The dogs can't tell us how much they worked out. That's where the smart collar comes in.
There are Collars withGPS that have been around for a while. The bulkiness and unwieldy antennae of earlier models were not consumer-friendly.
Several new companies have improved on the concept in the last few years. There are several waterproof, lightweight, and long-life devices on the market, and they all have the same features.
Similar to the Apple Watch, smart collars use motion tracking and sensors to gather data about your dog's habits. The app shows graphs and charts of doggy activity.
Credit: Fi
Credit: Fi
Humans and dogs have been friends for tens of thousands of years. Do we really need an app to know about our dogs? A device that tells us what a responsible dog owner knows is necessary. There is more to be learned about our furry friends.
Dogs can't tell us what they need.
I can't just look at my dog and say, "Hey, did you sleep well last night?" I can pull my app. Jonathan Bensamoun is the founder and CEO of smart collar company Fi.
Bensamoun isn't obsessed with trackers. I've tried all of the trackers and every time after a day, I'm like, "Okay, cool, what do I care?" Before my Apple Watch told me, I knew I had a bad night of sleep. But for his German Shepherd, it is different. Absolutely, when it comes to my dog. It's reassuring.
The activity features are fun and useful, but the location tracking is the primary function.
Harvey took off into the woods when Victor Esteves didn't hear from him after he called. Esteves found Harvey looking for moles after 15 minutes of searching. Esteves said that he decided to buy a Fi collar when he was happy-go-lucky. I feel a huge peace of mind knowing that he has it.
Harvey wanted to hunt for moles. Credit: Victor Esteves.
Losing your dog is a nightmare. The ability to track your dog is a great value. The activity tracking raises questions about the role of tech in our lives.
The company wanted users to not get obsessive about steps. We make sure that we don't create the wrong incentive when we build these features. You don't want to be like, "Okay, go walk your dog 100,000 steps a day", because you don't want to just create a leaderboard. The interface shows how many steps dogs are taking. Users can get a sense of what a normal amount of exercise is.
Bensamoun said that the incentive they're trying to create is consistency. The activity tracking is about meeting your own goal for your dog, not a universal standard. This removes any competition.
There is a friendly rivalry between dog owners. Jo Tic has a Fi collar for her Border Collie/Australian Shepherd mix, Riley, who is scored in the top [ranking] of Australian Shepherds in the area.
Does she ever feel like the competition gets too much? Tic said it never stresses him out. It gets me excited to see the potential because I feel inspired by what other dog owners and other dogs do. Tic is the director of fundraising for a foster group in Texas. I like to celebrate other dogs' successes.
David Buccola, a carpenter from Manhattan, NY, is motivated to walk his dogs when he sees a dog in front. The man named Buccola has two chihuahuas named Lexi Bell and Taco Bell and he likes to prove people wrong. I get a kick out of Lexi being ranked high. She loves to get out there and it defies the stereotype that she should just be carried around in a purse.
Lexi Bell doesn't care about your anti-Chihuahua prejudice. David Buccola was credited.
A lot of the time, Buccola and his wife go for bike rides in northern Manhattan. They have baskets on their bikes for when the dogs get tired, but they are amazed by their little dogs' endurance. The devices make you realize that our dogs can do more than we think.
Being able to track activity has made Jo Tic feel more connected to Riley. Consistency of the tracking allows her to look for trends or find answers. Riley was not eating the day before the interview. She looked at the app. She probably just pooped out because we got so much exercise on our hike.
When she goes to the vet, she can just pull up the data and share what she sees. That is why Dr. Ward is a fan.
When I'm in the exam room, I ask the client how often they walk their dog. Most Americans will say, "I don't know, you know, 30 to 40 minutes a day." 12 minutes is how long it will take to match that up with the data reported on the device. A review of studies found that humans tend to overreport their activity levels. We would do the same thing with our dogs.
Dr. Ward says that weight loss for dogs is 60 to 70 percent diet related, but activity trackers can help by providing accurate data about how much or how little exercise your dog is getting.
The reality is that your dog is probably laying down somewhere completely inactive for about 16 hours a day, and that's what people think.
This benchmarking can be useful for dogs that are being led to a specific goal. FitBark was used by Sassafras Lowrey to track her rehabilitation after her dog had double knee surgery. The metrics gathered by FitBark helped Lowrey to see the improvement in his dog, but he was also working with a veterinary physical therapist.
FitBark was used by Lowrey to gather different metrics. Credit: Sassafras Lowrey.
It may seem like more intrusive tech that bombards the public with more data. If they let us know where to find our dogs, keep us honest about exercise, and give us other health insights about our best friends, maybe they are worth it.
