SENTRY Calming Collar for Cats, Up to 15-Inch Neck, Includes Three Cat Calming Collars, Lavender Chamomile Fragrance

The collar works - no doubt about that. That's why I gave it 5 stars. However, if I was rating it on safety, it would be 0 stars. The collar is dangerous. I read all the reviews about it getting caught in the cat's jaw, but I stupidly figured it was "user error," and bought one anyway.It's not user error. It's a careless, negligent manufacturing flaw that should have been fixed long ago. It's stiff, with a horrible buckle, and extremely difficult to adjust after you put it on. It also stretches out pretty quickly.Your cat WILL get its mouth caught in it eventually. All they have to do is bend their neck down to clean themselves, eat, whatever, and they're caught like a horse with a bit in its mouth.Once that happens, you're dealing with a panicked, fighting cat. She'll run, and she'll hide, and trying to catch her becomes a battle. Once you catch her, it gets worse.You probably know what it's like to try and hold a cat just to clip its nails. Add her sheer panic and pain, and then YOUR own panic (and then pain) as you try to pull this stiff, non-breaking collar over her head, or away from her neck long enough to cut it. Done it. Twice. Not fun. And she didn't get over it for days.I tried a dozen different ways to make it safer - adding elastic, tying the ends to breakaway buckles scrounged from an old collar, but she still got caught. Nothing worked.But then I finally figured it out.All you need is a regular safety (breakaway) cat collar, three very thin zip ties, and a pair of scissors.1) Put the regular collar on your cat and fit it correctly - you shouldn't be able to get more than two fingers between the cat's neck and the collar.2) Cut the calming collar's ridiculous buckle off and curse it as you send it to Hades. Take the rest of the calming collar and cut it in half (or thirds if you have a small cat) - all you need is enough to go around the front of the cat's neck.3) Use tiny zip ties to bind the calming collar to the OUTSIDE of the regular collar in at least three places - the middle and at both ends (pictures attached) and with the nubs facing away from her neck so they don't poke her.4) Cut off the rest of the zip ties as close as you can. I usually file or sand the little nubs left if they're sharp.This fix solves both major problems with the calming collar, a) the danger of it getting caught in her mouth, since it now fits correctly and has a true breakaway buckle, and b) the loss of fur and/or irritation of the skin, because there's very little contact with the cat's neck.On top of all that, you'll save a lot of money because you're able to make at least two collars out of one, since you're cutting it in half or smaller. I actually get six, because my cat is so tiny I had to cut the collar in half lengthwise too to fit the regular collar (see pics). Just keep the extra pieces in a sandwich baggie till you need them so the pheromones stay active.Hope this helps, because the collar really does work. But I think someone should sue the crap out of Sentry because this collar is so dangerous and they know it. I'm surprised there hasn't been a class action against them considering the number of cats hurt.If you have any questions, just let me know. Good luck!

We just got the Sentry Calming Collars a few days ago, so the jury is still out exactly how well they work, but I wanted to share how I adapted them for my own use in case it will help someone else.Background: We have two 12 yr old altered littermates, one male and one female. No real issues with either one, except occasional peeing and pooping outside the litterbox. About 2 weeks ago we added a third kitty, a 3 month old neutered male. The 12 yr olds hate him and are quite stressed out, even with a gradual introduction of the new kitten. In researching strategies for adding a new member to a cat family, I came across calming collars, Feliway diffusers and calming chews.First tried the Feliway, but because of so many negative reviews regarding it being a fire hazard, I used one reviewer's tip of putting reed fragrance diffuser sticks into the refill bottle and just letting it sit out, rather than using it in the plug-in diffuser. Because it is fragrance free, I have no idea if the cats are aware of it and didn’t really notice any difference. I was hoping for instant success, which didn’t happen. Almost immediately, I decided to order the Sentry Calming Collars. Again, because of so many negative reviews mainly because cats are getting injured while getting their bottom jaw caught on them, I was really interested in the suggestions some of the other reviewers gave on how they adapted the collars to make them safely useable. I do want to note that several years ago one of our cats got her bottom jaw caught on a standard breakaway collar and the same thing happened, it did not break open and she panicked and could have easily been badly hurt if I hadn’t been home at the time to rescue her. I will never again make the mistake of having the collar too loose, thinking one finger width is just too tight. Cats do not really like wearing collars and will do whatever they can to get them off, and they can wriggle those tiny jaws in the smallest gap.Since the cats now have “bikini” collars – they are a lot like friendship bracelets with a breakaway feature, which I ordered on Amazon - I had to think of an option that would work with these type of thin collars. Here is what I did: I cut a scrap of polyester knit fabric (for strong wear) 4 ½” by 2 3/8”, and made them based on the same method as you’d make an “envelope” pillow cover (you can Google it for step by step). I then hand sewed two snaps on the long open edge, and hand sewed ½” plastic carbone rings on the short ends. The rings may not be necessary, but I already had them on hand and was hoping they would prevent the pouch from twisting. Next I cut a section of the Sentry Calming Collar to fit into the pouch (I can cut 4 equal length sections from one collar), snapped it closed, and then I slid the rings onto the ends of the collar (see pic). I then put the collars on the cats and readjusted the size so they wouldn’t be too tight with the added bulk of the pouch. When I was satisfied with the sizing, I took the collars back off the cats and hand stitched (whip stitch) the pouch to the collar. The breakaway feature is not affected at all, the pouch can easily be unsnapped to replace the section of Sentry Calming Collar and they are nice and soft and don’t irritate the cat as much as a hard collar would. You can see in the pic the collars do get scratched at and a bit snagged, so I will probably have to restitch the pouch to the collar at some of the point - didn't have the right color of an upholstery thread on hand.But do they work to calm the cats? The first day, after all that work to make two little pouches, they didn’t seem to make one bit of difference. I wasn’t sure if they were just not going to work for my cats or if the fabric acted as a barrier, or if it will just take a while to see any results. The second day they did seem to be slightly more tolerant of the kitten, and today seems to be even a little better. So, no instant change, but I am happy with a little better each day.As far as the scent, it is very pleasant and not overwhelming at all. Not sure if we got lucky or if other reviewers are super sensitive, but nothing offensive about the smell at all.Fingers crossed that it just keeps getting better. I also ordered the calming chews, but haven’t gotten them yet. I don’t want to take any chances any one of the cats will become stressed to the point of marking/spraying all over the house.Update 7-3-2015: I believe the collars are helping relieve the stress of the new kitten in the household. No instant bonding, but a definite differance in the older cats' tolerance toward the kitten, snd no litterbox problems. They will play with him some, I've seen some nose rubbing, and they'll now allow him to eat in his own dish right next to them -- far cry from the pre-collar days. Also, the little pouches I made are working out well and don't seem to bother the cats at all. We did order the calming treats, but they won't eat them (they are very picky about treats). So yes, I would definitely recommend the calming collars with sone type of safety modification -- there are a few besides my own that you can find within the reviews of this product.

