We've had an AirTag on our dog now for a few weeks and wanted to report back the pros and cons of using AirTags in this way.
First: It's already well-documented that AirTags are not for tracking pets, and now I see why.
Pros:
Okay, now Cons:
Hopefully Family sharing is made available soon.
First: It's already well-documented that AirTags are not for tracking pets, and now I see why.
Pros:
- Initially we had a bit of fun by randomly playing the noise once or twice a day. At first, our pupper was a bit confused and it gave us a chuckle. After a few times, however, the dog stopped caring. I would barely call this a "pro". But hey. Worth mentioning.
- Had our dog at a backyard gathering that was not at our home. It was a larger backyard than we were used to and very dark. The owner told us the backyard was completely fenced in, but we weren't 100% sure of that. While enjoying the fire pit and conversation, we would occasionally trigger the noise to find out where in the large backyard our dog was located. NOTE: This only worked sometimes. When the dog was around 40-50 feet or further away from us, the AirTag would not connect and the sound would not play.
- Our house is not large, but sometimes it can be hard to know where the dog is resting his head. We can play the noise to easily find him. But, to be honest, he always comes when called - so barely a pro for us.
Okay, now Cons:
- As far as I can tell, your Apple device has to be close to the AirTag to trigger the noise. There were several times in a large backyard when the AirTag would fail to connect because the dog was more than about 40 feet away.
- The AirTag is currently attached to his collar on a simple Apple leather strap. A thief could easily spot this and rip it off / toss it away, negating any anti-thievery unless we upgraded to a custom AirTag collar that was somewhat more discreet.
- While our dog is not an escape artist or the type to run away from home, we do have the fear that he'll one day chase after a squirrel and become lost. Because AirTags "check in" with nearby iPhones to be found, I find it very unlikely that this would help us find our dog if he was running around the neighborhood. Our dog is very wary and nervous of other people. He probably wouldn't let anyone get close enough to him. It would be extraordinarily lucky for him to ping a nearby iPhone.
- THE BIGGEST CON: I paired the AirTag to my phone and then left my wife and dog on a 5 day work trip. After three days, the AirTag started randomly making noise. At first, my wife thought that I was trying to mess with her. But this is actually intended AirTag behavior to alert others to 1) a possible lost item or 2) someone trying to stalk you. There's really no reason an AirTag shouldn't be able to be a part of a "Family". Frustrating.
- To piggyback off of this: What would happen if my dog escaped and became lost while I wasn't home and was unavailable? My wife would have no way to reach me for help, rendering the AirTag totally useless. I could be on an airplane, in a bad service area, or simply have my phone off.
Hopefully Family sharing is made available soon.