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Credit: Angela Moscaritolo
How Pet Trackers Connect
All the trackers we’ve tested use apps for Android and/or iOS devices that give you a quick read on the data they collect. Some also provide a web interface.
Certain models use a base station to establish a line of communication between the tracker and your phone. These base stations come in lots of shapes and sizes, and sometimes double as battery chargers. Trackers typically use Bluetooth to talk to your smartphone and their base station/charger—as long as it’s within range of either, it’s likely that your pet is in a safe zone. It isn’t until your pet wanders out of range that the alerts arrive. Just keep in mind that if you have a large house, you might need multiple base stations to provide coverage.
The Whistle Go Explore doesn’t come with a separate base station; it has a built-in Wi-Fi radio and uses your home router to create its own base station. The third-generation Fi comes with a Bluetooth-enabled charging base and also supports Wi-Fi, with the ability to connect to up to six networks at a time.
As a lower-tech option, home security camera maker Ring offers a $10 QR code pet tag that will bring up information about your pet when scanned.
Can You Track Your Pet’s Activity?
The very first pet trackers were all about activity like fitness trackers—we viewed them as “Fitbits for pets,” and that description still largely stands. Most of the trackers we test quantify activity to varying degrees. Some generate fitness reports, showing various movement levels from resting to high activity, plus pulse and respiration.
A few of these devices try to track more than just activity and location. Temperature comes up a lot because hot cars are killers. Don’t leave your dog or cat inside a car, even with the windows down! That said, we’ve found temperature readings to be fairly inaccurate, be it from dogs sitting close to wood-fired stoves on a cold day, laying in the sun by the window, or just folding the tracker up into their neck while they sleep. It might not be a bad feature to have, but the warnings sometimes take on a kid-who-cried-wolf aspect.
How to Find Your Pet Via GPS
GPS location is a primary reason for getting a tracker. Note that you should use trackers in conjunction with microchips in a pet, not as a substitute. Most vets charge less than $50 to put the rice-sized permanent chip inside a pet and practically all shelters and vet clinics have scanners. It’s nearly a foolproof way to ensure you can reunite with a pet if they ever go missing.
If you’re in an area with coverage, the tracker sends your pet’s whereabouts to its companion app. It’s not always instantaneous—there might be a slight delay before the device realizes your pet is out of the safe zone. That’s enough time for a fast pet to make a getaway, but that’s still better than not knowing at all that Fido jumped the fence.
Note that GPS tracking typically involves monthly or annual fees; we break them down in each of our reviews.
Do Pet Trackers Work for Cats?
Many of the devices available in the market are a bit too big to effectively work on cats, or their algorithms just don’t take the slinky movements of felines into account the way they do dopey, lumbering canines. We’ve highlighted which devices work for cats in the chart below. Be sure to consider the size and weight of the tracker for different breeds.
Can You Use Bluetooth Trackers for Pets?
Bluetooth trackers from Apple, Samsung, and Tile are becoming popular ways to find lost keys, phones, remotes, wallets, and anything else that’s easy to lose. And in some cases, that applies to pets.
As mentioned above, Apple says AirTags aren’t meant for pets. That statement ultimately seems like it’s for liability reasons more than anything else, as many people still use them for this purpose. Tile, on the other hand, encourages pet owners to attach the Mate and Pro to their creatures. “Many people have had great success using Tile as a Bluetooth pet tracker to help them locate dogs, cats, bunnies, and even tortoises!” Tile says.
A general-purpose Bluetooth tracker is definitely a good way to test the waters before diving into a pet-specific model, so we’ve included our favorites here.
Finally, for more on taking care of your furry little friends, check out our picks for the best dog NDA testing kits.
