Top 18 GPS Pet Trackers Dog and Cat Friendly [Best of 2020 Reviewed]


February 11, 2016 66 Comments

Top 18 GPS Trackers for your Pets (Dog and Cat GPS Trackers)

by: Scott Roberts

Revised: March 26, 2019

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GPS Dog Collar

It's 2019 and we are off to a great start!  With the advances in Smart Watch Technology, Fitbit's Increasing Popularity, and the new Apple Watch Launching ... What do we have to look Forward to in 2019? It looks to be the year of the Pet Wearables - or should we say "Petables"? haha...

It's not a secret that we all love our pets and we are willing to try new methods of keeping them Safe and Healthy.  Grain Free Organic Foods, Personal Dog-Walkers, Pet Hotels, Doggy Go Pro's, and Now GPS Trackers for Cats and Dogs! (GPS Dog Collar) 

But what Exactly are GPS Pet Trackers?  Which ones are the Best?  How do they work? How much do they cost? How will they keep my dog and cat safe?  We are going to dig deep into the topic.  We have compiled a unique list and reviewed  our choice for the Top 13 Pet Tracker for 2017.

We need to start by splitting them into 2 categories.  GPS Trackers GSM (Cellular) and Radio Trackers.  

GPS Trackers are cutting edge technology that allows you to pinpoint your pets location in real time.  You can see a history of locations reported by the device to see every place your pet went while you were away.  Some of these GPS Trackers even give an alert when you pet leaves a pre-determined area (geo-fence).  In order to transmit the GPS location from almost anywhere and anytime use of cellular data and towers are required.  So the following would be classified as IoT and require a SIM card or cellular service of some kind. 

Radio Trackers utilize a somewhat dated technology and have been used for decades.   These devices don't require a monthly subscription.  Radio Trackers are commonly used by hunting dogs, and cover roughly the same distance of a Walkie Talkie's Range.  It's important to note that the more you spend the greater your range will be.  These units can range from $200-$1000+ for the top of the line units.

    Dog and Cat GPS Trackers

    1. The Paw Tracker (USA, Canada, & Mexico)

    ***Note: If you order this product from Amazon (3rd Party), it will not come with a SIM card or service.  You must purchase directly from www.thepawtracker.com to get tech support and an active SIM card.

    The Paw Tracker is a GPS dog collar that uses GPS satellites to determine it's location then Cellular SMS to send those coordinates back to their servers. They are a USA based company and  have good customer service they called us back within a couple hours to answer some questions we had. Buy direct from their website.  Similar devices sold on Amazon or eBay may not come with an activated SIM card. 

    Dog GPS Tracker

    Pet GPS TrackerCute Design and 3 color options make this very popular for the Fashionable Pets. It comes with Application Download for iOS and Android.  Being the lightest in weight The PawTracker is a clear choice for all cat owners.  Track anything its attached to!  Works anywhere in North America.  This device comes with a SIM card already activated so you won't have to change your cellular plan. (Except on Amazon and eBay)

    Price: $79.95
    Subscription Cost: $6.95-$9.95
    Battery Life: 2-5 days
    Weight: 33 Grams

    GPS Dog collar

    2. Findster Duo 

     

     

     

     



    Pet gps trackerFindster Duo is a lightweight compact pet GPS tracker that works differently than most on this list.  It ONLY has a .5 mile range but on the other hand doesn't have a monthly charge.  If you are only worried about short range tracking this might be for you.  

    Price: $149.99
    Subscription Cost: No Monthly Cost *Only .5 Mile Range*
    Battery Life: 12 Hours
    Transmitter Weight: 23 Grams 

    Cat Tracker

    3. Pod 2 GPS + WiFi Pet Tracker & Activity Monitor

    Pod is one of the smallest and lightest GPS tracker plus activity monitor for dogs and cats
    Dog gps collar
    designed to be attached to any size collar. It lets you locate your pet on demand, monitor their activity and record adventures on a smartphone or computer.  The Pod depends on your 2G coverage so make sure to check your address against the coverage checker tool on our website. 

    Price: $197.94 (includes 1 year of service)
    Subscription Cost: $49.99/Year (after)
    Battery Life: 2-5 days
    Transmitter Weight: 28 grams

    pet gps tracker

    4. LINK AKC - Smart Dog Collar


    The LINK AKC smart collar is a sophisticated GPS smart collar designed for dog comfort, fit and fashion. It lets you track a lost dog with GPS, monitor activity, log vet records, receive ambient temperature alerts, and much more. The LINK AKC app to be used with the LINK AKC smart collar helps you take a more informed and active role in managing your dog's well-being and to feel connected to your dog when you're apart from each other. Included with each LINK AKC smart collar purchase is a Latigo leather collar (in your choice of size: S, M, L or XL) in the signature shade of Hask Brown, a LINK AKC tracking unit and collar carrier and a sleekly-designed LINK AKC base station and charging cord. The base station is used to charge the tracking unit and also features a USB port to make it convenient to charge both your dog's tracking unit as well as your cell phone simultaneously. LINK AKC memberships are required in order to activate the tracking unit and have full feature functionality of the LINK AKC app (available for download on iOS and Android). 

