My Story

You know that sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach when you cannot find your pet. You frantically call their name and search everywhere. Then you realize your little one may truly be gone. It is a dreadful feeling.

My pets have always been part of my family. Several years ago, I was living with my son and our three dogs. Life was hectic, and despite watching them closely, one of my dogs escaped.

Hattie, my little black dog, was wearing a homemade stretch collar that my sister had made for me. It slipped comfortably over her head and had my phone number written on it.

Then my phone rang.

A stranger asked if I had a little black dog. She told me that Hattie had been hit by a car and was lying on the side of the road. She promised to stay with her until I arrived.

Hattie was only about 100 feet from my house.

I ran outside in a panic and found her lying in the street in shock. A police officer happened to be passing by. He stopped, put us in his car and drove us directly to the nearest animal hospital.

Hattie spent the next five days receiving treatment in an oxygen chamber. Thankfully, she made a complete recovery. It could have ended very differently.

That frightening experience stayed with me and made me think about how easily a pet can slip out of a house, yard or open gate. Many pet owners remove their dog’s regular collar or harness indoors because buckles and dangling tags can be noisy or uncomfortable. But if a pet escapes without identification, the person who finds them may have no way to contact their family.

Microchips are an important backup, but they are not visible and require someone to take the pet somewhere with a scanner. GPS collars can be helpful, but they may be bulky and depend on batteries, cellular service or subscriptions.

I wanted something much simpler: a soft, lightweight and comfortable way for a pet to carry visible identification.

My sister began making stretch ID bands for my dogs because I could not find anything like them on the market. We made extras and gave them to friends, who immediately told us that we should sell them.

At first, I did not believe something so simple could become a business. But the idea never left me.

A few years later, with my sister’s sewing skills and a great deal of experimenting, we developed the first undercollar® prototype. We shared the new bands with friends, and their response was overwhelming. That was when I realized we had created a simple solution to a very real problem.

The patented undercollar® is made from soft, flexible stretch banding with no buckles, fasteners or dangling tags. It slips gently over your pet’s head and can be worn with or without a regular walking collar or harness.

Simply write your pet’s name and phone number on the included waterproof strip, slide it beneath the clear protective window and place the undercollar® over your pet’s head.

There is no QR code, GPS, app or tracking service. It is simply comfortable, visible identification with a phone number someone can call if your pet is found.

I sometimes describe it as underwear for pets—soft, simple and meant for everyday wear underneath everything else!

And the name? It simply popped into my head and made perfect sense: undercollar®.

My mission is to help more pets remain comfortably identified so they have a better chance of finding their way home.

Because every pet deserves to:

Never. Be. Without. ID.

Tracy Young
Founder and CEO, undercollar®

My three fur babies: Mr. T. in white, Hattie in black and Abby—the alpha dog!