Lifestyle: Dog Collars & Leashes

Discussion in 'Articles' started by PLANofMAN, Jul 6, 2018.

  1. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

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    Growing up on a ranch in the foothills of the Rocky Mountain Range, I had a dog...actually I had quite a few dogs over the years before I moved to the city. But this dog was special. He saved my life when I was a child. I fell in a stream, and he pulled me out, and then went and got my folks before I froze to death.

    This dog had a nice collar. Full grain leather, solid brass hardware. A working collar for a working dog.

    Fast forward 20 years. I got another dog. So I needed another collar. A collar like the one I used to have. So I went to a pet store. I couldn't find a good collar. Chrome, plastic, and nylon everywhere. The few leather collars were low quality. So I figured I would try a feed store. Same thing. Looked at the halters and other horse tack and saw those were good quality, but the leather dog collars were not.

    The search continued. Surely someone made an off the shelf dog collar that would bring back memories of bygone days when a boy and his dog would go on adventures?

    My criteria was simple. Full grain vegetable tanned leather and brass hardware. Two D rings. One for the tags, and one for a leash. (And I wanted a matching leash). Edit: I never did get those two D rings on a collar. :)

    Custom made collar and leash was going to cost me about $300. I was willing to pay, but the wait time was about a year and a half. I needed a collar now.

    Then I found Tasman's Natural Pet Co. and let me tell you, they spun a nice story. I'm going to paraphrase thier description because they are a bit "wordy."

    They make stuff for thier equestrian customers (horse folks). They decided to make stuff for dog folks too. So they took Bridle vegetable tanned Bison and backed it with American Elk. They then stitched it together and used brass hardware.

    So it's got the durability of Bison (American buffalo) on the outside, which is pretty durable stuff. Rhino and elephant leather is tougher, but that's about it. Elk leather is mostly used in gloves, owing to it's softness.

    The most expensive bridle collar is $27.50. That's cheaper than most of the chinese made collars I saw at the feed store or pet shop. Having one custom made in those materials would cost me over $300.

    At the time, I think his collar and matching five foot leash cost me a little over $50...but that was eight years ago. Thier prices have gone up some.
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    Shown is a matching traffic lead, which I purchased several years ago. The collar is eight years old and looks it.

    So, if anyone wants a high quality dog collar at a good price, I highly recommend Tasman's.

    I just purchased another collar and lead for my second dog. Black and pink this time. Nickel plated brass. Girl dog. :) Smaller collar and thinner lead, because she weighs half as much. Total plus shipping was $70.95. As I said, their prices have gone up some, but they are still competitive with "top tier" collars and leashes found at pet stores, and much higher quality.
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    Last edited: Jul 6, 2018
  2. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

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    She is an Australian Shepherd, Blue Heeler, Labrador retriever mix.
     
    Last edited: Jul 6, 2018
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  3. PickledNorthern

    PickledNorthern Fabulous, the unicorn

    That is great looking leather. Nice pup too.
     
  4. Brickman301

    Brickman301 Well-Known Member

    Nice looking collar and leash, looks like it was built to last. Nice looking dog as well. I’ve always used leather collars as well, until I got the dog I have now. I’ve been using a dayglow indestructible collar. My dog spends a lot of time in the water, and it has a reflective band, which helps me see her at night. The best thing is there is basically no maintenance at all. The dog we had growing up on the farm was a malamute mix, he was huge! He saved my brother one time from being attacked by a pack dogs. Our dog fought them off, long enough for him to get back to the house.
     
  5. BamaT

    BamaT Well-Known Member

    She has the head of a lab. Pretty dog!
     
  6. BamaT

    BamaT Well-Known Member

    I love quality products like this. Our society has such a disposable mentality, it’s nice to see things made to last. We have a leather leash for our lab that I really prefer to the synthetic webbing type leashes. With the leather, you can easily take up some slack with your hand and if he begins to pull harder than usual, it doesn’t cut into your hand.
     
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  7. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

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    We knew we wanted to wait until Mazie was fully grown to get her a "nice" leash and collar. We started her out with a light synthetic leash and collar, and noticed that the leash was painful (for us) to use anytime she pulled. She kept losing the collar as well, since the quick release clips were not strong enough to keep the collar on. I suppose that's a safety feature? I do consider buckled collars to be a safety hazard, which is why on both my dogs I keep the collar lose enough to slip over thier heads in an emergency.

    I had a friend that lost his dog because it strangled to death. Never wanted that to happen to any of mine. I'd rather lose the collar than lose the dog.
     
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  8. Badgerstate

    Badgerstate Well-Known Member

    Thats not a bad price for what it is. I personally like having an adjustable collar that you can custom fit to your dog and prefer a harness instead of a collar (its actually safer for the dog because it eliminates any risk of them injuring their neck) but still for a leather collar and leash, not bad.
     
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  9. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

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    The buffalo leather is pretty much impervious to water, and dries rapidly. The elk skin retains it's softness after it gets wet. It would be a decent price for cowhide, and I consider it a great price for bison.

    Edit: It makes me wonder why no one uses buffalo for strops? Edit 2: I guess they do. It has a heavy draw.
     
    Last edited: Jul 9, 2018
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  10. Badgerstate

    Badgerstate Well-Known Member

    Oddly enough, I was at Target yesterday shopping for a new leash (my dog gets so excited before her walks that she likes to hold her leash in her mouth and tug on it) and I see that Target has a leather leash.
    No idea what it was made of as the tag didnt say but it was leather with brass hardware. I almost bought it, as it was only $4 more than the nylon one.
     
  11. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    https://www.target.com/p/leather-dog-leash-caramel-sauce-5ft-long-boots-barkley-153/-/A-52286597

    It was probably this one. I'm not a huge fan of those kind of snap leads. They tend to fail at the worst possible time. The stitching didn't appear to all that great either (by great, I mean thick thread), at least on other Boots and Barkley products I've seen, and the leather goods I've seen from them have been chrome tanned, but I can't see from the link if this one is the same.

    Not a bad price though. :)
     
    Last edited: Jul 9, 2018
  12. Badgerstate

    Badgerstate Well-Known Member

    Yeah, I mean its still only a $16 leash and you probably arent getting much for a $16 leather leash.
     
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  13. Amalia

    Amalia New Member

    You're a very good writer! I enjoyed this article. Your pup is so pretty too. I love her coloring.
     
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  14. MR41

    MR41 Well-Known Member

    I do like a dog in a nice leather collar.:)
     
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  15. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

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    IMG_1657155453141.JPEG IMG_1657155453451.JPEG
    Studded unlined collar from Tasman's Natural Pet. Studs are riveted in place, not cheap screw ons. My brother-in-law's boxer, Dozer. He's still a puppy, which is why the collar is a little long for him now, and he has the end tucked back under the buckle.
     
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