    Price: $99.99
    Subscription Cost: $9.95/Month
    Battery Life: 1-3 days
    Transmitter Weight: 4.8 ounces (150 grams)
    Link AKC dog gps collar

    5. Tractive GPS Tracker

     The Tractive Real-time GPS tracker device for pets and other animals will always let youTractive GPS Pet Tracker know where your pet is. Check your app in iOS or Android to get your pets GPS coordinates.  You can use your smartphone or tablet to sooth your mind when you are not with your pet.

    Price: $129.99
    Subscription Cost: $9.95 
    Battery Life: 2-4 Days
    Transmitter Weight: 35g 10lbs+ Animals can use

    pet gps tracker

     

    6. Whistle 3

    This GPS Tracker uses Cellular Technology and AT&T Coverage area. The sleek Whistle 3 Pet GPS design attaches to your existing collar. You can track your Pet from an Android or iOS phone. They offer a range of features that are comparable to Tractive and The Paw Tracker.

    Price: $99.99
    Subscription Cost: $9.99
    Battery Life: 2-5 days
    Transmitter Weight: 50 Grams

    whistle 3 gps tracker at amazon

    7. PetPace

    Is more designed for the Health and Health Monitoring features.  It has a lot of Petpace features that most of the GPS trackers do not have.  They are marketing more towards Vets. They do offer great features. With the high monthly cost and the size/weight of the device.  This is more suited for people who are trying to diagnose or monitor the health of a pet.  

    Price: $249.99
    Subscription Cost: Comes with 12 months service subscription
    Battery Life: 1-2 days

    8. Furtrieve 

    With Furtrieve, they have brought a new change to the pet tracking industry dog gps collarthat allows you to track your pet anywhere within coverage area, communicate with them, and enlist help in finding them. They claim to have built a capability called Crowd-Notify which allows you to notify friends/neighbors/family that your pet is loose but we can't seems to get this feature to work. Furtrieve has also enabled not only a mobile app (iOS), but also a web portal. You can also create a mobile virtual fence anywhere.

    Price: $79.95
    Subscription Cost: $10 Month
    Battery Life: 2 days
    Transmitter Weight: 50 grams

    gps tracker for dogs

     

    9. GIBI

     Gibi's 2nd generation pet tracker.  Same compact, lightweight, GIBI GPS trackerwater resistant design as first generation model with updated electronics to provide longer battery life and improved accuracy in urban and wooded environments.  Get in/out of safe zone alerts.  Create multiple safe zones in any polygon, small or large. We monitor the safe zones and alert you via text/email when your pet is no longer in his safe zone.  Then you can see where he is on Google Maps to find him.  Long battery life and get low battery alerts in plenty of time to recharge your pet’s Gibi.

     

    Price: $129.99
    Subscription Cost: $99.99/Year
    Battery Life: 2-5 days
    Transmitter Weight: 9.3 oz

    gibi pet tracker

     

     

     

    10. Voyce

    The Voyce is worn comfortably around the neck like a collar and tracks key wellnessVoyce GPS Tracker for Dogs  indicators, such as resting heart and respiratory rates, quality of rest, activity and intensity of activity, calories burned, distance, and more!  The data syncs to your Voyce Wellness Management Center via WiFi. This would be a good alternative to the PetPace

    Price: $199.99
    Subscription Cost: $9.50
    Battery Life: About a week
    Transmitter Weight: 40 Grams

    Radio Trackers 

    11. Garmin Astro 320 T5 Dog GPS Bundle

    The Astro offers a variety of GPS collars intended for hunting dogs.  They combine GPS
    garmin GPS Trackerwith portable invisible boundaries, training features, and capability for tracking up to 10 dogs.  This setup is designed for Bird Hunting Dogs. Not so much for the Urban Pets. 

    Price: $499-$799
    Range: Up to 9 Miles
    Subscription Cost: No monthly fee
    Battery Life: 20 Hours (AA Batteries Required)
    Transmitter Weight: 6.5 Ounces (without batteries)

    Garmin Astro

    12. Marco Polo Pet Monitoring/Tracking and Locating System

    Uses radio frequency band that passes through walls and barriers.  You can set one Marco Polo Pet Tracker boundary to sound an alarm if your Pet leaves. One receiver (larger than a cell phone but still pocket-sized) can track three dogs at once. 

    Price: $219.99 (Additional tags are $90)
    Range: Up to 2 Miles
    Subscription Cost: No monthly fee
    Battery Life: 1 week to 3 months
    Transmitter Weight: 1.7 Ounces

    marco polo on amazon

     

    13. Loc8tor Pet The Ultimate Locator

    The smallest of all the locators;  with the shortest range. This is best suited for small catsLoc8tor Pet Tracking  and dogs. Covers up to four dogs. Visually impaired people can use it with audio cues. This locator also comes in at only $99.99 so its affordable for everyone. 

