# Garmin Alpha collar



## charliecoyot (Nov 26, 2012)

Curious of any feedback on the new 2014 Garmin Alpha collar w/ GPS, training, etc.... likes/dislikes? A hardy thank you in advance.

With very heavy cover everywhere this year - have been struggling seeing Roothee on point and not real fond of the 'beeper' collars or bells.

Hunting primarily pheasants and grouse with others so Roothee is only allowed to range 30 to 50 yards max - which works well for us.

BTW - if anyone's hunting in South Dakota this year - pheasants are back in good order - still not as good as 2006 or so - but significantly better than the last couple years.


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## charliecoyot (Nov 26, 2012)

Sorry everyone - just found a thread on this particular collar. Thanks.


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## SuperV (Oct 18, 2011)

Love the garmin alpha.... I don't know what I would do without it. This new pup really has some range to him and I don't want to let my "nervous nelly" side of me limit it due to my own fear of him getting lost..... Last night he ranged out to 225 yds, just for the **** of it on the canal path. He isn't running away or off, he is just simply comfortable at that distance, adn the GPS give me piece of mind of knowing where he is...

Even if you don't have a big running dog, its still invaluable for locating your dog on point in tall cover, or at least knowing your dog went left or right...they don't need to be very far away before you can't hear them... My oldest dog once chased down a cripple, before I had the GPS, and I started to get concerned as I didn't know which direction the dog took off in, so I didn't even have a direction to proceed - I also prefer not to use a bell...

Nate


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## charliecoyot (Nov 26, 2012)

Thanks Super V - appreciate your comments.

Well - I just ran out and bought the Garmin Alpha w/ TT15 collar - finally ran into analysis paralysis. I'm a bit of a technology freak and of course I'll be up until 3am tonight reading the manual, etc.....

Roothee was a bit freaked out w/ the size when I tried it on her and the VHF antenna whipping around - after letting her wear it around the house for 1/2 an hour she seemed fine with it.

Hunting this Sunday - so I'll be having her wear this around again tonight, tomorrow, etc... and leaving it 'off' until I know what I'm doing with the collar.

Heck, I'll likely wear it myself just to make sure I know where I'm at!

Thanks again - looking forward to stop asking those hunting with me if they've seen the Rothee the little red streak somewhere in the field!


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## Claude.J (Oct 29, 2014)

Just out of interest how much do these collars cost? And when you buy one is it safe to let the dog off for a big run or should i keep her with me?
thanks


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## R E McCraith (Nov 24, 2011)

ch have the alpha 4 hunting $800 - I love it - PIKE only sees it when I have a longgun in hand 4 serious hunting - he does range large then - garmin delta $170 is his every day e-collar - just got it to replace my tri sport basic that died after 4yrs - so far like it - PIKE does not go out the front door without it -


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## SuperV (Oct 18, 2011)

If you are a member...or join NAVHDA ( http://www.navhda.org/), you can call the NAVHDA office, they will send you a Garmin discount card. If you are already a member, you'll save money (20% i think????)....if you join to get the discount, it'll likely be a wash with respect to cost savings.

There are a lot of ways to set up the Alpha, so keep that in mind if you don't immediately like how it is currently setup. Locking the screen is a valuable feature. You'll also likely struggle with how to carry it. I ended up with a caribiner and hung with from the hunting vest, with the antena stuck in pocket so it didn't swing all over.

A couple things that had me scratching my head and was initially annoyed...

1. You can select if you want the map to automatically zoom so that dogs are shown on the map.
2. If you have two dogs, but are only running one, stop tracking the other collar, or your map will zoom way out trying to find the other collar.
3. I wish there was a way for the collar to discern the difference between a potty break and a point! More than once on a slow day I hear tone/vibrate that the dog is on point - i get all excited, find the dog - only to realize its "losing weight" ;D


Nate


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## Claude.J (Oct 29, 2014)

Sounds like a good investment to me. I really want to let TIMA stretch her legs but i wouldn't feel sae letting her run off on her own.


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## SuperV (Oct 18, 2011)

Claude.J said:


> Sounds like a good investment to me. I really want to let TIMA stretch her legs but i wouldn't feel sae letting her run off on her own.


I know exactly what you mean. Our first Vizsla never ranged far, so i never had much of a concern, but the second has a big a set of wheels. 

What you'll find is that they don't run off, they are just more comfortable being farther away from you than you are to them.... ;D ;D
but the GPS gives you so much piece of mind, knowing you can keep tabs on them...money well spent in my opinion...

Nate


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## sniper john (Jun 17, 2010)

I love mine. I was able to get a better deal than the navhda discount by going through a dealer on ebay. Peace of mind knowing where my dog is is worth the cost. I use the tone as a recall. I like using the aftermarket Texas lakes and landowner/public hunting topo cards and I am sure I will like using satellite imagery with it as well. I carry mine in a leather holster hung with the antenna pointing down. Either from a vest or from a leather belt hanger with D ring. Can't say I have any major complaints. Glad I bought it.


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## sniper john (Jun 17, 2010)

BTW i do still use a bell sometimes when I don't feel like messing with collar while hunting patches of thick cover or a strip of creek bottom. Or when I need to slow Dash down and keep him close as the bell I use tends to do that.


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## Vizsla Baby (Nov 4, 2011)

Has anyone used this product? It's $99, it is a GPS tracker for your dog. You can see your dog's location from an app on your phone. Only problem I see is that it's $9.99 per month for the monitoring service. But, how much are our dogs worth? 

http://www.pettracker.com/pet-products


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## mswhipple (Mar 7, 2011)

Two big "ifs" -

If Willie wasn't gun shy, and
If I actually took him out hunting,

I would definitely make the investment! Small price to pay for your pup's safety.

Also, btw, Welcome to the forums, Claude.J!! ;D
Any more photos of your pup?


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## Claude.J (Oct 29, 2014)

Hey thanks yeah. I'm taking pictures of TIMA all the time but usually just on my crappy phone. I got a photographer friend of my wives to take that one. How many hours of walking would be considered too much? Ive been going for 3 hours a day pretty much morning then night


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## mswhipple (Mar 7, 2011)

I think it depends on the age of the puppy. It's been a long time since I raised a puppy, though... three hours seems like a lot. I just don't know. How old is TIMA?


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## charliecoyot (Nov 26, 2012)

Quick update - I purchased the Alpha w/ TT15 collar. Seems to be a great device.

However, Roothee is tiny - 2 years old and 38lbs. The size of the receiver on the TT15 is huge for her.

Tried for 4 days to slowly get her used to this, she'd just 'heal' perfectly all the time and a bit nervous - no matter if in the house, on a walk, etc...

She didn't come around as that large of receiver on the collar really bothered her.

So - I returned it. Thanks everyone for your comments, etc... - always greatly appreciated.


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