New E-collar

S

stinkbelly

Member
I am in the market for a new e-collar. I have Deutsch Drahthaar dogs. We hunt everything. I have always used some sort of track and train collar with vibrate, beep, zap, and a beeper. I like the mile range just incase I loose a dog, but I don't like them more than 75 yards away. I have an old sportdog uplander 1875 (2 dog). I haven't used it much in 5 years because it left me hanging on my first hunt with a puppy. I have a 5 year old dogtra 2700T&B (1 dog). I have a new puppy this year and I need a 2 dog unit. My dogtra won't upgrade so I am stuck with an old unit or upgrading.

I really like the idea of a collar that tracks the location of a dog, but I don't like the price. In 20 years of upland hunting, I have only lost a dog 1 time and I would have paid a ton of money for a tracking collar that day. What are some units I should look at? I bought sportdog for 15 years because they were cheaper price, but they usually only lasted 3-4 years. I bought the dogtra because the breeder of that puppy recommended it. I don't use the collar much. I just beep it periodically if I can't see the dog in cover or vibrate it if the dog ignores me. It is just piece of mind having it on the dog.
 
I currently use the Garmin Alpha 200i with TT(track and train)15 collar since it was introduced to the market. It is a major investment. However, it does give me piece of mind that I am able to track my dogs in heavy cover, near a road or other hazards (e.g. ponds that are not completely frozen or close to barb wire fence). Before the Alpha 200i, it was a challenge to know when my dogs are on point in heavy cover and to locate them. Since we mainly hunt wild pheasants, it is important to me to know when they go on point and get to them as quickly as possible to flush since the roosters tend to sneak off when my boys go on point for a period of time. I also like the vibrate button on the unit. I have trained my dogs to recall on the vibrate mode so I am not blowing a whistle or calling them back to me. Since I hunt solo, I like to stay silent in the field as much as possible. Earlier in my hunting career, I did use beepers but I did not enjoy the beep every 10 seconds or the constant beeping when they went on point. In my experience, the roosters tend to sneak off when the beeper was going off on point.

If you compare the cost of this unit to what you have invested in time, training, travel, vet bills, and the initial cost of your hunting buddy, I believe it is a wise investment. If I don't come home with my dogs, I might as well not go home. Our boys are family members, and my wife would not be happy. I have utilized Garmin and/or tri-tronics equipment for over 35 years and I have never had an issue. I only had to replace batteries on older units.
 
I bought a Garmin PRO 550+ (same as a pro 550, but with GPS). After 2 seasons with it, I’ll never be without a GPS collar. Mine isn’t so much fear of losing them, but the times in heavy cover that you lose sight. Get in a Milo field and you can keep them from lining out in a row before they cause problems. It’s a good piece of mind.

The pro 550+ is a training setup with GPS.

The Alphas are a GPS with some training capabilities. I think the newer handhelds are getting better user interface compared to the first ones.

I Bluetooth my handheld to my phone and watch which is also helpful.
 
Cheesy probably has you all lined out for what you're looking for with the 550+. It has more emphasis on training with the ability to locate the dog. If that is still a little out of your price range, you can always watch the used market for an older Alpha 100 unit. It would do everything you wanted as well. The alpha units are the opposite though, heavy emphasis on tracking with an ability to train if necessary.
 
I have the Alpha 300 and two tt25x. Like others have said the tracking is a major peace of mind, and helps with points especially in thicker cover.
I will say the handset can do too many things and that complexity makes the few things you actually want, harder to do. There are three quick access buttons which can be programmed to tone, vibrate, or stim for any connected collars. I find it really hard to interact with the right dog and the right function when I have both of my dogs out at once. Invariably I need all 3 buttons for each dog, which can be accessed fairly quickly but I have to be looking at the screen to verify I'm "talking" to the right dog.
It sounds like I don't like the Alpha which is wrong, just disappointed by some of the limitations, especially in a training context.
 
I’ll add, with the 550+ I can toggle between dogs without looking at handheld. Purely by feel.

99% of the time I’m just using the tone button at top of remote.

But the stimulate buttons are also readily available, again, all by feel without having to look.
 
The Pro 550+ is outstanding. I dont let my shorthair out of the house without it. I have a small acreage and can glance down at the remote and know if shes nearby. If left u attended without the collar, she goes exploring. Mines 3.5 years old and has been turned off and on 4-6 times every single day in that time. He collar itself needs replaced but thats it. Functions great, still holds a good charge.
 
I had a 200 and traded it in for the 300 much better battery life. When I’m in the north woods I like having the ability to mark the truck on the unit so I know how far and I can kind of swing around and still end up back at the truck. My main reason for the alpha is the i. I have the I on and when I’m out hunting boating jeeping by myself I can communicate with garmin and they will send me a rescue request. There are still plenty of places I go with no cell service. Having that option is peace of mind. Imagine breaking your ankle in a badger hole a mile from your vehicle and no cell service or you left your phone in the truck. If you’re out there alone enough that thing could save your life
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top