    Price: $99.99 (2 locators not water resistant)
    Range: 400 Feet
    Subscription Cost: No monthly fee
    Battery Life: 2 to 5 Months
    Transmitter Weight: .175 Ounces

    tab cat

     

    The Paw Tracker is the only device that is suitable for cats as well as dogs.  

    The Paw Tracker and Findster Duo our the top 2 GPS Pet Trackers picks for 2019.  They seem to have the best customer service, and are USA based companies tend to be more responsive to issues that may arise after purchase.  We found that Whistle has some negative reviews after they merged with Tagg and swithced service providers to AT&T.  Some Tagg customers, who switched to the Whistle Application, were not able to get proper customer service.  

    The Paw Tracker is designed with a clip allows you to have multiple uses for this GPS tracker.  You can tracking your kids route after school by attaching it to their backpack. It is also small enough for cats.  They have a very cool story about a cat rescue on their facebook page.

    For the Radio Trackers, we like the Garmin Astro 320 and the Marco Polo.  These represent the top of the line Radio Transmitter Collars.   The Radio Collars are great for certain households and great for hunting dogs. For all Urban and Suburban Real Time GPS trackers are recommended.  

     Suggested Article11 Kids GPS Tracker for the Modern Families of 2016

     



    66 Responses

    Isabelle
    Isabelle

    October 10, 2019

    If you are looking for good quality pet accessories I would recommend the website www.dogonbest.com

    Eric M
    Eric M

    October 10, 2019

    Do not get a Whistle 3! I just lost my 3rd one in a row, I live on 18 acres and my dogs have free roam. Sometimes they come back without the collar and I have to look for it. Never have I found one in the location the GPS gives me. I have a replacement in the package and I’m not even going to open it. Seek elsewhere for tracking solutions. Also when you talk to whistle they will just try and sell you another collar. It worked at first but the lag is terrible and half the time when you need it it says" having trouble connecting" really? For the money I spent? Never again.

    nina
    nina

    October 10, 2019

    I just bought a tracker from Tail It. Terrible customer service. Doesn’t offer an option to see where your pet has been over the last 24hrs. Also, does not allow you to track on your computer through a web portal, so you must use your phone. Updates in live tracking mode are slow. Device is much smaller and lighter than the tractive device I had (I like small because it is for my cat). I would not recommend Tail It. I wish tractive would design a smaller tracker for cats!

    Deborah Meyer
    Deborah Meyer

    October 10, 2019

    We had the Nuzzle GPS dog tracker for almost a year and were VERY pleased with the quality of the product and the pin-point accuracy of the tracking unit. Our dog is an escape artist and got away from our dog sitter 3 times during the first week of our vacation. Had it not been for Nuzzle, we wouldn’t have our dog. The product was easy to understand and our sitter was able to get the tracking on her phone before we went out of town. When I had a question, their customer service was quick to reply to my question. I was very disappointed when I got the notice that they were not going to be in business any longer. Now it’s back to square one and vacation season is quickly approaching.

    Thomas
    Thomas

    October 10, 2019

    Looking at your definitions of different services used by these devices has me now really confused. You break services into 2 categories that infer that cellular Triangulation and GPS (Global Positioning Service) which is provided by a matrix of low orbiting satellites. I have been confused by the the term GPS used in the earlier days of Cell Phone tracking and when Google Maps became available and Cell Phone positioning on the map became an option and the smart phones began to offering GPS On as an option, it became apparent to me that Cell Phones were equipped with a separate GPS chip which used the Global Positioning network for more accurate pinpointing of the phone’s position. You cannot turn off cellular tracking in your phone because that is the fundamental reason that the cell phone services work. Besides, that is a function of tower triangulation and not a function if the phone itself. The cell system has to be Able to track you. That’s how the system knows which tower you are closest to and when to pass you off to the nest as you are traveling. I don’t see how a radio linked unit would be very effective because unless it was being assisted by one of the other two technologies it could only point you in the general direction and make a guess about how far off your pet was based on signal strength. A unit using the cellular system would be more of an advantage then just a radio monitor because the cell towers triangulate the position of the device if you were within reach of at least 3 towers. If your device was within reach of two towers, the third position of the triangulation is extrapolated from the signal strength and direction detected by the two actual dowers adding a further margin of error of the calculated position. If the GPS type tracking devices are actually using GPS which seems to be the case because they do not require the use of a monthly fee to defray the cost of using a cell system for tracking your pet, these are the more preferable devices to use because there should be no extra monthly fees required or the purchase and activation of a sim card and they would be less susceptible to the problems that arise from using a terrestrial based system like cell towers. If I am wrong about the use of the term GPS as being bastardized by the public’s use at large and these devices are actually referring to terrestrial triangulation, I would like to be corrected. As I indicated earlier, I am confused by this whole thing and the way these terms are being used.

