When I was a teenager, our neighbor gave us a 2-year-old mountain feist dog because they were moving across the country and didn’t want to move the dog, too. I was thrilled, because Daisy and I had bonded a year earlier, and we had become best friends. She would come down to my house in the mornings and we would hit the woods in search of adventure. Daisy would tree gray squirrels on our outings, so I began hunting with her. She was a joy to go into the woods with. Fast forward nearly 30 years and my family and I were in search of a new pup. The year before, our beloved cocker spaniel had passed, and I was able to talk my wife into letting us get a mountain feist as the family pet. Selfishly, I craved hunting squirrels with a feist again, just like I did all those years ago.
In November of 2022, I picked up our 5-week-old pup, Dixie, and brought her home to surprise the kids. Our family fell in love with the spunky little feist, and I immediately started taking her into the woods with me. Throughout her first winter, spring and summer, I frequently introduced her to squirrels and rewarded her when she would tree them. In early September of 2023, squirrel season opened in my home state of Alabama, so we hit the woods. We got two squirrels that first morning, and I felt like a kid all over again. Each time I took Dixie squirrel hunting, she began to range farther and farther from me. This behavior was ideal so she could tree the squirrels and let me know with her barks where she was. This worked great, but later in the mornings when it was time to go, or even late in the evenings, she didn’t always want to come back to me, and I spent a lot of time looking for her. I knew it was time to get a tracking collar, but that was all I knew. This was the start of my search for the ideal e-collar.
What’s an E-collar?
E-collar is short for an electric collar. These wireless devices are used for behavioral training and tracking of hunting dogs and pets as well. Depending on the features of each collar, a handler can track or train the dog with the collar and a hand-held device. A training e-collar has tone, vibration, and electrical stimulation at the controls. The breed of dog and more importantly the type of hunting you will be doing will guide you to a specific dog collar.
Tracking Collar: Dogs used to hunt bears, lions, raccoons, rabbits, squirrels and more need a tracking collar. These hounds will run far from the release point and handler, so tracking them on a hand-held device is a must.
Training Collar: Waterfowl hunting dogs and upland game bird dogs are typically trained with this style of e-collar. These collars communicate directly with the hand-held device so that the handler can trigger an electrical, vibration or audible stimulation to get the dog’s attention and give commands.
Which Collar?
Because my dog would leave my side and take off over holler and swamp to find a squirrel, I needed to be able to track her. A tracking collar was a must, but I wasn’t sure what options were available. So, like any good researcher, I hit up Google.
When you don’t know much about a topic, it’s easy to get information overload. I quickly found out there are a lot of e-collars out there, and some companies are good at marketing and search engine optimization (SEO), so they pop up at the top of the search list even if it’s not what I need. I had to filter through a few of these to find what I was looking for. I also visited a couple of local stores that carried e-collars, but there was no one in-store to offer any meaningful advice. Next, I joined several Facebook groups dedicated to treeing feist. This was a great option because I was able to directly ask a lot of houndsmen what they use and prefer. Nearly all of them suggested some form of Garmin tracking collars. With numerous models and features to choose from, I still didn’t know what I needed.
Video Reviews Work
Once I started searching for Garmin e-collars, I quickly noticed several in-depth video reviews. Most of the good videos were either published by large dog kennels or online stores that cater to houndsmen. These reviews would go into detail on the features of each collar and why a user would need or want that feature. Battery life, tracking distance, the collar and the handheld unit were most discussed in reviews. The reason these reviews worked for me is because the person in the video explaining the collar is an end-user of the product — a guy who hunts with dogs and uses the product. They were able to intelligently explain the features that were most needed by a handler.
The Winning Collar
While attending the 2024 SHOT Show, I made sure to go by Garmin’s booth to talk about e-collars with Garmin’s Mark Zepp. Zepp is a houndsman and knows e-collars backwards and forward. He walked me through the product lineup, especially the new tracking and training setups. The new Garmin Alpha 300 and 300i handheld paired with their new TT25 dog collar were all the rage.
