How to Make an E-Collar for a Cat

An e-collar is also known as an Elizabethan collar. When placed around the neck of your cat it creates a funnel shaped cone that allows it to see where it is going but prevents it from scratching its head or rubbing its eyes. These precautions are recommended when your cat has suffered an injury that needs time to be healed undisturbed. You can purchase a collar at a pet store, but you can also make one with simple household products.

Things You'll Need

  • Cat Collar
  • Measuring tape
  • Poster board
  • Marker
  • Scissors
  • Ruler
  • Stick pins
  • Yarn
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Instructions

    • 1

      Take off your cat's regular collar and measure it. You will want to find the circumference that best represents the length of the collar when it cannot be removed but is comfortably worn by your cat.. Take note of the number.

    • 2

      Place your poster board on a solid surface and draw the first of two circles. The first circle is an inner circle that represents the size of the cat's collar. Draw the circle and then compare this to the cat's collar. They should be almost the same size.

    • 3

      Measure the length of your cat's head. This measurement will be the circumference of the second circle. Draw this circle's measurement from the edge of the first circle. If you are comfortable with the e-collar just covering the head, this will be large enough. You can add several inches to make the collar larger if you feel your cat will be able to scratch or tear inside the funnel of the smaller collar.

    • 4

      Punch a whole in the middle of the first circle and use this to carefully cut the first circle out of the center. This is where your cat's head will be. Now cut around the outer edge of the second circle. The poster board should look like a oval with a hole in the center.

    • 5

      Draw a straight line from the outer edge of the circle to the inner hole. Cut this line, opening the circle. Take a stick pin and punch holes on both sides of the cut line. The number of holes you will need depends on the size of the collar. If you elected to make it the length of your cat's head you will be fine with two to three holes a few inches apart. Punch more if the collar is larger.

    • 6

      Cut yarn strips of no greater than four to six inches. You will need as many strips as you made holes in the collar. Take the yarn and thread them through both sides of the cut line using the punched out holes. Do not tie them. Put the collar on your cat and then tighten the thread to a knot.