    Brad Morse
    Brad Morse

    November 27, 2018

    I have the whistle 3 and it works about 50% of the time. While I have fine AT&T 3G coverage in my area, it won’t work every time. Using whistle until I can find something more reliable.

    Daniel
    Daniel

    November 27, 2018

    Has anybody used Findster, the say it works 2 to 3 miles and uses it own frequency, thereby not relying on cell service, also no monthly service ?

    Jim
    Jim

    November 27, 2018

    I got the last one, Loc8tor (mine is called TabCat but same thing). Anyway, I chose it mainly for battery life. Murphy’s law says your pet will bolt the moment that battery dies—and on those others with 2 or 3-day battery life—you know that’s gonna happen. The batteries on this last a couple months, and are inexpensive even for the Energizer Lithium ones.

    The range is of course short, but our cat has taken off a few times and we’ll either ride our bikes or drive slowly through the neighborhood and the receiver will pick him up. Sure, it’d be nice to have real GPS and not have to ride for a few blocks, but what good is that when you forget to charge the battery? When they come up with a real GPS unit that has a battery life of > 1 month, I’ll buy it in an instant.

    Skip
    Skip

    November 27, 2018

    Scollar – look at this option.

    Darleen
    Darleen

    June 22, 2018

    This web site is great. I am glad I read all the comments. I have spent over 2 hours looking for a Tracker for my cat that works like its is supposed to, and does not have a monthly fee, and will do a range of about a mile or even more.. Everyone seems pretty frustrated with the Tracker Search. I would love any suggestions you might have.

    Caroline
    Caroline

    March 09, 2018

    Great article Scott, however, some of the products in this post have been upgraded. The pod 2 has been upgraded with the pod 3, which personally, is arguably the best dog tracker based on its features. Although some people complain of the fasteners being cheap, its does secure the monitor onto the dogs collar firmly. I bought the pod 3 for my dog Kiki and it’s never disappointed me. In short, this article is very informative

    Justin Clinton
    Justin Clinton

    January 16, 2018

    Great Article!
    By using gps tracker I will track my dog. Thanks for sharing with us!

    Kylie
    Kylie

    January 11, 2018

    Avoid Nuzzle – this product does not work, the customer support is beyond horrible and there is no return policy. It is borderline unethical the way the company treats is customers and crappy product. Buy something validated and be sure to read real people’s comments.

    David Larsen
    David Larsen

    December 28, 2017

    I am already design a Pet Drivers License Tag for my dog identification and security. But now I am looking for a GPS Tracker for my dog that will record all activities of my dog.

    Harry Robinson
    Harry Robinson

    December 13, 2017

    Pet GPS Tracker is very helpful for dogs when they lost and I also want to suggest one more pet safety i.e. Pet Drivers License ID Tag. Thanks!!

    Dan
    Dan

    October 16, 2017

    In short: DO NOT PURCHASE WHISTLE.

    Julian
    Julian

    July 31, 2017

    For everyone looking for a GPS tracker that goes under the skin: not possible. GPS trackers need electricity, they need to be recharged, and they have some emissions that would damage the pet if they were under the skin. Google it.

    Wendy
    Wendy

    July 19, 2017

    I currently have Whisle and am looking for another GPS tracker. I have expressed more problems with the device once the company changed. It can take up to 60 minutes to locate my dog or says the dog can not be found. (The apt asks to track or locate. This can go on for hours.) Once my dog has been found the update can take 10 minutes or longer.

    firdous khan
    firdous khan

    July 13, 2017

    I are very interested in some type of device for tracking but i need something which can track my goat if she is far away from my home.

    Vicki
    Vicki

    July 10, 2017

    I live in a very rural area in the middle of a 30 mile cell phone dead zone, next to a 10,000 acre wildlife management area, so I need a tracker for 3 dogs who like to roam. I can’t afford the $500+ for the hunting dog trackers and don’t believe the ones that advertise “no cell coverage needed” claims without a good testimonial. Anyone really tested a tracker to the limit on cell coverage? Thanks.

    John
    John

    March 31, 2017

    Like many of these comments, I too have Whistle. I bought Tagg when first out. It was great and precise. They were constantly updating the technology to their website and support was great! At one time, after warrantee had expired, one of the collar transmitters wings were chewed off. Tagg replaced unit FREE OF CHARGE! The day Whistle acquired Tagg, all went to hell. The site did not track daily activity like Tagg did. Receiving notification your pet is outside the safe zone is a minimum 10 minutes until you get the notice and likewise when returned to safe zone. The “real time” tracking sucks, pet may be out of safe zone for 30 minutes and will show only one position on map. Tagg would actually track pets travel. False notices, like middle of night when dogs sleeping in my room not wearing transmitters…Go figure! As for customer service, Tagg was top notch…Whistle sucks! Have tried contacting them several times via Whistle site never getting a response. Currently have one of my two just stopped working. Looking for replacement for two better made GPS units that comes with good customer service> Any suggestions?

