dog collar

The 5 Best Pet Collars

Andrea Cannon — Thu, 05 Jan 2017 10:00:15 +0000

A quality pet collar is an essential item for your dog or cat. You can attach their leash or harness to it, as well as some form of identification, in case your pet ever gets lost.

What Is a Pet Collar?

A pet collar is placed around your pet’s neck to keep them safe and serve as a year-round fashion accessory. Collars are available in virtually limitless sizes, styles, and colors.

The collar should fit comfortably snug on your pet's neck. To find the right size, measure snugly around the middle of your pet’s neck and add an extra 5% for a comfortable fit. As a general rule, you should be able to fit two fingers comfortably underneath the collar. As your pet gets older (and bigger), you’ll need to adjust the collar size so they remain comfortable.

Top 5 Pet Collars

Custom Embroidered Dog Collars

Amazon’s #1 best-seller in basic dog collars, the Custom Embroidered Dog Collar is a personalized identification collar with your pet’s name and phone number permanently embroidered into it. The tough nylon collar features a sturdy snap closure style plastic buckle and a stainless steel D-ring swivel clip that is double boxed stitched for added durability. Best of all, if your pet ever gets lost, you’ll have the peace of mind that their name and phone number are easily visible to passersby. This is available in five collar colors, 15 thread colors, and allows for up to 25 stitched characters. It is adjustable and available in a range of sizes. It has outstanding online reviews, including more than 2,600 five-star reviews on Amazon.

Currently $18.95 on Amazon

LupinePet 1-Inch Adjustable Dog Collar

The reliable LupinePet 1-Inch Adjustable Dog Collar is made of the highest quality jacquard nylon webbing, with strong bar tack stitching. It features the highest quality, strongest side release plastic buckle on the market. The non-slip teeth molded into the nylon plastic tri-glide maintain the collar’s size even when your dog pulls. The welded steel D-ring is rust-resistant and the collar can be machine-washed, so it can hold up well over time. This is fully adjustable and available in a range of sizes and colors. It is recommended by Heavy.com and is guaranteed to last your dog’s lifetime.

Currently $10.69 on Amazon

Blueberry Pet Classic Solid Color Nylon Dog Collar

The Blueberry Pet Classic Solid Color Nylon Dog Collar is made of durable nylon with high-density polyester webbing and a neoprene bottom layer for maximum comfort. It features eco-friendly, heavy-duty plastic buckles and a metal, chrome-coated D-ring. There is also a loop on the logo, which you can attach tags or charms to, instead of to the D-ring, like most other collars. This is available in various sizes and colors. It is recommended by Heavy.com and is made to last.

Currently $8.99 on Amazon

GoDoggie-GLOW USB Rechargeable LED Dog Safety Collar

If you walk your pooch at night, then the GoDoggie-GLOW USB Rechargeable LED Dog Safety Collar is an absolute necessity. It looks like a traditional collar, but with the switch of a button, you can turn on the super-bright LED collar lights, allowing you to find your dog quickly in the dark. The innovative premium-quality dog collar can provide greater safety for your pet and peace of mind for you. The lightweight, durable collar is made of top quality, super-strong nylon webbing with high-tensile stitching, an indestructible stainless steel D-ring, and a strong plastic quick-release buckle. It is easy to put on and features glow, rapid flash, and slow flash settings, making your pet visible over 1,000 feet in the dark. The weatherproof collar has rust-proof components, so it works in all weather conditions.

This charges quickly via USB and can hold the charge for a long time. The power-saving LED lights last for 100,000 hours, providing a great value. The LED safety collar comes with a USB charging cable and rechargeable lithium-ION battery. It has an enclosed battery case and switch, as well as a protected USB charging port, so it’s not exposed to dirt and mud. It is fully adjustable and comes in a range of sizes and colors. It has outstanding online reviews, including more than 1,000 five-star reviews on Amazon. It is also backed by a two-year money-back satisfaction guarantee for your added peace of mind.

Currently $16.99 on Amazon

PetSafe Petite Martingale Collar With Quick Snap Buckle

The PetSafe Petite Martingale Collar With Quick Snap Buckle offers a safer, more comfortable alternative to a choke collar. It tightens when pressure is applied, reducing the risk of a dog backing out of the collar and escaping. It is made of high-quality, durable nylon and features a quick snap buckle for easy on and off. This is available in a range of sizes and colors. It is recommended by the American Kennel Club and by countless vets and trainers as the best design for daily wear.

Currently $9.09 on Amazon

And those are our recommendations for the best pet collars. As always, be sure to check Wise Bread's Buying Calendar to learn when and how to buy just about anything!

This article is from Andrea Cannon of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

No Pulling! Dogs Walk Easy With the Easy Walk Harness

Lars Peterson — Fri, 05 Jul 2013 10:36:33 +0000

A couple of days before we picked up our dog Doughty, my wife and I visited the pet store to check off the items on the list given us by the breeder: crate, food and water bowls, collar and leash, etc.

