Dog tracker/gps locator

[purdeydog]

Hello

Occasionaly I have to use a dog walker and last week the walker lost my dog for two days in a very remote area. Managed to get him back in one peace. He’d travelled about 5 miles due west from loss point. Does any one have any experience of dog trackers/locators? There’s a few models out there. Some you clip on to the dogs exsisting collar and others have a gps collar like the very expensive garmin models. He’ll only be wearing the tracker when the dog walker has him and hopefully never need to use it. Any advice from people who have used them gratefully recieved.

Cheers.

 

[McKenzie]

I'm interested too.

 

[gsorense]

I think a new dog walker would be a better investment!

 

[User00033]

If your dog is likely to be lost in a remote area, you only have one option, and that is the Garmin collars and handheld GPS unit. Nearly all the other ‘GPS’ types like Whistle rely on a ceullar network. No network, no find doggie. The cheaper subscription based devices are suitable only for the suburbs.

I use the Garmin collars on hunting dogs regularly and the terrain they work in is extremely rough, much rougher than anything in the UK in terms of density of bush, gradients, etc etc. Their range is quoted as 7km but that will be on the flat open ground, its a lot less than that in the bush. While not pin point accurate, I have found injured dogs in thick cover with these units, without difficulties.

If your dog is prone to taking off, then I would suggest you get a tracking collar with a training component. As long as he has never had electric shocks before (and hence will not associate them with the person walking him), give him a whack everytime he properly takes off - very important that he gets the shock just after he’s made the decision to go, not while he’s still thinking about it. Once he’s in full disobedience mode, zap him. He will stop taking off of his own accord in short order. Humans need training on how to use training collars properly, at least watch the video.

With a dog that’s risky like that, for taking off, the person in charge must ensure the dog understands he is not to lose sight of his owner / walker, and to return immediately when called. I started taking a certain 5 yr old dog onto a hunting block a couple of years ago, he’d ignore sheep and cattle, but fallow deer and pigs he could not resist and he’d be off. The training collar sorted that out in a single day, he remained with me on foot and on the bike from then on. (I didn’t muck about, full strength zap after three hollered warnings.)

 

[Sonicdmb73]

Unfortunately a training collet is no longer an option In England and Wales anyway, Wales banned them a while ago. The British government has followed suit.
If you’re in an area with good phone signal you can use the small property type gps trackers. I have one on my Jimny which is parked at the farm where my shooting is. It works well costs £20 per year plus the top up for the SIM card.
Of coure if there’s no or poor signal you’re stuck with the Garmin type purpose built tracker.

 

[purdeydog]

Thanks for replies. There’s no training issues just some Human incompetence. Found a tracker called tractive. Might try that. Needs phone network, so needs signal, but no limit on distance.

 

[.25-06]

Garmin type

atemos 50 and 100 but sit down when you get the price. ​

 

[Siggy]

I think a new dog walker would be a better investment!

+1

 

[mereside]

I think personally the Garmin system is the most reliable and usable of them all

 

[cookingfat]

I use a Garmin Atamos 100,
I find it very easy to use, it has a range of about 5-7 k on open ground and slightly less in woodland,
it works off UK legal frequencies so no risk of being shut down
easy to update with Garmin website
yes its not cheap but I guess you get what you pay for

 

[Keith Edmunds]

I've been looking at the Garmin Astro 320 bundle £420......Any good?

 

[User00014]

I've been looking at the Garmin Astro 320 bundle £420......Any good?

i used one for about 4 years never let me down, I had the 320 and the DC 50 collar.

I now have up graded to the Atemos 50 and K5 collar, basically the same unit but updated features, so I knew exactly how to use it to the best of its abilities!

The price does make you wince a tad though!

 

[cookingfat]

i used one for about 4 years never let me down, I had the 320 and the DC 50 collar.

I now have up graded to the Atemos 50 and K5 collar, basically the same unit but updated features, so I knew exactly how to use it to the best of its abilities!

The price does make you wince a tad though!

well done Lee,

like you I represent a UK tracking organisation and need to be seen not braking the law by using something that will interfere with the emergency services,

the price is high but needs to be done

 

[DK.260]

After my GWP taking off after a Red hind and then subsequently missing for 7 hours, which was one of the worst experiences I have had in recent years I got a tracker collar.
I spoke to on this site to Big Sweep who was very helpful and I purchased a Dogtra Pathfinder.
It works brilliantly and allegedly has a 15km range, you are also not interfering with protected frequencies which is a bonus.