    Catherine Rhea
    Catherine Rhea

    March 06, 2017

    I have had NUZZLE experience and would like to share that here. First, It’s not so much a scam as a startup operation that is pitching the company hoping for a buyout. BIG moola if they can pull it off, especially if they don’t actually have to produce anything. Google the names of the founders and you’ll see that one gave an interview last year saying just that. Second, they have a Facebook page where other frustrated people vent daily. They monitor the posts and delete anything negative almost daily too. I started posting every other day and I eventually got their attention which resulted in a refund. They were glad to get rid of me.

    Kevin
    Kevin

    February 19, 2017

    Free GPS tracker to be like a dog microchip there’s a battery Factor how would a power the GPS it is an implant. I don’t think they had a technology that can have an input at the GPS locator in a dog under the skin. People try to use common sense

    Cliff
    Cliff

    February 15, 2017

    I see some posting that they are concerned with the RF or EMF of these devices on the animals health. I am an RF engineer and have been for 25 years. The frequencies used in all of these devices, are what is termed non-ionizing RF. Putting this in everyday terms, the wave length of these frequencies are much too wide to interact with anything at a cellular level. If you pay attention to the articles that make statements to the contrary, you will notice they all seem to be selling or promoting some product to counter act the effects. Essential oils, beads and other such products can’t cure or protect from something that isn’t happening. It is settled science that the frequencies used by cellular, GPS (doesn’t even transmit), Bluetooth and NFC are not in the frequency ranges that are harmful to our cellular structures. They don’t cause cancer or DNA alterations. There is a direct relationship with the wave length of a frequency and its ability to interact with cellular structures. Now one could argue that if what I am saying is true, then you could stick your head in a microwave since they operate in the 2.4Ghz frequency. However, what happens with a microwave is it doesn’t interact with the cellular structures, but rather it interacts with the water in the item being cooked and boils it. This is what cooks the food in a microwave. Microwaves also present between 600-1200 watts focused in close proximity to do this. The output of the very small radios in these devices are very low and they transmit in all directions. No concentration of signal is entering the animal. It is also important to note that all of these devices only turn on to transmit at certain intervals. They do not constantly transmit or their batteries would run down in a very short period. So your animals are completely safe with one of these devices. They are all required to be certified by the FCC to be in compliance with the standards that have been determined through science to be completely safe. I hope you will accept this. As I said, I am an RF engineer educated by MIT, and building RF products for 25 years.

    Art
    Art

    February 12, 2017

    I tried the Whistle. They need to remove the word “live” from “Live GPS tracking” on their web page. Live implies real time (or at least close to it; live TV has a 7 second delay; truly live GPStrackers (which I haven’t been able to find for pets) usually have 1, 5, and 10 second delay settings). This tracker is up to a 12 minute delay.
    Also, the statement, “Receive a notification through the app or via text message when your pet leaves their custom Whistle zone…” is incorrect. I tested the tracker about twice the distance from my house as the Whistle zone was set, and I did not get any notifications. Their tech support representative confirmed that it has to be far outside the Whistle zone. She told me to move 3-4 times that distance away from the Whistle zone before the notification would work. She was correct; I did get the notification when I got a little more than 3 times the Whistle zone distance away. I returned it. I will say that their customer service was very nice to work with.

    David
    David

    February 01, 2017

    These sound just what I’m looking for to put on my cat’s collar. She’s an indoor cat and I’m afraid someday she’s going to sneak out the door. Unfortunately all of these trackers have a VERY short battery life. I don’t want to be changing or recharging the battery every 7 to 10 days. Can’t they make one by putting 5 or 6 small batteries in the collar, and when one battery is depleted the device automatically starts using the next battery?

    Christine Gibb
    Christine Gibb

    January 27, 2017

    I am looking for a tracker that will allow me to see where my dog is when we are out walking on trails. For the most part he stays close but if he gets a scent of deer he will run. The area has dense bush. I have a strobe collar for him now but is not visible in the trees when he is running in a different direction. I am looking for something that will show up on my I phone with an app.

    diane
    diane

    January 25, 2017

    I think the NUZZLE is a scam too. Delays and can’t communicate with them no phone number available. Emailed them back for refund they will not respond

    Nan
    Nan

    January 22, 2017

    Is there a product that will track my dog if he becomes lost when we are traveling? I understand that most of the GPS trackers will track when the pet leaves a specific home area. But is there a product that will can be activated if there is no specific home base?

    Jim Shelby
    Jim Shelby

    January 20, 2017

    Nuzzle sent out an email on 21 January that went over ANOTHER product delay. I don’t think it’s a real product, I think they are running a pretty successful scam. I asked for my money back.

    Robert Rowe
    Robert Rowe

    January 15, 2017

    We are not happy with the Whistle tracker for a few reasons.

    1. There is a 3 munute delay on the map display update, including the time he leaves his base station, which is useless when youre tracking a dog on the run.

