During the winter months, it is always a challenge to get the dogs walked in the light. I’m lucky that with my job, I often have flexibility to take walks at times that suit me the best. That said I’m frequently caught out by the fading light on busier days when the time just runs away!
Why try a Leuchtie?
I have tried a couple of the lit dog collars in the past, but have been a little put off by the disco effect, flashing lights that you often find on collars of this type. It was for that reason, that I was interested in trying out the Leuchtie LED dog collar. Made in Germany, these collars contain 3 or 4 very bright LED lights (depending on the size you buy), are guaranteed for 2 years with many of the parts replaceable, and are waterproof. This last point was particularly desirable considering the wet weather we usually experience in the UK.
The Leuchtie collars are rigid bands containing LED lights in a secure sheath that slips over your dog’s head. It feels a bit alien to measure your dog’s head rather than its neck as you do for a traditional collar, but as long as you measure the largest part of your dogs head you’ll have no problem picking the right size. The 2 smaller dogs were in the mini sizes and the large one in the standard collar.
The mini sizes are slightly different to the standard collar, and in my opinion have the slightly better battery pack on them. The collar comes with a standard AA battery in it already and you just have to turn in around the right way to get the collar to work. This was really easy to do and I managed this without incident with the mini size, but had a few more problems with the standard collar.
The standard size collar has a slightly different battery pack, which has to be completely disconnected from the collar band in order turn around the 2 AAA batteries. Overkeen and a little heavy handed, I pulled a little bit too hard, causing a number of the collar parts to fly up into the air and scatter themselves around the kitchen. I managed to build it all back together – eventually – but I had certainly made the job a lot more difficult for myself!
The Field Test
I was really impressed with these collars and they provide a huge amount of light. Once on, the dogs didn’t really seem to notice or care they were there and the fact that they turn on by turning them upside down, meant that there wasn’t any fiddling about to find the on/off switch when I’d got them on the dogs. Perfect when you have 3 over excited dogs bouncing around.
The range of colours and sizes meant that I was able to find something for each of the dogs, and I opted for different colours so that I could tell which dog was which in the dark. No matter what the dogs were doing, I was able to clearly see them and the collar was visible at all times. Using an LED collar even when the dogs were on the lead was also beneficial as it made them a lot more visible to cars and other pedestrians, which provided further peace of mind.
Many people have stopped to remark on the collars whilst we have been testing them, and I have to admit they are an excellent product.
With a £30 price tag they are not a cheap product, but you are certainly getting a quality product. The batteries are easily changed if they run down, which hasn’t happened yet as the collars turn off as soon as they are hung up when we get home from the walk. The guarantee provides peace of mind and reflects the manufacturer’s confidence in it’s products too and I’m confident that we now have an excellent product that will last well for our dogs.
If you only buy one glow in the dark dog collar, then I can highly recommend this one!
Interested in a Leuchtie collar? Find out more on the brand page.
Awesome… now i can take my dog to rave parties!!
On a more serious note, these collars are great for night time walking. Especially in our park where there are hardly any street lamps.
A very useful idea, makes for a much more relaxed walk at night when you can keep an eye on your dog.