The Alpha 300 and 300i handheld is the powerhouse of the system. Both models have the same features, except the 300i features inReach satellite technology. inReach allows you to send an interactive SOS message and keep in touch and exchange text messages with friends and family where cell service doesn’t exist. You can also track your location and share it with those at home or out in the field. The 300i costs $50 more than the Alpha 300 handheld, but for the small price, the inReach is great insurance in case of an emergency in remote country. The inReach service does require a monthly or annual subscription that you must have prior to using this feature, but you can cancel anytime. This service is not required when using the system for tracking and training your dog.
The first thing I noticed when using the Alpha 300i was the bright 3.5-inch LED screen. With touchscreen technology, the handheld feels and operates like a smartphone. While I only hunt with one dog, the Alpha can track up to 20 collars at once. The 300i features a replaceable and rechargeable lithium-ion battery that will run the unit for up to 55 hours.
While the Alpha 300i comes preloaded with TopoActive Maps, there are endless additional maps available via subscription through the Outdoor Maps+ app. Satellite maps are available free via the TopoActive Maps app, but they must be downloaded while connected to Wi-Fi. With 16GB of internal storage, there’s plenty of room for additional map downloads. However, the Alpha 300i also accepts Micro SD cards for even more detailed mapping. The Alpha 300 and 300i are loaded with way more features than I’ve utilized. Tracking and training are the features I use 99% of the time. The real magic happens when the handheld is paired with the new TT25 tracking/training collar.
Garmin’s TT25 collar is customizable for large and small dogs. It comes fitted with a longer Flex Band for larger breeds, but an additional Zero Length Flex Band is available and is easily swapped out with a small screwdriver in a few minutes. I went with the Zero Length band because my mountain feist is a smaller breed, less than 20 pounds. The TT25 has three levels of stimulation for training: an audible tone (beep sound), vibration and shock stimulation. I was amazed at how quickly my dog followed the stimulation commands. Within two days of working with mostly tone and vibration, she would come back to me immediately or listen to my verbal commands much better. Think of the shock stimulation as the last resort if the dog hasn’t obeyed tone and vibration. While the TT25 has 16 levels of shock stimulation, I haven’t gone above level four. When training your dog with the stimulation, you want to start with a low level and work up incrementally until the dog notices the effect. If the dog yelps from the stimulation, it’s too much. My dog Dixie now comes back or stops the activity I don’t want her doing with just a tone beep. If she hasn’t responded to several beeps then I’ll use the vibration mode. At this point, she now comes running back to my position without needing the shock stimulation.
The collar is fitted with GPS to track the dog’s location up to 9 miles away, while the radio antenna receives the training commands. The removable and rechargeable lithium-ion battery will last for up to 84 hours depending on the settings used, and there is an extended battery pack for up to 136 hours. The collar features customizable LED lights on the front to see your dog in low-light conditions. You can choose different colors, to make tracking multiple dogs easier.
Final Thoughts
I’ve been using the Alpha 300i and TT25 collar for five months now and I’ve been blown away at how quickly my dog learned to obey the training commands. I jokingly call her robo dog when she has her collar on, because I can let her run through our wooded backyard and tree squirrels every day for training while easily keeping her from going into the neighbor’s property. I love the map and compass screens on the Alpha 300i when tracking my dog as well. With the ability to not only command Dixie but also track her, I feel more prepared for this upcoming hunting season than ever before. I honestly don’t know how I got along without an e-collar before, and that is the message retailers need to tell dog owners everywhere. A quality e-collar not only protects your pet from danger but gives the owner piece of mind, too.
However, the only way to communicate this to the customer is by knowing what you’re talking about. You must know the product line and how it works and use it. Customers who are looking for e-collars are looking for good information and guidance. I was diligent in my research, but not all customers want to shop that way. You’ll want to be able to serve that customer before they go somewhere else for the knowledge and purchase.