    By the time you get to the last tracking location, the dog is 3 minutes away which can be blocks away. Unless the dog is resting, you’re always a block or two behind. Even if you try to guess which way the dog went, it may have traveled a completely different direction.

    2. The tracking device has dislodged or has completely separated from the collar cradle on several occasions. This is completely unacceptable…no need to explain why.

    What good is a pet tracker if the device falls off and if it doesnt fall off, doesnt report a real time location of your pet.

    I believe Whistle is coming out with a newer version, but unless these two issues have been addressed in the new design, I definitely would not consider purchasing a second Whistle tracker.

    P.S. I’ve contacted Whistle regarding my concerns, but was only offered a 50% discount on a replacement tracker that fell of the collar and the dog chewed one of the antenna wings off. Why would I want a new tracker with the same issues?

    Ann Ciaverella
    Ann Ciaverella

    January 10, 2017

    I am looking for a GPS tracker that will record my dogs route and miles – curious how much he runs (total miles) at the dog park, as well as, on the trails when we run together. As far as I can tell, all of the devices are only live tracking. Is there such a device?

    Dog owner
    Dog owner

    January 02, 2017

    I had TAGG before they became whistle. Their product became terrible after the merger. I’ve been a three dog a month subscriber for years. My device failed and instead of sending me a new one they refused, resulting in having to refund me $75 in prepaid sibscription. Awful business model. I purchased nuzzle only to get postponement after postponement of shipping and the run around on any direct questions. How hard is it to make a reliable GPS device? My watch for aviation is more accurate than the instruments in the plane- so the technology exists and is affordable. Garmin needs to take this and create a pet GPS and clean up on this market.

    Tami Palacky
    Tami Palacky

    December 24, 2016

    i am looking for a smaller version of something for my cat. i was initially concerned she would lose it since she tends to figure out how to ditch her collars, but my neighbor pointed out that you can find the collar since it is traceable! which is great as i would not want to be replacing these expensive trackers on a regular basis.

    Catrine
    Catrine

    December 13, 2016

    PLEASE CONTACT NUZZLE AND VERIFY THAT THEY WILL ACTUALLY BE PRODUCING A GPS COLLAR. There is either a very serious issue with their design or manufacturing source OR they are a scam…….your article indicates they are the “best” of 2016. The reality is that they have been promising to ship the product every month since Jan. 2016 and yesterday delayed again until FEB. 2017. They have taken money from customers but have yet to ship one collar. Check it out, please.

    Mike
    Mike

    December 08, 2016

    STEVE CRINER Try using a harness type collar they can’t get out of them. My cat wonders all day everyday and I never see her all day long or where she goes for the last 2 yrs. Sometimes she doesn’t come home for a week. She’s not a friendly cat to other people being a domesticated feral cat so I really doubt she has another day family. Besides we have moved a lot lately. I want a tracker that will show me where she has gone and where she is at, at the moment and small enough for a med size cat. Most of these look to big for cats. Please help me out I need to know where she goes all day. I used to have a Loc8tor that used to work on a cat I had a long time ago but with this cat she goes farther away than 400’ to be able to find her. Need GPS with a SMS card.

    Heather
    Heather

    November 21, 2016

    All of these trackers are for attaching to collars. This does no good when your pet is STOLEN and they take the collar off the pet and throw it away. I’m looking for a GPS tracking system that works like the dog chips that the vet can scan and find the dog. But I am looking for it to be an active GPS tracker for the pet. Does anyone know if there is a GPS tracker that goes under the pet’s skin and if so, where can I find it?

    Faerie DogMother
    Faerie DogMother

    November 11, 2016

    Long Live the Dogs!
    www.LongLiveTheDogs.com
    Health and Longevity

    Faerie Dogmother
    Faerie Dogmother

    November 11, 2016

    Remember there could be a EMF component to address while wearing this. I like the ceramic beads you can attach directly on device, some have holes you could tie on. Only around $15, we’ve tested them w/meters and they do indeed diffuse the concentrated energy. Like essentials oils, it’s unfair to attach something that may affect our pets unseen – their senses are so much more sensitive than ours and EMF studies (mostly Europe) show a direct link to EMF-DNA disruption and to follow, cancer /disease. The idea of something implanted under the skin sounds lovely and I think they make it for children now – with enough I would be wary as well.. At least find something that would help defuse the energy.

    Susan Neal
    Susan Neal

    November 08, 2016

    Someone needs to invent a GPS tracker that can be put in the animal like a microchip as collars are taken off if stolen or they fall off . if there was a central database if a dog was stolen in Essex an alert would go up with everyone with these GPS so that they can look out for them if they were taken to say Scotland - come on people in these days of technology surely someone would make a fortune if they were reasonably priced

    Jerry Mann
    Jerry Mann

    October 29, 2016

    I would not reorder a Nuzzle since they have not answered my 3 different emails regarding questions on when they will ship.