Everything on the list was a cinch to find and choose until we got to collar and leash. There were so many to choose from — regular old clasp collars in cloth or nylon webbing or leather; silvery choker collars; vicious toothy prong collars. Our little terrier didn't need one of those!

We did what most people do when faced with too many choices — we went with what we knew, which was the regular old clasp collar and a purple nylon leash. So cute! Also way too big. It was several weeks before we fitted Doughty into both, set out for our first walk, and discovered our mistake.

How I Discovered the Easy Walk

Doughty pulled at every new smell and shape and color, choking and hacking all the way up the sidewalk. We tried all the tricks we could remember from previous puppies and a few more we found on the Internet and in the books we'd bought.

Nothing worked. A walk is supposed to be enjoyable for dog and walker alike! We called a local obedience school for help.

Halfway through the first session the trainer suggested we give up our goal of having a dog that heels impressively on a regular leash and collar.

"But what about the pulling?" I said."One day she's going to choke herself!"

"Oh, we'll stop that. We'll just use a different leash and collar."

They sold them in the kennel store, she told us. We were skeptical. If we didn't like it, we could return it.

Five years later, Doughty wears that same Easy Walk Harness every morning on our stroll. Whenever another dog walker stops me on the sidewalk and comments on how well my dog heels and never seems to pull, I smile and point at the harness. "I wish I could say it was me, but it's all in the harness. Night and day. You really should try it."

What's Great About It

The Easy Walk looks like all those other dog harnesses you've seen that loop over the back, under the chest, and across the breastbone. With those, the leash attaches to a ring on the dog's back, the whole setup sort of like a draft horse's harness. In fact, while those harnesses prevent the dog from choking itself, they make pulling easier, while also encouraging the dog's instinct to pull.

It Prevents Pulling

Instead, on the Easy Walk, the leash attaches to the harness with a ring on the breastbone strap. The dog is still secure in the harness and still protected from choking. However, attaching at the breastbone makes pulling more difficult because there's much less to pull against. Plus, whenever the dog pulls, the effect is to turn the dog in toward the handler's legs and feet, no place a dog wants to go.

Put those two effects together and suddenly you're the neighborhood's model dog-walker.

What else is great?

It's Durable

Doughty has seen almost five years of daily walks featuring plenty of fetch in the park and occasional romps in the surf at Dog Beach.

It's Easy to Clean

Just toss in the washer with the rest of your dog's toys and bedding.

What the Easy Walk Compares To

Some of my neighbors with bigger dogs use the Easy Walk Gentle Leader. It's a regular collar with a loop around the dog's snout that's supposed to heighten the "turn-in" effect. Looks awkward to me, but I've never used one.

I've seen prong collars — the vicious toothy things I mentioned above — in use, too, and I understand they have their adherents. I'm not one of them.

Most of my neighbors use the standard harness, and I have as well while dog-sitting my sister-in-law's puggle. It prevents choking, but it does not discourage pulling.

Who the Easy Walk Is Best For

Any dog walker who has struggled with a pulling dog will appreciate the Easy Walk, maybe especially those with small dogs who seem to thrive on pulling (and yapping) and have smaller, less muscular necks.

How It Could Be Better

The harness doesn't cure pulling with 100% effectiveness. My dog has figured out a "crab-walk" in which she angles her body such that the leash and snap rise over her shoulder, like a hobo's stick or a messenger bag strap. Yeah, clever.

Also, the adjustment doo-hickeys on the breastbone strap don't stay put for very long and adjusting them is fussy. It's important to keep that part snug because otherwise the snap and the leash dangle, which makes crab-walking easier and allows the dog to step over the leash. To fix the step over problem, another Easy Walk user I know attaches the leash to the harness and to the dog's regular collar.

What They Don't Mention in the Manual

Nobody else knows how to put it on. Seriously. Your sister-in-law who dog watches for you will put it on like a regular harness and so will the groomers at the grooming place and the techs at the vet.

My trick is to remember that the Easy Walk label is on the top strap and I leave that strap buckled all the time. I unbuckle the bottom strap to put it on and take it off. When we're "getting ready" (don't say that around Doughty unless you mean it), Doughty sits, I slip the loop made by the top strap and breastbone strap over her head, then pull the bottom strap behind her forelegs and buckle it.

Bottom Line Recommendation

I am a firm believer in the Easy Walk Harness and recommend it to dog owners every chance I get. I've even given a few as gifts. At $15 or so, it's a low risk purchase that will pay off many times over in less pulling, more enjoyable walks, and a better handler-dog relationship, overall.

Where to Get Yours

Doughty got hers at obedience school, but I've seen them all over.

Big box pet retailers
Local pet supply shops
Amazon.com

Priced from $12 to $35 depending on size and retailer.

Click here to buy one today

Note: The PetSafe Easy Walk Harness used to be called the Premier Easy Walk Harness, but Premier was recently purchased by PetSafe. You may see one or the other brand name on the packaging while they work through old Premier branded inventory.

What's your favorite dog walk harness or collar?

This article is from Lars Peterson of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread: