lot of them are bright green.

H Houlahan October 9th, 2008 04:02:00 PM

Wild animals are often tagged with collars, and they seem to stay out of trouble while wearing them, and these are wild animals. Mind you, the collars are usually temporary, for tracking purposes. Not intended for long term.

Cattle in pastures wear ear tags, and that practice has continued for a long time, so I assume they don't cause any problems or the design would have changed.

Whatever you use, it needs to stay secured, and be easily visible. Removing a piece of ear is not infallible - feral cats in fights get their ears torn anyway, so how can you tell deliberate from fight-caused, especially from a distance?

You would need trials of the chosen method, to make sure it stayed put, didnt bother the animal too much, and didnt get caught on anything.

Robin October 9th, 2008 06:59:00 PM

Our cat has allergies and scratches at her skin, including ears. We have tried
diet changes and regularly blunt tip all her claws ( that she still has) but she
still occasionally does the scratching.

I agree with the point on cartilage piercing. Most of a cat's ear is not like
the human earlobe that pierces and heals well

I know that if any piercing or attachment had been put through my cat's ear,
she would have destroyed her own ear by scratching it away. For ferals, I say
the tatoo is the best. Stays in the ear, doesn't add weight and doesn't catch on
anything. Cats are NOT cows. They do tatoo race horses, too, but on the lip.

I've heard that Orange County, California shelters also use tatoo ink along spay
incisions to make them show permanently. Then instead of exploratory surgery,
there's evidence on the cat's belly that the surgery was done. Something I
worry about in the event my town could afford to hire "cat inspection police"
now that a draconian pediatric spaying/neutering ordinance is in effect-- how
do I prove my 9 year old cat is truly spayed. I KNOW she has because she
has no symptoms.

Miss Kitty's Mom October 9th, 2008 09:06:00 PM

It is not until I read blogs that I realized some people let their pet cats roam outside freely. I understand feral cats, but not free roaming pet cats. Can understand why it makes some people very upset.

Erich Riesenberg October 9th, 2008 09:15:00 PM

having seen what can happen when livestock (sheep, cattle) get ear tags caught, I'm not so sure I'd like to go the ear tag route with a cat....

laura October 10th, 2008 07:40:00 AM

OK, all, it's been decided. We'll be abandoning this project. This is the second science fair "invention" we've dismissed this week. The first one was an automatically inflating pet life vest using Navy technology that would keep a pet's head above water if he accidentally fell in. Unfortunately (or, fortunately for pets) we found that this amazing invention already exists and I recommend it:

http://www.crittersinflatable.com/

But for us it's back to the drawing board...

Dr. Patty Khuly October 10th, 2008 08:36:00 AM

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