I’d like to get our dogs some nice leather collars, but I’m on a budget. I’ve seen a ton of them all over the place, where did you get your favorite? I’d like it to come with a name plate as well.
What about the SmartPak padded leather dog collars? I have one for my dog and my goat too!
I’ve gotten lovely padded leather collars from the Tack Shack in Ocala for our dogs. They’re soft and sturdy, really well made. Name plates are additional but they’ll do the engraving and attach them for you.
Gun Dog Supply has always been a good source for us. Their collars with tags are great for medium or large dogs.
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I have a corgi, aka double coated, so I got a rolled leather collar from Quillen. the collar is custom length so if you measure correctly, the flat part/plate is always on the top and the buckle is at the bottom. For double coated dogs the rolled leather is perfect and the plate is the best plate ever. Per the directions, every couple of years or so I “paint” with plate with black enamel paint and wipe off the top, so the lettering is reblacked. I LOVE Tack Shack bit rolled leather is better for the double coat and Quillens was the only one I found who had them with a proper plate.
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Kokolati Leather! Amazing collars.
I really like the biothane collars. I think you can get them at Gun Dog Supply or etsy. They are washable and sturdy. Love them for dirt and mud.
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This is what I have on my (non-barn) dogs as well. Tons of listings for them on eBay as well or TayloredTack on FB. I’ve had several done by her and they are amazing.
Another vote for Gun dog supply
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I have the Tory leather dog collars and wouldn’t get a collar that wasn’t leather ever again. I have the rolled leather for my miniature poodle (he’s around 18-22lbs) and the braided leather for my corgi/heeler mix. Both with name plates. They always look great, easy to clean, and the leather is more breathable than, say. a nylon collar. A number of people i know have switched over to the same collar after seeing my dogs bc it’s just such a classic look.
We have Walsh Collars on our dogs. They have held up great.
Sport Dog has sturdy leather collars. They supply an engraved brass plate on the collar, with three or four lines of text, Their fittings are either brass, or stainless.
My dogs both wear leather collars from www.shopmimigreen.com. Went with the options of having the name plate on the top, but also the engraved buckle so if they get lost my phone number is also available.
Love the SmartPak padded leather collar for our dog
Another vote for Quillin - they last forever!
I don’t have a favorite collar, but I’ve got a major, potentially life-saving recommendation: the collar should have a SNAP closure, not a buckle.
Sad/slightly grisly story to explain why this is a mountain I will die on. You’ve been warned.
I had a patient whose collar got hung up in his buddy’s mouth while they were rough housing. Total fluke. Owners standing right there, saw it happening, moved in immediately to help. Somehow the dogs managed to twist around each other and the collar tightened down on both dogs. The collar was a buckle collar, a nice leather one, and a buckle collar requires space to pull it slightly tighter in order to release the prong from the hole. There was no room. By the time the owner’s cut the collar off with a knife, one dog was dead, strangled to death by his own collar, the other dog survived, with a very sore jaw (thankfully, no fracture to add on to the owners’ misery) and had to lap watered down canned food until the swelling and pain went down over the next few days.
I’ve had fellow vets tell me similar stories - dogs caught on someone or something in a buckle collar which couldn’t be undone in time and the dogs were either seriously hurt or died.
A snap collar is easily and quickly released no matter how tight the collar is. A quick pinch and dog is free from whatever they’re caught on and you just put the collar back on. My own dog somehow jammed a stick through his harness. So tight I couldn’t get it out, and yet he didn’t impale himself, just screaming hysterically because the stick was so darn tight against him - I’ll take small miracles. One pinch, the harness was unsnapped, stick fell out, I snapped it back. They make collars with metal snaps now, if you don’t trust plastic, but I’ve yet to see a plastic snap fail on an appropriately sized collar or harness. (Fingers crossed! As we know everything breaks at some point…)
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@Horse Rider have you ever seen a leather collar with a snap closure though? I could only find buckles, so we went with nylon and a metal closure that you pinch a button top and bottom to open. I prefer leather for some reason, but I agree with you on the buckle thing.
This is where I ordered my beagles leather collar with snap.This one is great and much easier for the kids. The leather is decent, not as sturdy as Quillins rolled collar, or super high end, but has cleaned up well after swimming and muddy barn days.
https://www.shopmimigreen.com/brown-leather-dog-collar-side-release-buckle-style/
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They’re hard to find - the buckle is sort of traditional/considered classy, but they’re out there. You can find them with a Google search and I’ve seen some nice ones on Etsy. I will admit I don’t like leather collars for the same reason I do like leather halters. When they break, it tends to be sudden, whereas a nylon collar can be an ugly frayed thing for years, just screaming that it’s about to go and yet somehow hanging on. I want a leather halter to break because it’s only under pressure during a catastrophe, whereas my rude dogs do pull and stress their harnesses/collar. I also own two smelly, low to the earth terriers, so the ability to toss a nylon collar in the wash with the rest of the pet laundry, versus scrubbing a leather collar free off that waxy build up my dirty dogs accumulate is a win for me. :lol:
BUT! If you have a leather collar brand you like? Feel free to join me in emailing them to tell them you really love their collars but would like a SAFER buckle option. Hoping to start a leather collar with buckle trend start and have had two brands actually tell me they’re considering it.
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