Dog collar, identity tag and a tracker

A tracker is often sold as identification. For a dog in public, the written rule is older and simpler: a collar, and the owner's name and address on it.

The collar and the tag

Article 2 of the Control of Dogs Order 1992, as originally made, says that every dog while in a highway or in a place of public resort shall wear a collar with the name and address of the owner inscribed on the collar or on a plate or badge attached to it. The paragraph lists exceptions, including packs of hounds, dogs used for sporting purposes, dogs used for vermin, dogs used for driving or tending cattle or sheep, dogs used on official duties by the armed forces, Customs and Excise or the police, dogs used in emergency rescue work, and dogs registered with the Guide Dogs for the Blind Association.

GOV.UK's microchipping page says the same duty in short form: if you have a dog, it must still wear a collar and tag with your name and address when in a public place. The microchip does not retire the tag.

The RSPCA's advice on pet theft repeats that every dog in a public place must wear a collar with the name and address of the owner engraved on it, or on a plate or tag. The RSPCA also recommends a phone number. The Order itself, in the text above, requires the name and address. A phone number is the charity's extra recommendation, not a second line in that article.

The RSPCA's guide for people taking a rescue dog says you should be able to fit two fingers, side by side, one above the other, between the collar and the dog's neck. That is fitting advice from the charity, not a measurement in the Order.

Where a tracker fits on that collar

Tractive says its tracker attaches to a collar or harness, that you can see it when the pet is wearing it, and that it can fall off if the collar comes off. A device that can fall off cannot be the legal inscription. If you use a tracker, the name and address still have to be on the collar or on a plate or badge.

We haven't tested this. Figures are as the maker states them (checked 14 November 2026).

The charity's theft advice also says not to leave a dog alone outside a shop or in a car, to train a recall and use a long line when you are not sure the dog will come back, and to keep the garden gate locked. Those are loss-prevention steps. None of them is a claim about a tracker's range.

Weight matters because the tracker is extra mass on the neck. This page does not give a gram limit. No official page opened for this guide states a maximum tracker weight for dogs. Fit the collar as the RSPCA describes, and read the maker's attachment instructions for the device you bought. If the collar is tight once the tracker is on, it does not meet the two-finger check the RSPCA describes.

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own animal rules in places. The Order cited here is the 1992 instrument as made. If you are unsure whether an exception applies to a working dog, read the article rather than relying on this summary.

Does the GPS history count as the identity tag?

No. The Order asks for the owner's name and address on the collar or on a plate or badge. A position in an app is not inscribed on the dog.

Should the tag include a phone number?

The Order's article 2 requires the name and address. The RSPCA recommends adding a phone number so you can be reached quickly. Put the legal details on even if you add the number.

What if the dog is a guide dog?

The Order, as made, says paragraph (1) shall not apply to any dog registered with the Guide Dogs for the Blind Association. Read the exception before you treat it as covering a different assistance dog. The microchip duty is a separate question, on microchip versus a GPS tracker.

Sources

• The Control of Dogs Order 1992, article 2 — legislation.gov.uk, accessed 14 November 2026.
• Get your dog or cat microchipped — GOV.UK, accessed 14 November 2026.
• How to stop your pet from being stolen — RSPCA, accessed 14 November 2026.
• Getting ready for your RSPCA rescue dog — RSPCA, accessed 14 November 2026.
• What's the difference between a microchip and a tracker? — Tractive Help Centre, accessed 14 November 2026.