Prong Collars

[cavNrott]

I imported a prong from the states the other week for $35 AUD

Made it through customs no worries.

I had no use for it, just wanted ot see if i could get it into the country :D

I sold it to another DOLer

I think you might have been a bit lucky Sway. It might have fallen through the cracks at customs.

I tried to import one before I got one in Qld. They said they weren't able to send it to Australia.

[SwaY]

This seller said there not allowed through aswell.

But it got through, i have since ordered 2 more for "friends" they have arrived ok.

[cavNrott]

This seller said there not allowed through aswell.

But it got through, i have since ordered 2 more for "friends" they have arrived ok.

How did you convince the seller to send them on to you? Though I probably won't try again because the ones I can get at a very reasonable price from Qld. are pretty good.

[SwaY]

I paid they sent, it was my loss if customs detained and confiscated the items..

We emailed about it before i bought them.

[sidoney]

I had a correctly fitted one come off - serves me right, I'd taken the leash off and not removed the collar, and the dog went into a bit of bush.

An intensive search found the collar so I ended up OK, but never did that again.

[Tapferhund]

If the prong collar is a good quality one then it should not come apart ! The links on a good collar should be tight fitting and only come apart when squeezed.

I have 3 collars.....one of which is 20 years old and the other two I've had for just on 12 years and never have they come apart........so if the collars today are coming apart then IMO they are faulty or are cheaply made.

[Arya]

I've never had a prong collar come off. However, in saying this (and I hope someone further up hasn't already said this as I haven't read all the posts so far), mine is the expensive HS stainless steel one. It is not the chrome plated one. I wonder if the links aren't quite as good on the chrome plated ones, or they don't move as well with the chrome plating, or the steel under them isn't as well sprung thus predisposing them more to disconnecting? I have heard that any can come off but what I have done is connected a black dog soft cloth collar loose, further down my dog's neck at times. Since the prong sits up high it does not interfere. What it does mean, however, is that if I want to tie her up somewhere I can hook her to the soft collar.

My advice would be to check each link carefully each time you use your prong. I wash and dry mine with a soft cloth because living near the beach I want to ensure that the ss is still fine. It's not marine grade, after all LOL. It gives a chance also to make sure all links are working well and the martingale is running smoothly. Just like horse equipment, we need to check all our doggy stuff regularly too :D

[jesomil]

I have never had a prong come undone either. I cant imagine how they can when they are fitted properly. They are quite hard to get undone even when not on the dog.

Maybe it has something to do with the quality of it.

[MonElite]

I have it come off, but I think it was becouse I didnt put it on properly.

I have once went to the park and took the collar off for the dog to go off lead, was carrying the prong loose opened attached to the lead and lost a link that fastens the collar. making the collar useless. (this collar was a different make and model to the sprenger or trixie)

If the prong collar is a good quality one then it should not come apart !

I have a Trixie collar wich is virtually the same as Sprenger, and i have seen both makes come off. Id say these are the best collars in the world, but they do come undone. When used a lot the links work themselves loose and this is when the collar comes undone.

BTW my cheapest collar that I own, a chrome plated one that cost me about $10 has never come undone. The design of the links is different to the HS one, its impossible for it to come undone nor for the links to work themselves loose with wear.

But this colar will rust and the spikes arent rounded off....

Thats the collar - it fastens near the D ring

Edited July 30, 2007 by myszka

[Griffo]

I had the same problem over and over again with my prong, it kept coming apart when i needed it the most - so what I ended up doing for my own peace of mind (at the suggestion of K9 Force), was getting either a check chain or martingale and i clip the lead thru both of the active rings. Since these collars have give, it allows the prong to still effectively deliver it's corrections (the martingale and check dont give corrections when being used in this manner as they are not ever being pulled tight enough - unless of course the prong collar comes undone)

Hope this helps.

Edited July 30, 2007 by Rachelle

[Arya]

Myska, that collar looks really nice on your dog!!!

[Paganman]

Thanks all for your replies, I have passed on all the info and my mate's gonna use another collar as a backup coz the collar definately comes off, maybe its something to do with the quality of it. BTW his collar was ordered from overseas and it came through customs unopened, the package was marked pet collar and no one queried it. He is also using it in Victoria but his dogs got lots of fur round his neck and you carnt really see it and as my mate says whos going to do anything about it except for an RSPCA inspector and thers not much chance of one of them driving past and also noticing the collar. I dont think the police would bother with a thing like that, I dont even think most of them would know theyre illegal and even if they did I dont think they drive around looking for dogs with prong collars on.

Once again thanks guys

[Ms James]

Visually speaking, I have noticed that prong-collars don't seem to be of the same thickness of metal as they used to be. I'm not suggesting they aren't as strong, but looking at them by comparison they don't appear to be. Don't know if this has anything to do with it?

Actually, I noticed that too. When we received our prong from Steve, it was definitely less chunky than the one that you have. I had to double check to make sure it was a Sprenger It's never come off, and the steel is still pretty damn fine quality.

It took us ages to find a socially acceptable scrunchie to put on it though. Read "socially acceptable" as "MrJames would have a pink fit if I put a flowery pinky scrunchie on our male dog"...aparently it harms his masculinity All I could find was flowery & pink. We settled on a black headband thing instead.

[Steve K9Pro]

K9: There are a couple of reasons why prong collars will come off.

1. Fitted to loose, people need to realise that they must be snug just behind the dogs ears.

2. Collar being used is not rated for the dogs weight & the links become bent & the collar can unhook.

3. The collar being used is too big, meaning, not enough links being used, this changes the angle of the prongs & can cause them to slip out.

4. Both prongs are not engaged on loops (fitting error.)

See here.. http://www.k9force.net/index.html?row2col2=prongfit.html

Also, on quality, Herm Sprenger makes the best chain ware world wide, I use the Stainless steel Herm Sprenger collars & there are five different sizes, one size does not fit all.

A properly fitted, properly weight rated & properly sized stainless steel collar will not un hook, no matter what.

We also have at a lesser price the USA made Titan Chrome plated collars, these will not ever be as strong as stainless steel, but, it they are properly fitted, properly rated & the right size is chosen, we have 3 sizes in these also...

Chinese prong collars are also available in some places, you get what you pay for...

[Rom]

An observation of mine that some might find helpful on this subject.

I did have two instances where the prong come undone on my girl. I didn't really draw the connection to the cause straight away....

What had happened during her leash lunging and tension on the lead days was that she'd built up extra muscle in her neck. After a period on the prong, her neck took on a much more feminine appearance and I failed to see that I needed to adjust the size of the prong to accomodate this change in her neck measurements.

[Tilly]

I use a prong on my 60kg high drive GSD and it had never come undone. The collar had a scissor clip to make taking on and off easier because I just couldn't squeeze the links together enough to pull them apart - because it is a very heavy quality collar.

[Arya]

imho, HS top quality stainles steel ones are the way to go. The stainless steel links somehow seem to feel different to the others and the martingale chain moves much smoother. My collar is not as thick as some that I have seen but is perfect for my 28kg GSD bitch. A heavier one would be overkill and I don't think work as well either. But the steel quality I reckon is highly important. Think of the links moving all the time. If the steel is average quality the movement won't be smooth and more likely to come undone. Plus, as it degrades over time the same thing will happen. Just a few thoughts ;)