 BUYER'S GUIDE: GPS Dog Location Systems vs. Traditional Telemetry Tracking Collars and Beeper CollarsWHY USE A TRACKING COLLAR?HOW THEY WORK: TELEMETRY VS. GPSMAXIMUM EFFECTIVE RANGEThe biggest advantage that radio telemetry tracking collars have over GPS tracking systems is range.DIRECTION AND DISTANCEOne problem with a radio telemetry tracking collar is that it never tells you exact distance, so you have to do some guesswork and test your system. Telemetry collars give very limited information on distance -- it's more about direction. You can estimate the distance based on the amount of gain (signal strength) that is required to get the signal from the tracking collar, but this can change based on the terrain that is between you and the dog.For example, if your dog is in the bottom of a ravine and there is dirt between you and him, you would need a lot of power to pick up a signal. Once the dog comes out of the ravine you would get a much better signal without the same power. So depending on what's between you and the dog, you will have a hard time telling the exact distance. GPS dog tracking systems show you exactly where your dog is. These systems have the same range limitations as tracking collars because radio signals will only go so far. As long as you can pick up the signal, you know the exact distance between you and your dog and what he is doing (pointing or running). WHEN YOUR DOG RUNS OUT OF RANGE, WHAT THEN?The biggest difference when using a GPS tracking system is that you will be able to see the exact point that the signal drops off. You will also have the advantage of knowing the last spot you were able to get a signal.With a tracking collar, once you lose the signal, you no longer have any information. You are either getting a signal or you don't. When you lose your signal you have to start hunting your dog by trying to get close enough to actually pick up the signal. This can be a major problem if you have no idea where to start looking. With a GPS dog tracking system, you will know the exact location that you got the last signal. This allows you to immediately go to the last known location and pick up a current location. WHAT ABOUT BEEPER COLLARS?THE ADVANTAGES OF GPS DOG TRACKINGGPS tracking systems like the Garmin Alpha give you an exact location, distance from you, direction traveling (if moving), and status or what the dog is doing: running, pointing, sitting, or treed. This is more information than we have ever had before from a dog location system. The beauty of a GPS tracking system is that it will also not bother the birds. While many upland birds are not bothered by the sound of a beeper collar, some birds (especially pheasants) learn very quickly that a beeper means hunters and dogs and they high-tail it out of the country. Modern bird dog telemetry tracking collars can tell you if your dog is running or if he is on point, but you have to actually track the dog to get this information. For example, when my bird dogs are running close (50 to 400 yards) I can turn on my tracking collar and hear them without opening the antennas. By listening to the beeps, I can tell if they are moving or on point. If they are running and close enough that I get a signal with the antennas closed, I don't even bother tracking them. It's their job to range out and find birds. The downside of this is that if my dog goes on point the second I cut my system off, I will not know about it until I check again, say 5 to 10 minutes later. USING A GARMIN ALPHA DOG GPS SYSTEM IN FIELD TRIALS OR POINTING DOG HUNT TESTSThe Garmin T20 collars are AKC Competition Approved. The AKC Performance Events Department has approved them for use in pointing breed field trials and hunting tests. |
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