Where to Start?
When buying an electronic training collar, there’s a few factors you should consider when you’re picking the collar for you. These collars can be a major investment and can provide long-term training for you and your dog, so it’s important to pick one that does what you need it to.
The first question to ask yourself is
what you’re trying to accomplish using your training collar? Are you wanting to do basic obedience training with your dog at home? Are you hunting ducks? Are you upland hunting with big running dogs? Are you running beagles or hounds?
The purpose of your interaction with your dogs is the starting point for the e-collars conversation. Knowing what you want can greatly help guide your decision-making process.
How Much Range Do I Need?
A dog being trained at home for obedience would be fine with a shorter range (less than ½ a mile) - rarely are you in a situation where your dog is over half a mile away from you. Dogs that are hunting ducks or may go on off-leash hikes could benefit from a bit more range - ¾ to 1 mile of range. Longer range collars (over 1 mile) are needed when you’re running big running dogs upland hunting or running hounds/beagles in a pack.
Now, it’s important to remember that these collars operate on line of sight. So, if your dog is through some brush and pretty far off, you may not get that full range.
What Am I Wanting From The Collar?
When picking a collar, it’s important to look at the number of levels of stimulation. If you’re wanting fine-tuned training from your dog, having more levels of stimulation allows you to find that perfect level of stimulation for your particular dog. Every dog is different, so if you call our customer service line and ask for a product specialist, they won’t be able to tell you what level to use for your dog. Instead, they’ll all tell you that you should start at the lowest level and work up from there.
If you’re running hounds and you really just need to stimulate them if they get after undesired prey or get a little farther than they should, you probably don’t need 21 levels of stimulation.
How Many Dogs?
The number of dogs you currently have does not necessarily equal the number of dogs you may have or anticipate having in a year or so. If you have one dog with no anticipation of adding another, you can stick with a 1-3 dog system. If you have multiple dogs (2-3) and you’re hoping to grow your pack, maybe consider an e-collar with the ability to add more dogs on – dog people tend to acquire more dogs.
Our Top Picks
| Collar: |
Sport Dog SD 425X |
DT Systems DD700 |
Dogtra JustRight |
Garmin SportPRO |
Garmin Pro 550 |
SportDog 3225 Hound Hunter |
Garmin Pro Trashbreaker |
| Best For: |
Best Short Range |
Best Budget |
Exclusively at Gun Dog Supply! |
Best Overall |
|
|
Longest Range |
| Price: |
$179.95 |
$149.99 |
$199.99 |
$249.99 |
$399.99 |
$389.95 |
$399.99 |
| Range: |
500 Yards |
700 Yards |
1/2 Mile |
3/4 Mile |
1 Mile |
2 Mile |
4 Mile |
| # of Dogs: |
Up to 3 |
Up to 3 |
Up to 2 |
Up to 3 |
Up to 3 |
Up to 6 |
Up to 9 |
| Stim Levels: |
24 Levels |
10 Levels |
24 Levels |
10 Levels |
21 Levels |
7 Levels |
6 Levels |
| Tone?: |
Yes (with 1 dog) |
Tone or Vibe |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Vibrate?: |
Yes (with 1 dog) |
Tone or Vibe |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
| Special Features |
Low, medium, & high stimulation buttons
Includes additional contact points
|
Toggle switch between dogs
Prorammable "jump" function
|
Built-in BarkLimiter & beacon light
Toggle switch between dogs
|
Low, medium, & high stimulation buttons
Separate tone & vibrate buttons
|
Low, medium, & high stimulation buttons
Built-in Barklimiter & beacon lights
Toggle switch between dogs
|
Includes additional contact points
Color-coded buttons for collars
|
Built-in Bark Limiter & beacon lights
Longest range available
|
| Run Time: |
50-70 Hours |
40-50 Hours |
40-50 Hours |
60 Hours |
60 Hours |
40-60 Hours |
40 Hours |
| Battery: |
Li-ion rechargeable |
Quick-charge Li-Poly collar battery & standard replaceable 9-volt transmitter battery |
Quick-charge Li-Poly |
Li-ion rechargeable |
Li-ion rechargeable |
Li-ion rechargeable |
Li-ion rechargeable |
| Add-Ons: |
Add-On Collars |
Add-On Collars>/a> & Rechargeable Battery Pack |
Add-On Collars |
Add-On Collars |
Add-On Collars |
Add-On Collars & Accessories |
Add-On Collars |
| Other Notes: |
1 year manufacturer's warranty
Loses features when more dogs are added
More stimulation levels
|
1 year manufacturer's warranty
|
Small receiver
More stimulation levels
|
1 year manufacturer's warranty
Very user-friendly
|
1 year manufacturer's warranty
No antenna
|
2 year manufacturer's warranty
No antenna
Small collar box
|
1 year manufacturer's warranty
The collar has antenna
|
I Ordered an E-Collar. Now What?
Educate yourself. If you don’t know how to train your dog using an e-collar, you need to learn. Your e-collar purchase includes a
Robin MacFarlane video (either DVD or streaming) that helps you get started. If you want more educational material, we have a variety of
resources available to help. Before your e-collar even arrives, you can start learning. By educating yourself, you’re setting your dog up for success.
After your purchase, you’ll get an email with a bunch of helpful links for you. Visit them! Explore the video content on our site and read your user’s manual. It’ll get you familiar with the product before it even gets there.
As always, all of our e-collars come with our
30 day money-back guarantee, so if you decide it’s not right for you, we’ll take it back and give you a refund. If you have any questions, call our customer support team at 1-800-624-6378 and they’ll help you out.