    Jill
    Jill

    October 25, 2016

    I have a 16-year-old wiener dog cross who has been diagnosed with doggie dementia as well as losing his hearing. I am having an issue with him catching ascent trail and leaving my yard which happens to be located near a busy street. We live on just over an acre and would like to find a device that will alert me if he leaves a certain set area. He is a very small dog and needs something that is not huge as well as not heavy. I can’t spend more than $150 on this unit do you have any recommendations ?
    Sharon
    Sharon

    October 16, 2016

    I have Whistle on our cat. The cell signal here is weak so location and tracking is spotty at best. Folks should be aware that strength of cell signal plays an important role in satisfaction with your unit. I am not satisfied.

    Alex
    Alex

    September 29, 2016

    Thank you for this comprehensive list is very useful.. at the same time drives me crazy to think $10 bucks a month for this service – this is the cost of another cell line with my carrier and I get the phone for free, anyway…. my acceptable limit on a regular fee is $5 bucks month and that’s it, so those $49 a year are even better than my threshold, I’ll end up going with one of those
    I like much more of course, the model where you buy the device once and be done with it.

    Grace Chen
    Grace Chen

    September 22, 2016

    i have both Pod and Whistle for my 2 dogs. my dog with Pod is constantly showing at my neighbot’s house when Whistle is always exact where the dog is. On tracking, both area about the same time to track. Battery wise, Pod needs to be charge almost every other day while Whistle is charged every other week. Pod’s activity needs to be sync constantly when Whistle will send me the alert telling me my dog has met his exercise goal immediately. Whistle has ok customer service when Pod is horrible. always take forever to reply the email. the only good thing I can say about Pod is they are smaller than Whistle. Im about to change my Pod to something else while remain the Whistle on my one dog.

    Marina
    Marina

    September 18, 2016

    Which one is better to use in Brazil ?
    I need a gps one..
    All with de chip is gonna work here ?

    Matthew Kimball
    Matthew Kimball

    September 16, 2016

    Stay away from Whistle. TAGG used to be fantastic, service was great, support wonderful, but then they were bought out by Whistle who cannot seem to keep their servers online and tracking is nowhere near real time.

    steve criner
    steve criner

    September 14, 2016

    Hello, we sure could use some help..We are very interested in some type of device for tracking our cat.The only problem we can never keep a collar on him, no joke we have used at least a dozen of them and they never stay on..Any suggestions..Please help us,

    PEte
    PEte

    September 09, 2016

    Like COLLeen, I started with Tagg, and I really loved them. The tags would stay charged for a long time, and the service was awesome! With whistle, you have to charge the units all the time, you get false alerts, sometimes the commands do not work, so it’s more of a hands on , paying closer attention to what’s going on with the tracking, and locate. with whistle, I,am paying more a month now, and getting less.

    RIck WIlliams
    RIck WIlliams

    September 07, 2016

    We just cancelled our whistle account today. These people are terrible. Zero tech support, and if you buy a whistle,, you will definitely NEED tech support. Very hard company to work with

    Sumu
    Sumu

    September 06, 2016

    I switched from Tagg-Whistle to Pod. I love the technology and the low subscription costs, but it’s casing breaks after about seven, eight weeks. Since 12 days I am waiting for my fifth replacement and start looking for an alternative.
    Anybody?

    Thanks

    COlleen
    COlleen

    August 24, 2016

    I have a Whistle tracker and previously had the Tagg before they sold out to Whistle. I never had a problem with Tagg, unfortunately I can’t say the same for Whisle, although the customer service tech’s get back to you they just want to keep trouble shooting a device that clearly needs to be replaced. I’ve wasted a lot of my valuable time with these tech’s going over what the last tech already had me try! So frustrating! In the mean time I’m getting false notifications and constantly have to charge the device. There are lots of other companies out there, I’m amazed that they would rather pay all these tech’s to keep “trouble shooting” and loose a customer rather then send us a new device! Very disappointed!! My advice… Don’t buy a whistle product!!

    Keshia
    Keshia

    August 08, 2016

    We need a gps tracker for cats and dogs that go under the skin. While it’s okay for dogs to have collars on, it’s not the same with cats. When cats ware collars they usally end up getting those collars off. So seriously someone try to make a gps tracker that goes under the skin.

    Peter
    Peter

    August 04, 2016

    We’ve been using Tractive for a year. It’s pretty good – probably still the best out there. But for us it has these drawbacks:

    1. Battery life – having to charge it every three days is a pain – just worth doing. Only improved hardware can fix that issue.

    2. False positives – GPS (especially when indoors) can sometimes erroneously put the dog miles away for a second – unfortunately the Tractive service seems to respond immediately to short-term errors like that, instead of filtering them out as it should. They could and should improve the software to fix this.

    3. Inflexible boundary system – it’s just a circle centred on your chosen home location. Since we take the dog for a daily walk, we’d like to be able to make the rough path of that walk “safe” – otherwise we have to turn the tracker off to avoid getting a false positive. THEN remember to turn it back on – and there’s the problem, all too often we forget. It would be great if they could do software tweaks needed to allow a more flexible safe zone, but I suspect it would need hardware changes in the unit as well. Tractive 2 perhaps?

