Garmin Alpha Worth it?

[Mtncowboy]

Hello, I’m sorry if this has already been discussed, but does anyone run a Garmin Alpha 100 and if so do you think it’s worth the money? Is there a different collar I should look at? I’ve only ever had the regular old e-collar and am having a hard time swallowing that price. Thanks in advance.

 

[sndmn11]

I had one for a little bit, before I realized my dog didn't need it. What breed, what are you doing, what are you wanting to accomplish beyond the e-collar?

 

[Dos Perros]

I nearly sent a dog back to the breeder, and then I got the Astro (predecessor to the Alpha) and he ended up being one of the best bird dogs I've ever had the pleasure to hunt behind. I believe they're mandatory for any pointing dog, and a good insurance policy for any sporting dog.

I think if you're in doubt find one to borrow for a weekend. I bet you end up buying one.

 

[Mtncowboy]

I have a 7 month old German Wirehaired Pointer and hunt pheasants, chuckars, huns, ducks, and geese. She likes to range out, I am thinking it would be good to be able to see where she is at in case she gets too far away and I can't see her. Thanks for the advice. If anyone else has thoughts, please chime in.

 

[Dos Perros]

A lot of pros think you should never shock a dog you can't see. I think with the Alpha, if for example you believe the dog is running deer, you can tone the dog a couple times and watch its direction of travel. And if the dog doesn't respond to the tone and is still heading flat out, it'd be okay to pop them and get a change in behavior.

A dog's range directly influences how many birds they find, especially out west in larger landscapes with lower bird densities. You want that run. The Alpha lets you let the dog run and come home safely. I bet you live close to a NAVHDA group and one of its members would let you give the Alpha a spin.

 

[Squincher]

A GPS collar will more than pay for itself the first time you lose a dog a long way from home. That said there are other, less expensive, collars that work fine for bird hunters. I've been using a 550 Pro the last couple of years.

 

[Buzby]

I couldn’t imagine hunting without my alpha anymore. Loaded with topo maps, I use It for myself almost as much as the dog. Marking the truck, coveys and other waypoints. I can keep track of my dog and my hunting partner. When my brother hunts with me, I loan him my Instinct and we both know where the dog is and when he goes on point. Buying the alpha was some of the best money I’ve spent.

 

[parshal]

I had an Alpha 100 since they came out. I sync it to my Garmin watch, too. It's completely changed the way I hunt. I recently sold the 100 and bought the 200i which has a public lands map built in.

I've seen and found too many lost dogs where I hunt and the peace of mind these give is priceless.

 

[bruceride]

I run one with my English Setter. He gets out of visual range in the thick stuff for woodcock and grouse within 25 yards. When he goes on point, all I do is follow the arrow to him

I have never shocked him, but he does come when I give him a tone.

I think the piece of mind is well worth the cost, because I always know where he is. I can't imagine taking a dog into the woods today without one.

 

[qwerksc]

Worth every penny, i have an Alpha 100 and two collars, won't go hunting without them. Add the Garmin Instinct watch, so nice.

 

[Wassid82]

worth every copper penny

 

[Tex68w]

Looking at the new Alpha 200i myself. I use the InReach Mini for when I travel on my Dual Sport/ADV Bike and it's proven to be quite the invaluable tool. Combining that with the Alpha seems like a great product made even better.

 

[Chase0109]

I run (2) female GWP's. I have a 8 month old pup and a 5.5 year old seasoned dog. I mainly hunt pheasants, quail, and jack rabbits with them from Minnesota to Texas. I have the Garmin Alpha 100 system with 2 collars. Started with a Sport Pro with single collar. I bought the Alpha system 2 years ago based on reviews. It's an ok system. But it could have been so much better.

I don't use any of the mapping on the GPS handheld. I use ON X for all of that on my phone. Honestly the dog tracking mapping on the handheld sucks. I only use the compass function. For a single dog you may be ok with this system. For 2 dogs it is a pain in the ass. Touch screen buttons and toggling back between screens for each dog makes quick corrections difficult with 2 dogs. I much prefer the garmin Sport Pro for features (but it doesn't use gps). With Sport Pro you can choose between 3 dogs with the flip of a toggle and quickly adjust stimulation on a dial wheel without looking. When I run them solo I usually use the Sport Pro. If you don't need gps I recommend the sport pro. Heck even adding a gps tracker collar paired with the sport pro would be cheaper and more effective than the alpha. If garmin would ever come out with a gps system using the sport pro controller with a gps screen I would be all over it!

Personally, I think Garmin really missed the mark on the alpha! If I could do it again I would not have bought an alpha. Way under delivers in functionality and overpriced for what it delivers. If you only run a single dog and don't plan on ever having to make a quick change in stimulation and mainly just want gps you will probably be ok with the alpha.

Another option I looked into after I bought the alpha was the Dogtra Pathfinder GPS (mainly because the garmin mapping sucks). It's half the price of an alpha and the mapping is worlds better than garmin. Down side for me was it uses your phone as a controller and I didn't want to have to remove a glove every time I wanted to touch a button on the remote/phone. But still worth a look before jumping on an alpha.

Just my personal opinion having used the alpha and sport pro.

Chase

 

[sndmn11]

I have a 7 month old German Wirehaired Pointer and hunt pheasants, chuckars, huns, ducks, and geese. She likes to range out, I am thinking it would be good to be able to see where she is at in case she gets too far away and I can't see her. Thanks for the advice. If anyone else has thoughts, please chime in.

In that case, yes it is probably worth it. I actually used my handheld for a season elk and deer hunting for the map and it worked just fine. The peace of mind will be worth keeping track of your dog. I sold mine because my WPG is a a shadow dog and I realized it was silly having that collar on her when she was a spitball's distance away.

 

[parshal]

Definitely don't buy the Alpha for the stimulation function. As Chase said, it's cumbersome to use for that. I have three training setups, one for each dog and one for both. For each dog I have the center button for tone (used for recall), the left button for low stim and the right button for trash breaking. There zero chance I can change those settings in any meaningful manner while in the thick of it.

I don't use my Alpha for mapping either except when hunting BLM near private land. It keeps me on the public. I put it on the compass screen with an arrow for each dog, turn off all sounds, pair to the watch and go hunting.

 

[Dos Perros]

You can set the Alpha to tone or shock multiple dogs (up to 3 I think?) on one screen. With my two setters, I had a tone for each and then the knucklehead got himself a nice medium "quit doing that shit" stimulation.

 

[Buzby]

The stim on the alpha can be a bit cumbersome, but it’s a hunting collar not a training collar. I train with a 550 pro. Hunting I use tone for recall, and very rarely I do use stim on it. The maps can be about as good as you want, you can load what ever maps you want on it.

 

[Mtncowboy]

Thank you everyone for all the advice!

 

[Sandstrom]

I have had the alpha for several years, it is a love hate relationship. I use it on a couple of setters for upland game. I love the feature that gives me the direction and distance to my dog. I absolutely hate the alpha controller, it is too cluttered with features I don’t use or need. It also is difficult in a hunting setting to switch between dogs for stimulation. They totally missed the mark an the controller! That being said, I will be buying the garmin 550 pro controller. It looks like it has all the features I need / want with a time proven user friendly design! I know another guy that switched from the alpha to the pro 550 and loves it. Hope this helps.

Ryan

 

[Forks]

Garmin Pro 550 and Astro for my pointy four legged friends. Picture coming home without your dog after a hunt, I guarantee the price will seem cheap the next day. GPS has made running dogs stress free for the most part which makes me smile.