If you have a Fitbit or other wearable health device, you know that it gives you a detailed look into your health. What if you could do the same with your dog’s health?
A dog Fitbit might sound odd. However, monitoring your dog’s activity is crucial. Recent research shows that in the United States, 56% of pet dogs are overweight or obese. Extra weight can shorten your pet’s life and contribute to health problems.
Fortunately, a dog activity tracker can make optimizing your furry friend’s quality of life easier than ever. Check out three quality options below.
The Best Dog Fitness Trackers
The “pet Fitbit” market has been steadily growing in popularity. With so many products on the market, it can be hard to know where to start. Here are three potential devices to consider.
Petkit P2
If you love modern and minimalist designs, you’ll love this Bluetooth-enabled tracker. Its claim to fame is its ability to track your pet’s moods. That might sound dubious, but it’s not just a mood ring for dogs — it uses a specialized algorithm to analyze your dog’s sleep and activity levels to determine their mood. That’s not all it has to offer, though:
- The associated app includes a calendar for you to schedule vet visits and other important events
- It tracks mood, sleep, and exercise to give you a detailed picture of your dog’s health
- You can combine it with Petkit’s smart bowls to track calories consumed and burned
- The app lets you connect with other Petkit users, post photos, and more
However, if you want to track your dog’s number of steps or total mileage covered, you might want to consider another dog pedometer — this one primarily focuses on minutes of activity.
Sure Petcare Animo
This one might be the best Fitbit for dogs when it comes to monitoring your pet’s health. And more specifically, it’s outstanding when it comes to nutrition monitoring. The Animo uses an extra-detailed algorithm when calculating calories burned — it accounts for your dog’s age, weight, and even whether they’re neutered. The Animo also has plenty of other benefits:
- It helps you keep track of barking, scratching, and other potentially concerning behaviors
- It monitors your dog’s overall sleep quality
- The battery life is extraordinarily long-lasting — it lasts up to six months
- You can view data in graph form by the day, week, month, or year
While the Animo delivers super-comprehensive results, there is one potential concern to be aware of. In many reviews, owners have mentioned that if the device gets bumped even slightly out of place, there can be issues with data collection.
Whistle Go Explore
Is your pup an escape artist? If so, the Whistle Go Explore might be the right dog Fit bit for you. It alerts you when your dog leaves your designated “safe zones,” and it also helps you find them using GPS tracking.
However, if you go with this Fitbit for dogs, you’ll be able to do so much more than just track down your pet. Here’s a rundown of some of its best features:
- It monitors licking and scratching behaviors so you can detect health issues early on
- It lets you connect to veterinarians on-demand
- It’s waterproof and built to last
- The battery lasts for 15 days
The Whistle Go Explore has a lot to recommend it, but there are a few limitations to be mindful of. The biggest one might be the fact that you need reliable AT&T coverage if you want to be able to accurately track your dog’s movements. You also need to purchase a subscription to be able to see most of the data.
Which Pedometer for Dogs Is Best?
Ultimately, the answer to that question is up to you. Of the trackers above, the Whistle Go Explore is best if you’re concerned about your dog escaping, the Sure Petcare Animo is best if you want ultra-comprehensive health data, and the Petkit P2 is best if you want a tracker that doubles as a digital planner for your pup.
Any one of the trackers above will accomplish what a tracker should — they’ll give you a valuable glimpse into your pet’s health and happiness.
