Marking of puppies

[ursula wilby]

With a new litter of ten, I am once again faced with the problem of identification of each individual puppy. I normally cut their fur in differant places, like right back-leg, neck-base etc. One year I tried nailvanish but that was a total waste of time I felt. The marking was never clear enough for me to identify each puppy at a glance. I have seen differant breeders using differant collars. To me there is the danger of the puppies getting caught up in each others collars, so I would feel very uneasy about that. Even if I was to use the ones for cats, with elastic pieces. Any methods out there I am not yet aware of?

[McBIRDY - Jean DUHANT]

Hello Ursula,
We change often the collars (each week), until they have 8-9 weeks and left home. Until now we produced 106 puppies and we never had a problem with these collars.
Jean

[Susan Stone]

I like the Trawricka method - much better than sticking an ugly plaster on to each pup's back end with a numer on it. Makes me think of sheep when I see that...
I also worry about the risk with collars. But I still resorted to them when I found the coat marking just did not work with newborn puppies - it is practically impossible to cut into the coat of a new born puppy. I used different coloured strings the thickness of a shoelace - but rather than tie a knot I sewed the ends together with one stitch very thin cotton which would break at the first pressure. Yes, they did loose them now and then - hereby proving that the idea was working.
Around 8 weeks they got 'real' collars but only wore them while I was with them...

[ursula wilby]

The sewing together sounds much safer to me than tying a knot. Especially if they break easily (as you mentioned). The way I read the reply about the plaster, it was stuck inside the ear and not on the back. But of course that is also impossible with newborn puppies.
I dont actually start cutting the fur until they are a few days old.
But its good to see that there are options available!
As an identification from all angles, I do think the collars are far better than anything else. No need to pick the puppy up...you can see at a glance.
Perhaps I am just too hung up on keeping them safe?
Like going over the top...
After all no-one has come forwards and talked about strangled puppies.
Perhaps I just have a vivid imagination?

[Mariana Åhnberg]

I have seen that a lot of breeders in sweden use a kind of paint, I dont know what sort it is but somone can probably tell us, they ads a little spot with different colours on the back of the puppies..

[ursula wilby]

Just so that you dont all think I am way over the top with my fear of collars and strings...I have one rottweiler breeder who put two four months old puppies out in a stable while she went shopping.
Both wore collars.
There was nothing dangerous in the stable (or so she thought). When she came back, the puppies had been playing and jumping and there was a nail in the wall. Not all that high up and one of the puppies got caught there. The nail had hooked behind the collar and the puppy was hanging there strangled.
A vet-friend of mine working in a nearby animal hospital has had dogs come in dead due to collars.
These dogs/ puppies had been playing and one of the dogs got its bottom-jaw caught in the other ones collar. Tearing and pulling and getting in a panik, the dog with the collar ended up with its neck broken.
So there is a danger there.
I think you can let dogs and puppies play for years and years wearing collars, without anything happening (I used to). But then once is enough.
And the rottweiler puppies, I had looked at only a couple of days earlier.
So these are NOT "rat-in-the-pizza-stories" but actual cases.

[Marcella Booij]

I can imagine that you have a fear of this and ofcourse you want to keep your puppies safe.
That is the most important thing ..i think. But we always make sure that the strings aren't to wide
and the ends are not to long, so the puppies can't grab them easily. Then ofcourse we change the strings often whilst the puppies grow but also the strings become wider just by wearing them. We don't want them to be to wide to avoid those problems you've mentioned. So we are always keeping our eye on the strings ..

[ursula wilby]

I think Marcella, it is as you say, important to have the strings tight and yet not too tight.
And also that they are breakable.
I think I shall go with the cutting of fur to begin with...safest bet.
I may try the string + stitching when they are a bit older and dashing about.
They are still just laying there...:-)