What type of e-collar do you recommend?

[Rutting Buck]

I need to purchase an e-collar for my dog.  I was set on buying sport dog 1875 until I went to call them today and the phone line isn't working.  Customer service is a big thing in my book and if I can't get ahold of them when I need them they are of no use to me.  What brand and model collars do you recommend?  I only have one dog, but will eventually y get another so I think I want to be able to run multiple collars off the same remote.

 

Thanks,

 

RB

[MikeStaten]

Dogtra, Garmin (formerly tritronics) and DT Systems are all popular with hunters and trainers.  Sport Dog may be fine but I think they are considered lower quality than the ones I listed.  You will probably need to get together a list of features (want a GPS tracker?  Beeper? etc..) and then narrow down from there. 

 

I'd call these guys and tell them what you want and see what they say.  www.collarclinic.com

 

Looks like this one   will do anything the Sport Dog 1875 will at about $150 less. 

https://www.collarclinic.com/product/1450Upland.html 

Edited July 9, 2019 by MikeStaten

[smittty]

Garmin. Sport dog ain't what it once was trust me and if your interested I have a garmin alpha 100 tt two dog unit like new one collar has never been used it's the tt 15. I would like 800.00 or open to trades pistols or long guns

[RPK0620]

RB,

I originally had an 1875 for my GSP which I used for 3 years having absolutely no problems with the unit as it worked as designed. However I changed over to to a Garmin Alpha 100 with TT15 Collar [about twice the price of the 1875]  which I got from Lion Country Supply, who also handles the Sportdog 1875 [ https://www.lcsupply.com/default.asp ].

Again, nothing wrong with the 1875, but here is why I changed. My GSP ranges far,75+ yds is not uncommon and she is dark and not always easy to see. Many times she was out of sight and I hit the beeper to locate her, depending on the wind blowing or if she was over or behind a hill or thick brush I didn't hear the beeper and would nick her to bring her back. On more than one occasion she was way out and I was nicking her to bring her back and getting pissed only to find out that she was locked on point and boy did I feel bad about that. I also didn't like it when she did go on point that it would start beeping and so I had to turn off the beep while walking in to her. Some guys have their beeping on continually so they know where their dogs are which to me is very annoying when afield... sounds more like you're in a construction site with machines backing up.

Maybe I'm an old fart (probably), but I like it quiet while walking in the woods or fields. So the unit I now have, vibrates once and omits a low tone on the unit around my neck when my dog is on point and if I need to locate her I look at the screen and it shows me the direction and distance to where she is. It also has the nick and very low tone feature on her collar for training and control.

Hope this helps and if you have any questions PM me you number and we can talk.

Bob

[Hawkeye57]

How much do you want to spend? What type of hunting? 

Garmin 550 is best all around collar. 

[not on the rug]

The educator collars are pretty common amongst top trainers across the country.  If they're good enough for guys like Jeff Gellman and Sean O'Shea, they're good enough for me.  I really like the mini-educator model.

https://www.educatorcollars.com/

Edited July 9, 2019 by not on the rug

[BobbyPheasantsForever]

I have a few separates depending on what I’m doing with my dogs and what dog I’m taking.

My main everyday use and hunting collar is the Garmin Upland delta model, I have beepers with it as well but choose not to use them hunting as I find it to be a distraction.

I also use the Garmin Astro for GPS tracking which tells me EVERYTHING, I personally love Garmin products. We gave away a sport dog collar at our “Shooting For Habitat” event a few weekends ago and our members seem to love their brand


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[Rutting Buck]

I’m going to be pheasant hunting and maybe try some duck hunting. As far as a budget I was thinking no more than $500 or so

[smittty]

Just add a few more bucks to 500 and get yourself a garmin alpha 100 tt 15 this way you always no where your dogs are and truck or whatever. I even use mine in the deer woods as a gps  it does every thing tracks you dog up to six miles alerts you when there on point it does it all

[Shootemandmountem]

Just gonna say that I hunted with RPK and his gsp wearing this collar....when the day comes to do it again ( my gsp is 11 and now retired) I will look at this collar....amazing and seemed user friendly!

[Hawkeye57]

I have the garmin 550 and the garmin alpha. Both with two collars. 

For training - 550 is best there is. Easy to switch between dogs. Easy button setup. Great range. Great for hunting any type of situation. 

 

If if you want the ultimate collar- it’s impossible to beat the alpha. I use it for upland hunting. However for training- it can be a pain as the switching of stim is not as simple. If you are training one dog but want to control another (I have a fully trained dog and a young dog) the 550 is easier to maintain two dogs at once

 

Knowing you will never lose your dog is why I always end up using the alpha outside of controlled setting. It’s expensive but the first time you have a dog chase game or worse, get hurt out of sight- the alpha  was worth every penny. 

 

No no matter what- please PLEASE spend a good amount of time learning to use whichever collar you get and learn proper use of the collar. It amazes me how many people only use the collar as punishment and for the come command. 

My dogs go nuts with excitement when the see the e collar come out. They know it means either fun or hunting