Gigi (female APB that boards here), Jack (my Doberman boy), Robert (my lovely husband), and myself were on a beautiful woodsy fall walk. Gigi had on her metal choke collar and was dragging a lead just in case we ran into someone. These are our woods back there, and every now and then a hiker or hunter is passing through.
So Gigi and Jackie are playing in the woods having a great old time as usual. Gigi is one of Jack's favorites, when I notice there is no leash or collar (metal) attached to Gigi anymore. She hadn't yelped or acted stuck once. The collar fit properly and snugly (in other words not an easy collar to slip off, even with human hands). The only thing I can think of is that one of the links must have worn and the collar just snapped off in the woods!!
Luckily, this is a dog that has been trained, so we weren't worried about a flight risk or anything. In fact, I should have just pocketed the collar and leash on the walk since she is so well behaved. I just like to have the leash handy with her due to her past experiences. That way I can be more relaxed if I stop and talk to someone, unexpectedly.
Had Gigi been in a stressful city situation where she normally does not do well OR this had been a green dog, this would have been BIG trouble. The collar that Gigi had on had been purchased from a pet store in Portland. The thing about buying from pet stores, in general, is that though they carry these collars, they aren't very knowledgeable about the importance of selling quality. Herm Sprenger is a name normally associated with collar quality in these types of metal training collars. The chains are formed well, and prongs are smoothed out. The cheap imports that many retail pet supply stores buy are from china, and who knows what kind of metal they may be made out of. If you are going to use these collars, please educate yourself on the brands to use, and the metals that are used. It is pretty rare for a collar to snap like this (and like I said, that is the only thing that I can envision happening since she was in our sight the whole time). By the way the price differential between a quality metal training collar and a cheap collar is not enough to sway the informed consumer. It's quality in the performance as well as the stability and material uses. If you have ever tested a substandard collar against a Herm Sprenger, you will know that what I say is true.
Perhaps once the leaves clear, I will find Gigi's collar and leash LOL. Until then, the case of the vanishing collar will remain a mostly unsolved mystery.
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