Garmin Hunting Dog Products System Review
By Gear Guide Colby Jorgensen
Garmin Dog Products System
When looking for a set of products for training my young German Shorthaired Pointer, it was clear to me that the route I wanted to take was with Garmin products, but I was initially unsure which products would fit my needs for both obedience training while in the home and training for hunting in the fields and mountains.
For upland hunting, I knew it would be important to me to have a balanced dog that behaves well in our small townhome and performs in the field. This means lots of training both indoors and outdoors, which seemed to call for a little bit different approach than others that can give their dogs more freedom and free reign of the house and yard. After researching the many options Garmin had to offer, I felt like I finally settled on a kit that would suit my needs for every situation that I was going to put my dog in.
Garmin Alpha 10
The Alpha 10 handheld dog tracker has every feature you need for basic dog tracking in the field and nothing that you don’t, which is what I typically gravitate towards in hunting gear. The accuracy of the device is top notch even when close to buildings, though it is not the device I use for everyday training. While the Alpha 10 does do a good job of tracking accurately in the city, I think there are other devices better suited to day-to-day training, which I will get into later.
While using this device, it is immediately apparent how easy it is to navigate through the menus and the different types of collar functions. This is all done with the joystick on the top left of the screen, which has great accuracy, feedback and a very precise click when pressed. The joystick also controls the 4 modes of stimulation on the collar with a quick push to the left (Momentary, Continuous, Vibrate, and Tone), all of which have been necessary in training. Something else that is important to me is the consistency of pairing with collars, watches, phone etc. and is often poorly executed with electronics.
This device, however, only takes a second to pair with other devices initially and the only delay in connectivity that exists is while the devices are searching for a GPS signal upon startup. For actual hunting applications, the Alpha 10 performs exactly as expected with ranges only limited by the signal from whichever collar you use, an impressive battery life of up to 40 hours, and the option to pair with more collars than I’ll ever have dogs in the field. As is the case with most Garmin tracking and training products, they seamlessly integrate with more detailed mapping apps (Garmin Explore and Garmin Alpha) if you should choose to use them to get a better picture of your dog’s location on the landscape.
As is the case with most of Garmin’s collars, the TT25 had an impressive effective range of 9 miles, depending on terrain. If you are coming from an older collar, such as the TT15, TT15X, or TT15 Mini, the main improvements lie within the size, battery life, and longevity of the collar. The TT25 comes in just a bit larger than the TT15 Mini and has a much longer battery life that is comparable to the giant TT15X and does so in a much smaller package. This is advantageous especially if you have a smaller breed that you are planning to use this collar on.
If you are unconcerned with size and weight, the unit is also compatible with the higher capacity battery pack, sold separately, that will net you up to 136 hours of battery life. Another nice feature that will allow you to keep this collar for a long time is the ability to swap out the GPS band with the removal of two Philips head screws. Having as many user-replaceable parts on a collar is a great way to improve the overall lifespan of a device since there are so many things that can happen while it is on your dog in the field. Garmin has also added the ability with this collar to change the color of the LED light for keeping better track of your dogs in low-light conditions.
Garmin Sport PRO Bundle/Garmin LTE Alpha
This is the system that I use most frequently and has quickly become integrated into day-to-day life with my dog. I have found that always having the collar on when I am home and when she is out of her kennel, I have been able to quickly build good behaviors using all the stimulation functions within the device, which are the same four that I highlighted earlier on the Alpha 10. The levels of Continuous and Momentary stimulation are enough to cover the whole range of response levels from completely imperceptible to a human all the way up to a level that would likely send the most stubborn dog through the roof.
The ¾ mile range that the Sport Pro offers is plenty for the small field that I often train in just outside of my neighborhood and for the daily runs around the block. Since I only have one dog, the collar selector is not a feature I have used but the color-coded toggle switch that allows you to switch from one dog to another is fool proof and a nice feature to have on a handheld if you have multiple dogs. Simply add a corresponding color band to the collar on each of your dogs, flip the switch to that color and you’re ready to go.
The BarkLimiter technology is also another useful feature of the collar and very effective with many dogs. I have not felt the need to use it personally but have heard many testaments to its success in curbing excessive barking. In everyday life, I have opted to use Garmin’s new Alpha LTE device alongside the Sport PRO collar. The strap on all Garmin collars are the exact size needed to fit into the two pass-throughs on the Alpha Device, meaning you can pair it with the collar of your choosing. It has been nice to have a smaller profile, lighter collar without an antenna to use daily and I am able to let my dog run off-leash in places close to home without fear of losing her due to not having a tracker.
Yet another option with this device is to pair it with your TT series collar that already has tracking built in. This allows you to track your dog through the app and for your two paired devices to switch between whichever signal is the strongest (VHF or LTE) in the location you are hunting. The tracking on the Alpha has proven to be very accurate, and I am able to receive this data both through my Garmin Instinct watch and through the Garmin Alpha app on my phone. Garmin’s subscription price for this service is also relatively cheap, coming in at $50 for 12 months; a price I will gladly pay for the security and practicality that Alpha has to offer. Depending on the accuracy level/battery life balance you want, the device also has 3 levels of tracking that you can easily switch between: 10 Second Tracking, Dynamic Tracking, and 2 Minute Tracking.
What I like most about Garmin products across their whole line is the ability to move from one device to another and use all the same apps without having to dive into settings to connect and reconnect devices. Everything seems to just flat out work 100 percent of the time and there is never any fiddling around with things more than once. However, if you enjoy tinkering and customization, you can play around with the settings and get them perfectly tailored to you and your personal hunting application. Whether it is with a watch, GPS unit, or a designated dog tracking device, you can use them all with the same collar setup you have which really makes it easy to add to your setup as you see fit and continue to use your existing products for a very long time.