Dog identification

Dog ID tag — what to engrave

An ID tag has one job: a stranger holding your dog by the collar should know who to call within five seconds. Below: what to engrave, what to never put on it, and how engraving differs from a QR code. Start with the preview — type your dog's name.

The Prizo team Updated: 25 July 2026

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Preview

See your dog's name on the tag

Type a name and see how it sits on a Prizo tag — portrait and name on the front, a permanent QR code on the back.

Dog's name

Letters only, 14 characters max — that's what stays legible on the metal.

Or try a popular one:

See the tag with this name No name yet? Try the dog name generator

Front

Back

Illustrative preview. Colors and texture of the finished print may differ.

What to engrave on a dog tag

A tag fits two, at most three lines. Order matters — what gets the dog home comes first.

This belongs on it

A phone numberThe one thing without which a tag is pointless. A finder calls straight away — no internet, no app, no database lookup. Use the number you actually answer.
A second phone numberIf it fits: a partner, a parent, a neighbour. Dogs go missing precisely when you're at work, travelling, or have your phone on silent.
The dog's nameHelps a finder calm the dog and speak to it by name. Convenient, but optional — the phone number does the work.
A short note about the QR code or chipOne word ("QR", "chipped") tells a finder there's more to check. Without it, a QR code often reads as decoration.

Leave this off

Your home addressAnyone who finds the dog reads the tag — and a dog out alone also signals that nobody is home. A phone number is enough to get the dog back.
Your full nameIt isn't needed for a phone call. A first name reads warmer and leaves no trace you don't control.
Medical history and medication listsIt won't stay legible, and within a year it will be out of date. That's a job for the digital passport you edit from your phone.
Anything in tiny printIf the number can't be read after dark, in rain, or without reading glasses, it doesn't work. Two large lines beat five microscopic ones.

Engraving, QR code or microchip?

Three different ways to identify a dog — each fails in a different situation. Which is why they're worth combining, not choosing between.

Engraved metal tag

A phone number stamped or engraved directly into the metal.

Works when: The finder has a phone on them. It works without internet, battery or any app — the simplest thing that can work.
Fails when: The engraving wears down against the lead, pavement and bowl (thin budget tags lose legibility within months), your number changes, or you need more than two lines.

QR-code tag

A code that opens a page with contact details and information about the dog.

Works when: The finder has a phone with internet. You update the details yourself, without replacing the tag — new number, second contact, medication, lost mode.
Fails when: There's no signal, the phone is dead, the finder doesn't recognise the code — or the page behind it stops existing. With cheap stickers pointing at a random service, that's a real risk.

Microchip

A chip under the skin, read with a scanner, with a number held in a registry.

Works when: The dog reaches a vet, shelter or municipal service — they have readers. Also required for travel inside the European Union.
Fails when: An ordinary passer-by finds the dog: no scanner, no idea where to look. It also fails when your registry details are out of date.

The safest setup is engraving plus a QR code: the phone number always works, and the code adds everything else while keeping the details editable. The chip stays as backup for the shelter case.

The other side

What the person who finds your dog sees

A QR code only helps if the page behind it makes sense to someone who has never heard of Prizo, has no account, and is holding a dog with one hand. Open the demo passport — exactly the version a finder sees in lost mode.

THIS DOG IS LOST

Rio

Golden retriever · 3 years old

Call the owner

Send a message

Share location

Important

Allergic to chicken. Nervous around loud noises.

The demo details are fictional. A real passport shows only what you choose to share — never your home address.

Common questions

What should you put on a dog ID tag?

A phone number you answer, always. If there's room left: a second number and the dog's name. Leave your home address off — a phone number is all it takes to get the dog back.

Is the dog's name on a tag safe?

In most situations yes, and it helps: a finder can speak to the dog by name and calm it faster. If your dog is valuable or you worry about luring, keep just the phone number on the metal — nothing is lost.

Engraving or a QR code?

Engraving is reliable but fixed; a QR code is flexible but needs the finder to have internet. Together they close both gaps: the number is always visible, and the code carries the rest.

Does a tag replace a microchip?

No. A chip is read by vets, shelters and municipal services, and it's required for EU travel. A tag works for the ordinary passer-by who has no reader — so neither replaces the other.

Which tag for a puppy?

Light and quiet — a puppy wears a collar you'll replace anyway. With a puppy the details change most (new vet, vaccinations, sometimes your number), so a QR-based tag saves you a series of re-engravings.

How do you attach a tag so it doesn't jingle?

A split ring by the lead clip, or a silicone pad between the tag and the other danglers. If your dog reacts to the noise, pick one larger tag instead of several small ones.

The Prizo tag

Name on the front, QR code on the back

A metal tag with your dog's portrait and name, and a permanent QR code on the back that opens a digital passport with lost mode. You edit the details from your phone — the tag stays the same.

Meet the Prizo tag

Looking for a name? Try the dog name generator Dog missing? See what to do in the first hour New dog at home? Check the puppy starter kit