This is from another list, but it really hits home. So, for anyone that leaves collars on their dogs…. please read.... Obviously it is a double edged sword to take off or leave on... but I have had this happen at shows, but I was right there, still had to cut the collar off..... but it is the reason that at home mine do not wear collars.
This is from the person that imported the Lukuru Basenjis
My four native imports are totally house dogs. They have free run in the house and yard as a pack (at night and during meals they each have a crate). Many of you know that when we moved to Ohio, we were very lucky to get an acre yard that I immediately fenced in with 6-foot high fencing and extra precautions to make it "basenji-proof." In the first months of settling in, Amisi managed to escape two times. He LOVES the children across the road and sits at the fence crying when the school bus passes in the afternoon. Both escapes were to get to the children and play. They love all the dogs and I am vigilant about watching (well, obviously wasn't enough early on to catch his break outs). Anyway, each time he escaped we took extra measures and made added levels of security. Out of fear, I have been keeping collars on all four of them, with their tags and ID firmly attached. They are all microchipped. The girlz have chewed off each others collars in play. But, I think that replacing them is a small price to pay for my mental comfort. Anyway, this morning -- just about an hour ago; I'm still shaking -- I heard the most God forsaken, soul wrenching screams coming from the family room. I was sitting in my office working but knew instantly from the sound that there was a serious problem. It was one of those very cellular-response reactions of immediacy. It was sort of the reaction in my gut that comes when you hear the crunching of metal associated with a very serious car wreck.
When the kidz play, they jump, twist, spin, wrestle, hold, dart, etc.
When I reached the family room, I could see that Lema and Mopaya were somehow locked together and freaking out! I immediately held them and calmed them down until I could assess the situation. Mopaya was having trouble breathing ... that was my first concern. From the fear in her eyes, I could see that Lema was in the grips of pain. As I felt around and figured out what was going on, I found that Lema had somehow twisted her jaw in Mopaya's collar. Each time Lema moved to try to free her jaw and get out of the lock, the collar twisted tighter on Paya and cut off her airway. You could tell that all four of them were absolutely terrified. I couldn't reach the fasteners to release the collar. So, I had to slowly work Lema and Paya out of it. Lema and Paya immediately went on the defensive. So, I had to sit with them and talk them through the crisis moment. Everyone is still tense but everyone is fine. No one is wearing a collar now. Play has resumed in full ....
I do, however, have collars/tags on my dogs when we travel AND i have an info sheet on each crate about that individual dog.