 

[rem284]

Garmin by far the best I have came across. One thing to note is the dog is not lost it knows where it is. You just dont know where it is. I notice that dogs will usually backtrack the way they went back to where they started from. Sometimes they will head for home. Before I got a tracker I "lost" my old gwp. I was about 18 miles from home via forest road probably 8 miles as the crow flies. 2 hours after she went missing I headed home to get something to eat, make phone calls and head back out to continue to search, only to find her about 500m from home. If for some reason you cant stay it's a good idea to lay an old coat down where they went missing from for the dog to stay with if it comes back to that point

 

[llwynog]

I agree with rem284, unless it's seriously injured a dogs not lost, they know exactly where they are, a lifetime with working terriers has taught me that.
I remember losing a black fell bitch for hours in a big rocky place. We left my coat and continued up the mountain, after probably five hours and with the advantage of height we saw the sheep moving in the fields well down below us. When we checked with binos it was my terrier going back to the car where we'd originally parked. I've heard many terrier and lurcher owners with similar stories of dogs travelling many miles to get back home.

 

[robert16]

I’m using the garmin 320 with a t 5 mini collar
can’t fault it.

 

[phillips321]

No one here has suggested the findster. I use a pair on my working terriers and they're small, lightweight, and perfect.

GPS Pet Tracker for Dogs and Cats - Free of Monthly Fees | Findster

They're much cheaper than the garmin alternative, the only problem is that you need a smart phone to pair the module with. These or your phone don't require mobile phone signal. The collars have GPS in and transmit this to a small guardian module you keep on you, this is turn uses bluetooth to tell your phone where the dogs are on a map. It's perfect for me and gives complete peace of mind. No subscription fee, no need to rely on being somewhere with network coverage and money left over to spend on other shooting kit.

 

[Paul 600]

No one here has suggested the findster. I use a pair on my working terriers and they're small, lightweight, and perfect.

GPS Pet Tracker for Dogs and Cats - Free of Monthly Fees | Findster

They're much cheaper than the garmin alternative, the only problem is that you need a smart phone to pair the module with. These or your phone don't require mobile phone signal. The collars have GPS in and transmit this to a small guardian module you keep on you, this is turn uses bluetooth to tell your phone where the dogs are on a map. It's perfect for me and gives complete peace of mind. No subscription fee, no need to rely on being somewhere with network coverage and money left over to spend on other shooting kit.

Nice simple idea for finding a dog when out walking. Very limited with 3 miles maximum coverage though. My Tracker G1000 has world wide coverage. It uses roaming sim card technology and GPS. I have lost signal after 700M in forestry with an Astro!

 

[phillips321]

Nice simple idea for finding a dog when out walking. Very limited with 3 miles maximum coverage though. My Tracker G1000 has world wide coverage. It uses roaming sim card technology and GPS. I have lost signal after 700M in forestry with an Astro!

I use mine when following up on wounded deer in thick wood land, i rarely use a long line on the dog and prefer to just let the animal do it's thing. The findster is let down by its range, but 3 miles is enough in any woodland, if the dog goes out of range it'll show you on a map where it was last seen. You go to that area and it will hopefully locate the animal again, although in honesty if you're dog is going 3+ miles away from you when stalking there are other things you need to be sorting first! It also has worldwide coverage. What does your G1000 do for example in remote European woodland where there is no phone signal, i've heard some now combine the benefits of both cell tower use and transmit to the handset?

 

[Paul 600]

A wounded mobile deer or boar can cover huge distances fast. When the dog is chasing and baying it can soon travel long distances if it hasn't managed to hold it. Extreme circumstance but it can happen. Where not talking finding a dead deer scenario.

3 miles is the maximum distance under optimum conditions and under canopy or mountain this would be much less. I like the idea of it if your just out for a walk in the park. Don't think its suited to hunting though.

I've used the G1000 in super thick forests in Europe and it works just fine. Worldwide coverage means you can tell where the dog is regardless of how close you are to the dog.