The release of Apple AirTags in April 2021 brought excitement to people who were already acquitted to Apple devices. People were wondering how such a tiny tracking device could achieve all the things Apple were alleging they could.
However, after testing the AirTag, we can attest that this tiny tracking devices are very powerful.
One thing Apple did was to show us how this device work, how you can connect them and which devices they are compatible with. However, they did not give a public statement on which items you can track using AirTags. I have seen people asking if you can use AirTags for cats?
Based on the comments from the large community of Apple devices users, you can and people are using AirTags to track their cats. Although this is possible, you will have to keep the comfort ability of your cat in mind.
This guide will give you all the hacks you can use to make your cat feel safe when wearing an AirTag. So, stay tuned.
Can I Put an Airtag on My Cat?
Although Apple does not discourage or encourage the use of AirTags on cats, people have been using AirTags to track their kitties. This is however only possible for indoors cats. You can use an AirTag to keep track of your cat, but you have to do it right.
Cats are very sensitive animals and if anything interferes with their comfort, you might lose her forever. For this reason, manufacturers are coming up with cat collars that are specifically used with AirTags.
This cat collars come with a casing that can fit AirTags. The casing is made of soft leather that does not irritate the cats while still striving to keep AirTag safe.
You can find cat collars of different sizes, colors, and material. However, when choosing AirTag cat collars, ensure you have measured your cat to prevent future strangulation or loss.
Using AirTag cat collars and AirTags at large might be beneficial when it comes to keeping your cat safe. Unfortunately, all good things come with some downsides. Below are the pros and cons of using AirTags and AirTag cat collars for your kitty.
Pros
- AirTags are very tiny: This means that your cat might not even notice it has an AirTag on.
- You will be assured that cat is safe at all times. Most AirTag cat collars are reflective and breakaway.
- AirTag cat collars are made of soft and long lasting material. The AirTag will remain intact even if your cat chews it.
- Airtags are very cheap and their batteries are long lasting
- You can track a lost AirTag thank to Find My Network.
Cons
- When using AirTags for cats, you will need to connect it to a collar which are very uncomfortable for cats.
- The noise made by the AirTag when it is separated with the owner might irritate the cat.
- Find My network might deem unreliable considering cats avoid crowded and public places when they are lost.
- If the cat is wearing the AirTag cat collar and it get stuck, it risks being strangled.
- It is impossible to track a cat since they are always in the move.
Should you use AirTags for cats?
Although Apple does not encourage using AirTags for cats, people who have used AirTags for their pets have always confessed how useful they have been.
If you cat wonders off and forget it’s way, you will get a notification telling you where exactly your cat is. Provided the cat come in close proximity to someone with an iPhone or any other compatible Apple device.
When the cat is moving and getting closer to people with enabled Find My Network devices, the location history gets updated. You can therefore follow the trail until you find where the cat was last seen. The only issue is that your cat will avoid public places when lost. This makes Find My Network not reliable.
Another huge issue of using AirTags for cats is that when you decide to give your family member the cat for a while the collar will keep producing a sound which will irritate the cat. There is however an option of transferring the AirTag to their iPhone or even disabling the safety alert feature.
All in all, before the release of AirTag tracking device, there was no chance of ever retrieving your lost cat. So, despite of a few setbacks associated with AirTags, you have better chances of keeping your Cat safe when using AirTags.
Since you cannot attach am AirTag to the cats skin, you will need a cat collar to attach the AirTag. There are quite a large number of AirTag cat collars available in the market.
So, of you find yourself struggling to pick one among the many available collars, this AirTag cat collar buyer guide is made specifically for you.
Are AirTags Harmful to cats?
AirTags use weak radio frequencies pulses that are transmitted through Bluetooth. Therefore, there is no way they can harm your cat.
AirTag batter produce low power that enables the device to operate. It is covered by a cover which makes it more safe for your cat.
With that in mind, there is no way an AirTag can harm the health of your cat in any way. Unless, the cat swallows the AirTag.
An AirTag is a very tiny device and knowing how playful cats are, you might find that your cat has swallowed the AirTag. If this happens, rush your Cat to a veterinary clinic.