I really cant believe what a difference this has made in my cat. I adopted him at two years old and he's always been nervous, and afraid of anyone touching his head. I have reason to believe he came from an abusive home. Recently he started displaying some anxious behaviour and was marking everywhere, my closet, my bed. I was at my wit's end. He's had this collar for 4 days and we've had no issues from the moment we put it on him. He's also become very relaxed, will let you pet him, will come lay with me where as before he was quite often standoffish and unsettled. I'm not one to rave about animal products, but this has been a remarkable transformation. The scent is a bit strong, but aside from that, I am unaware of it.

So happy with this product I bought three collars as I have two cats one who is over anxious to the point she was over grooming and leaving bald patches on herself as well as scratching herself. And another Cat who scratches furniture and seems to think he has to take on the world and fight every other cat ...resulting in numerous visits to the vet.Since popping on the collar I have noticed a change anxious cat fur is growing back and she seems much calmer and the boisterous cat seems a lot calmer and more chilled out and his persistent scratching of furniture has lessened.So this has lifted a huge weight off my shoulders would recommend

Non fa i miracoli, ma come supporto può andare bene.Il problema che ho riscontrato é il profumo troppo forte che persiste per giorni e uno dei collari appena tolto dalla custodia sigillata aveva una pellicola bianca che si sgretolava, perdendo pezzettini in giro per casa.

No difference for my cats

I read about some health concerns on the amazon.com site after I already ordered. There were concerns about bad reactions / welts where the collar touched the neck, and also about the collar getting stretched and catching in the cat's jaw when they try to get it off. When I saw that I tried to cancel my order, but too late.However, there were also instructions on how to adapt the product to make it safe, so I decided to try it after all. The instructions suggested cutting the collar in pieces and using small zip ties to attach it to a proper breakaway collar, on the outside of the substrate collar so it does not touch the skin. According to comments on that review, it worked well to address both concerns.In my case I cut it in thirds, and used a needle and thread to stitch one piece to a breakaway collar at both ends and in the middle, rather than using zip ties. It seemed to work just as well, and was quite secure, with no sharp edges.All seemed fine for a few days. I did notice an improvement. But then I started to notice, although she was more peaceful, she wasn't moving much. However, that could just be because she's getting older. After a week I observed her stumbling a bit, as though she had no strength in her front legs, and that raised a bigger alarm bell for me. I realized the timing was too much of a coincidence to ignore, and took off the collar for a test. Thus far, after a day and a half without it, she does seem a bit better, with a bit more life in her eyes, and although she is still moving gingerly, I have not seen her stumble today. I am continuing to watch for further signs of improvement.Needless to say, I would never knowingly do anything to harm my cat, and would not want anyone else to take false reassurance from the workaround that was offered, as I did, and put their loved one at risk.So if you do try this collar, please follow the helpful advice that is available on how to work around the safety concerns, and still watch carefully for signs of a bad reaction, and be ready to discontinue if necessary.Obviously, based on this experience, I would now consider this collar as a fairly extreme measure, to be used with caution as a last resort, while other options such as the plug-in pheromone dispensers and area sprays may be worth trying first.