Stop Using AirTags on Your Pet. Here’s What Experts Recommend Instead

With technology evolving every day, pet owners are looking for new and better ways to keep their pets safe, including finding ways to have 24/7 access to their pets’ locations. Some pet owners have considered using an AirTag on their pet’s collar, but is it safe?

We spoke with two animal experts who caution against using AirTags for this purpose and instead offer alternative options. Here’s everything you need to know.

What is an AirTag?

Apple AirTags were created to help track personal items using a “secure Bluetooth signal that can be detected by nearby devices in the Find My network,” according to Apple.

Small devices, which cost $29 per labelare often used on suitcases, handbags, backpacks and key chains. Apple’s website doesn’t mention using AirTags on pets, for good reason.

Learn more: Best Apple AirTag Accessories of 2025

Why you shouldn’t use an AirTag to track your pet

Although AirTags may seem like a convenient and relatively inexpensive way to track your four-legged friends, experts advise against it.

If AirTags are attached to a pet’s collar, it’s possible it could lead to a medical emergency, said Dr. Shannon Vawter, medical and veterinary director of Thrive Pet Healthcare Wedgewood in Nashville, Tennessee.

“There’s a battery in there, and if the dog or cat ingests it – which is the case in several articles and reports in our veterinary magazines – then we have to do a surgery called gastronomy or enterotomy and go fishing for that label,” Vawter said, adding that the battery is dangerous because if it starts “to corrode or open up with that acid in there, it will burn a hole in their digestive tract.”

Vawter said the price for emergency surgery to remove the AirTag could range between $2,000 and $5,000, adding that dogs are more likely to chew or eat an AirTag, but cats could also be at risk of doing so.

Tracking limitations are another reason experts warn against them.

“An AirTag has very limited tracking capabilities and accuracy in rural areas, the exact place you’ll probably need it the most,” said Maleki Burke, founder of Snootiful Hound, a company that created escape-proof harnesses for greyhounds. Because AirTags rely on nearby Apple devices, Burke said if your pet is lost in a rural area, the location may not be accurate or available.

“This is particularly problematic if you are trying to track a dog that has wandered away from populated areas,” he said.

Expert Tips: Better Ways to Track Your Pet

Both Vawter and Burke recommend that the first line of action to keep your pet safe is to have them microchipped. A microchip is a small permanent chip equivalent to the size of a grain of rice and embedded in the animal. According to Pawlicy Advisor, a pet insurance marketplace, microchips for dogs cost between $25 and $60. If you adopt your animal from a shelter, it may be microchipped beforehand. In this case, the shelter will provide you with the microchip identification number during the adoption process.

“Any pet can get a microchip at any age, and it’s not much bigger than a vaccine needle,” Vawter said. “We do it all the time as a distraction, like giving them cheese or a little peanut butter, and they don’t even know they understand.”

When a person finds a lost pet and brings it to an animal shelter or veterinary office, the animal is scanned for a microchip. Microchips contain information about the animal and personal information about the owner so they can be reunited quickly. If you need to update your pet’s microchip information, visit the American Animal Hospital Association’s Microchip Registry Search. Enter your pet’s microchip ID to find out where they are registered, then request all necessary information to be updated.

The microchip is ideal for someone finding your pet, but you may still want to pair it with a device that can actively track it. This is where a GPS collar can come in handy.

“Let’s say your dog gets loose, chances are in the short term he won’t get too far,” said Burke, who personally uses the GPS tracker. Tractive for his dog. “If you have GPS on them and you can track them, you can get them back in minutes.”

Like many GPS collars, Tractive requires a monthly subscription. The basic plan costs $13 per month or $8 per month if you sign up for a one-year subscription.

Vawter also recommends a GPS tracker over an AirTag, as they are typically flat and built into the collar, rather than hanging from the collar.

“They are very big, so it would be difficult to eat or bite them,” she said. “The other thing is that they rely on satellites, not people’s phones or Bluetooth. The only downside to a GPS – and this is why I still want a microchip – is that GPS has a battery, and it’s short-lived.”

Vawter added that if your pet continues to escape, talk to your veterinarian to get to the root cause of why this is happening in the first place.

The essentials

AirTags are great for your keys and other belongings, but there are more secure, foolproof ways to track your pets.

“Make sure your dog is microchipped,” Burke said. “But also, if you’re worried about your dog escaping, just get a GPS. The peace of mind is worth its weight in gold.”