To prevent your cat from swallowing the AirTag, invest in a high quality AirTag cat collar. Most of this collars come with a casing that can fit an AirTag. The casing is made of soft leather which protects the AirTag from water, scratch and even the cat itself.
You should ensure the other AirTags in the house are attached to items with chains and kept in drawers when not in use.
Aside from the cats chewing and swallowing AirTags, the sound produced when the AirTag separates from the connected iPhone might irritate your cat. The noise might even make your cat get lost further.
Other that one issues, AirTags are very safe for your cats. You can keep track of your cat at any time of the day.
How to use AirTags to Track cats?
Despite of AirTags being very tiny, they are very precise and accurate. Once you connect them to a compatible device you can keep track of your items at all times.
Connecting AirTags to your iPhone is not complicated. You will however have to know the Dos and the don’t s before you start tracking your cat with AirTags.
- First you need an iCloud account and an Apple ID for your AirTag to connect. Creating an Apple ID is free. However, you should check to see if you are using a managed Apple ID. Managed Apple ID are for educational purposes and cannot accommodate an AirTag. Remember you cannot use two Apple IDs in one device.
- Turn on your Bluetooth, two-factor authentication, and enable Find My app.
- Check if the AirTag is in the right condition by removing the battery and replacing it. If the battery produces a sound after connecting it, then it is in the right condition.
- Bring the AirTag closer to your iPhone and wait for it to connect. AirTags are compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad with iOS 14.50 and later versions. If the AirTag is not connecting to your iPhone, check it’s iOS version.
- Before the AirTag connects to your iPhone, it will start advertising itself.
The moment the AirTag completes connecting, you can then go to Find My app and rename your device. Renaming will ease the process of identifying the AirTag when it gets lost.
After setting up your AirTag, the tracking process is the easiest.
Let’s say you fear your cat is lost, you can go to find my app. Then go to items and click on the cat’s AirTag.
- If the cat is in close proximity, Find my app will show you the direction and the distance you will have to move to reach your AirTag. iPhone 11 and latest versions of iPhones have a feature known as precision finding that pinpoints exactly where your AirTag is.
- On the screen an arrow showing the direction and the exact distance in feet will be shown on the screen. You can follow the directions to find your cat.
- If you can’t find where exactly where your cat is, you can play the sound by tapping on the speaker icon on the screen to activate the inbuilt speaker inside the AirTag.
In cases where your cat has wondered of, you can still retrieve your cat.
- The moment your cat’s AirTag has been connected to an Apple ID, the location history will be updated on your iCloud account.
- When the cat comes in close proximity to someone with an iPhone that has an enabled Find My Network, the location history will be updated on your iCloud account.
- When you enter Find my App and see the AirTag is not in close proximity, you can go to the Map and check the last location the cat was seen.
- You will be given the direction and the distance you need to travel to retrieve your Cat.
Although Airtags are very accurate, tracking a cat might be so difficult considering the cat will be always on the move. The cat will avoid crowded places. But, once it passes in a place where there is an active iPhone, the location history will be updated.
Conclusion
Apple might have not encourage the use of AirTags to track our cats, but they have not discouraged it too. People have used AirTags for their cats and it has worked for them. So, if you want to keep your cat safe too, you can buy an AirTag for your cat.
Since AirTags cannot attach to a cat, you will need a cat collar for this work. There are several car collars in the market that are specifically made for AirTags. This cat collars come with a casing that is made of soft waterproof material. The guide above will offer you assistance when choosing the best cat collars for your cat. You can subscribe to this page for new and amazing innovations.
References
- Patil, H., & Ansari, N. (2020, April). Smart Surveillance and Animal Care system using IOT and Deep Learning. In Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Advances in Science & Technology (ICAST).
- Saltzman, M. (2022). Apple Watch for Dummies. John Wiley & Sons.
- Li, Q. (2021, December). Analysis of Innovation Opportunities for AirTag. In 2021 3rd International Conference on Economic Management and Cultural Industry (ICEMCI 2021) (pp. 1496-1498). Atlantis Press.