How to stop your dog's tag jingling (and keep the ID on)

Most of the noise is metal on metal: an ID tag, an old council or insurance tag and sometimes a vaccination tag from abroad, all on one ring, knocking into each other and the D-ring every time your dog shakes, scratches or trots. At night it's the head shake before settling, and at mealtimes it's the tags hitting a metal bowl.

• Take off the tags you don't need: old council tags, expired insurance tags, a second ID tag with an out-of-date number. One good tag is quieter than three.
• Fit a tag silencer: a rubber or silicone sleeve that wraps round the edge of a tag so it can't clink. They cost a few pounds and fit most tags.
• Use a small fabric tag pouch that holds several tags together against the collar.
• Move the tag onto its own ring rather than the D-ring you clip the lead to, so the lead fittings aren't knocking into it on every step.

The quietest setup that's still legal and easy to find is an embroidered collar with your name and address, plus one QR code dog tag on its own ring. PetTag is printed plastic rather than metal, so it doesn't clink the way metal tags do, and anyone who finds your dog can scan it to reach you.

• A slide-on tag that threads onto the collar and sits flat. It can't swing, so it can't jingle, and there's no split ring to work open.
• A plate riveted to the collar.
• A collar with your name and address embroidered or engraved on it, which satisfies the law with nothing hanging at all.
• A plastic tag instead of a metal one. Plastic doesn't clink, and it's lighter on a small dog.

Don't take your dog's ID off to get a quiet walk. The Control of Dogs Order 1992 requires a dog in a public place to wear a collar with the owner's name and address on it or on a tag attached to it, and a microchip doesn't count. Our UK dog tag law guide has the detail.

Taking the collar off at night is a personal choice, but if your dog could slip out of the house or garden, the ID should be on. See should my dog wear a collar all the time.

Constant head shaking or scratching at the collar is worth a look beyond the noise: check the collar isn't too tight or rubbing, and that the skin underneath is healthy. Our guide on how tight a dog's collar should be covers the two-finger check. Head shaking can also be a sign of an ear problem, which is one for your vet.

For cats it's often the other way round: some owners want a bell on purpose. Our cat collar bell guide covers when that helps.