My wife and I are about to adopt a medium-sized terrier from our local shelter, and he is quite energetic. Much more energetic than our previous dog who passed away a few months ago. Because of this, I’m a bit paranoid that he might slip out the door or somehow get loose accidentally.

I’m intrigued by the new tracking devices that are on the market now but I’m lost as to where to start. Passive ones like Tiles or AirTags have long battery life and are quite small, but have to be near someone with a compatible app to report their location. Active ones like the Fi collar give you real-time location info, but have to be charged regularly, require a subscription fee, and seem quite chunky to be on a small-to-medium sized dog constantly. I’m also curious if I am just being overly paranoid 😅. He will be microchipped when we get him, so at the very least he will have that.

Anyone have any advice for these trackers? Good, bad, worth it, not worth it… Anything is helpful!