    Now the best part – the unit has a buzzer to help you find the dog, which is handy in itself. But for us, it’s way better than that: when we remotely turn the buzzer on, our dog immediately heads for home, so we don’t have to try and use the GPS map and clamber around neighbouring houses to find her. This is a wonderful bonus for us – your mileage may vary.

    Given all the above, we’re looking for a medium-range RF based (not bluetooth) device which we can use to simply sound a buzzer on her collar, because it would have the same effect. Haven’t found a good candidate yet – all the decent key finder devices are BT these days, with line-of-sight and range limits that would be too restricting.

    By the way Christina (June 17): The Tractive works in a whole range of countries, no SIM change.

    Michele
    Michele

    August 03, 2016

    So, these all look like great devices as long as your dog (or cat) keeps his collar on. Many lost dogs lose their collars fairly early on in their lost stage. And if someone steals your dog, which happens more frequently than you may realize, the first thing the thief will do is remove the collar. Overall, while this seems like a great idea it might be so only in theory.

    Casey779
    Casey779

    July 25, 2016

    I’m not sure why Pod Trackers isn’t on this list because it’s one of the top trackers (and the best in my opinion). Like someone said, it is one of the only ones still on the market. Someone also asked if there is a tracker that you can use outside of the USA – Pod does. The website says it works in 175 countries and we took ours to London where it worked. Like someone mentioned about the cracking we had the same thing happen with our Pod but the customer service is great. Apparently they have cleared their shelves and replaced all of old ones with new pod trackers which seem to be much stronger. So far so good anyway. We used to have two of the other trackers on this site and I can personally say that the Pod is the only one that has worked for us. Add them to the list!

    C
    C

    July 11, 2016

    The Garmin GTU was discontinued a while back. It was a decent tracker, but unfortunately the device is not supported anymore by garmin and you cannot get a subscription anymore.

    Corine
    Corine

    July 10, 2016

    PawTracker,

    Im curious about your dog tracker. Im aware that your must purchase your product in order to work. I have a question. Does your system only track in your product only and the reason for my question is can Paw tracker enter a Micro chip ona dogs already existing to be input to your system to see if the dog can be tracked. Im just curious.

    Thank you

    Corine

    MES Chalmers
    MES Chalmers

    June 29, 2016

    I have had the Pod Tracker since January 2016. The customer service is phenomenal – absolutely terrific. That said, I live in a rural area and struggle sometimes to have our pet located. Pod Trackers operate on a 2G network. At my office in an urban area, the accuracy is very good.
    Also, there was a design flaw with the rim of the receiver breaking and the battery no longer staying attached. The company was terrific about replacing it quickly, with no expense. The reason given was that it was an error on the part of the manufacturer that they had corrected. Unfortunately the replacement that they sent has now broken in the same place. Not sure what I will do next as I really like their customer service and am researching new devices. Nuzzle is available for pre-order to ship in November…

    Christina
    Christina

    June 17, 2016

    What I need is a GPS tracker that I can use with a dog while traveling abroad. Does anyone know of one where I can change out the SIM card from one country to another? Many of these are currently only available in North America requiring a cell plan in North American.

    Doug
    Doug

    June 08, 2016

    Has anyone looked at the fetch system? How is it?

    Amanda
    Amanda

    June 01, 2016

    I’ve had the whistle tracker (formerly T@gg) for a few years now. False notifications have become a big problem for me. I’ve rushed home too many times to find my dog sitting inside. The ONE time I’ve actually had to use the tracker, which helped me find my dog and bring him home, is worth having a tracker of some kind. But I am shopping other companies now.

    Kathy
    Kathy

    May 31, 2016

    I can’t seem to locate any info as to the accuracy of the gps trackers. Do any of the above listed give you exact coordinates or are they just ranges within say a 200 ft area? If my indoor cat gets outside, searching all directions 200 ft out from a given point would be useless. Any insight would be much appreciated.

    Sharon Cannoy
    Sharon Cannoy

    May 28, 2016

    I have the Whistle GPS tracker for my dog. Its premise is good. It will automatically notify you when your pet has strayed away from the base unit with the actual location. Even while traveling with your pet it will tell you where you are. However…..it has given me many false reports, sometimes with my dog sitting next to me. One false report was when we were out of the country and someone else was watching him. I am now looking for another option.

    Todd
    Todd

    May 04, 2016

    I wish this article would list gps trackers that are actually available today. Three of them accept only pre-orders and one is sold out until who-knows-when…I haven’t heard back from their customer service to find out. Looking at reviews, Gibi and Whistle must be the bottom of the barrel, leaving Tractive as the best option on this list. Have you reviewed Pod Trackers? How do they stack up? I can assume not well since they didn’t make your list of gps trackers (some of which aren’t even gps trackers as the title indicates).

    Daniel
    Daniel

    March 08, 2016

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