# Silly rabies tag question



## michelle2010 (Nov 21, 2010)

I have a silly question about my dogs rabies tag.

My guy just recieved his 3 yr rabbies vac. and the rabies tag is very ugly. It's a long oval orangish/gold in color. Just a very ugly tag.

I was at the feed store the other day & they had a set up where they can engrave pet id tags while you wait. And they had some pretty cute tags to choose from. 

My question is can I have the info that is on the rabies tag,( year, vets name, tag # etc) engraved onto one of these cute tags & use that as my dogs rabies tag instead of the ugly one the vet gave me?


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## Cracker (May 25, 2009)

I would think so. 
Many folks lose their "ugly" tags. The information on the tag is important for id purposes and the ability to double check vaccine status with the vet if your dog was caught roaming or was involved in an incident involving injury to someone or someone's animal. But it doesn't have to be THE tag from the vet as long as all the info is present.


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## Everyday Miracles (Nov 14, 2010)

Can't this information be applied to the chip registration if your pet is identichipped? None of ours are currently chipped, but after we lost our momma cat we seriously considered it. I thought that all of this kind of information can be put on the chip registration, and it isn't all that expensive either. I think it's $50 in our area, including the registration.

Speaking of "losing" those tags, my cats only wore theirs for a short period of time. It's so difficult to keep a collar on a cat, but you _are_ supposed to have this information on your pet. That's why I was thinking of the chip carrying the vaccination information.


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## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

Depending on your state, the rabies tag might not be the legal proof of rabies, anyway, although it does serve as an identification tag. You should have received some sort of paper certificate documenting the date the rabies was given and the date the rabies expires -- that's probably your legal proof.

Useless Trivia: There are a handful (I think 4) different tag color/shape combinations that rabies tags usually have. The one you get corresponds to the year your pet got its vaccine. There's the orange oval, a red heart, a blue flower-thing, and there's a green one too but I can't remember what shape it is off the top of my head.


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## grab (Sep 26, 2009)

Our area has the rabies tag (given from the vet or clinic who administered the vaccine) as well as the county license. I've seen many clients that have their rabies tag info (number, vet clinic) put onto another tag.


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## DJEtzel (Dec 28, 2009)

sassafras said:


> Depending on your state, the rabies tag might not be the legal proof of rabies, anyway, although it does serve as an identification tag. You should have received some sort of paper certificate documenting the date the rabies was given and the date the rabies expires -- that's probably your legal proof.
> 
> Useless Trivia: There are a handful (I think 4) different tag color/shape combinations that rabies tags usually have. The one you get corresponds to the year your pet got its vaccine. There's the orange oval, a red heart, a blue flower-thing, and there's a green one too but I can't remember what shape it is off the top of my head.


Is this just a generalization, or for your state, maybe? 

I've never gotten any of these shaps, and I've only gotten a red tag, the rest were silver, gold, or blue. I've only had bones and octagons as far as shapes go.


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## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

DJEtzel said:


> Is this just a generalization, or for your state, maybe?
> 
> I've never gotten any of these shaps, and I've only gotten a red tag, the rest were silver, gold, or blue. I've only had bones and octagons as far as shapes go.


It is a generalization. There is a manufacturer that many vet clinics get their tags from that follows that color/shape convention so they're pretty common - although that probably varies by region. But as far as I know there's no standard or requirement for what a rabies tag has to look like. I've seen many just plain silver tags as well.


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## Willowy (Dec 10, 2007)

sassafras said:


> Useless Trivia: There are a handful (I think 4) different tag color/shape combinations that rabies tags usually have. The one you get corresponds to the year your pet got its vaccine. There's the orange oval, a red heart, a blue flower-thing, and there's a green one too but I can't remember what shape it is off the top of my head.


Green bell! Suggested shape for 2010 is the orange oval. Suggested shape for 2011 is the green bell. 2012-red heart, 2013-blue rosette. Then start over. This appears to be a generalized recommendation from a public health vet group (National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians (NASPHV)). I'm sure individual vets can choose to override the recommendation.

I have a rabies tag for every year since I got my first kitties in 1989!  . Some of us have strange hobbies, LOL.

Our town has city tags, and they don't use the same shapes as rabies tags. They have had (since I moved there) a fire hydrant, a doghouse, a star, an odd random shape (LOL), a bone, a circle, and a dog's head silhouette.


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## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

Ah, the bell! Of course!


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## ladyshadowhollyjc (Oct 28, 2008)

In the last county I lived in, it was always a different colored star. 

In this county (both counties are in Florida), there are 4 designs like sassafras said; red heart, orange oval, blue flower thingy, and a green bell. We recently had a client ask if we had any control of the color/design. It turns out we can request a specific design or color however the animal control in our area really prefers a uniform tag each year so that it can help them to identify a tag from a distance so they know if an animal has been recently vaccinated or whatever.


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## kafkabeetle (Dec 4, 2009)

Weird. Sydney's tag is a large silver circle. I assume our vet doesn't use any type of system. I don't think we have to use the tags around here because the vet gave me a proof of vaccination sheet which I think is the *actual* proof. I keep it on her though because it has the vet's address etc and is easier to read than her name tag and license.


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## Jacksons Mom (Mar 12, 2010)

Jackson doesn't wear his rabies tag, it's huge, oval, ugly and annoying. I keep it on my key chain so it's always with me when I'm with him. He just has an ID tag with his name and my phone number.


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## JohnnyBandit (Sep 19, 2008)

Most counties in Florida state that the county issued tag must be worn on the collar at all times when the dog is outside. IT has to be the county issued tag. This year our county is on the blue flower looking one. 

Betty is registered in a different county, she has a silver circle that is not replaced every year. 

All that being said, I am in violation of county tag laws and have been for years. My dogs don't wear collars except when on lead. Their tags stay on my key ring.


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## Bones (Sep 11, 2009)

My vet follows this system- had the blue one last year and this year they all have the orange one. Halo recently got his:










I don't mind it. Its another form of identification even though all have microchips. I'm not stylish so my dogs are not either  The most important thing I get with the rabies shot is the certificate which I keep with my papers. Though here even if the animal has a rabies shot if they bite someone they still have to do quarantine or the decapitation examination by local health department.


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## Miranda16 (Jan 17, 2010)

The one reason I know why they have the different shapes/colors (my dad being a doctor) is that if somebody is bitten the doctor can then ask if the person saw the tag that looked like x shape and y color in order to determine whether a rabies vaccine course is neccessary. I would just put the rabies tag behind a prettier tag on the collar. That way, the pretty one is what you mainly see.


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## Adustgerm (Jul 29, 2009)

I get my dogs rabies shots at the fire department and they have tags in the shape of fire hydrants.


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