Which Garmin Setup?

[TSAMP]

If you hunt in groups. The garmin is nice because you can monitor other people's dogs or the handheld itself. When I ruff grouse hunt its common to drive together and go opposite directions. Helps keep tabs on guys and when they're headed back to the truck.

 

[Speaks]

I mostly use a 550 pro plus and tt15 mini. Then new tt25 collars are great but I would choose the same hand held again. Paired with a fenix watch.

 

[ianpadron]

If you hunt in groups. The garmin is nice because you can monitor other people's dogs or the handheld itself. When I ruff grouse hunt its common to drive together and go opposite directions. Helps keep tabs on guys and when they're headed back to the truck.

That's a major pro for sure.

 

[Tilzbow]

The watch is probably only a couple seconds slower than the handheld. My issue with the watch is once I get an on point alert. It covers the direction arrow for 5-10 ish seconds. So I'll just look at my handheld so I can start closing the distance. Which defeats the purpose of the watch. Ive yet to find where I can modify that setting. Realistically the above is a 25% of the time problem, as I usually have their general direction in memory. Id bet 50% of my pointed birds dont give me a notification. Not because the device isnt reliable. They just dont hold long enough.

In grouse cover the direction arrow is spotty at best. But its usually good in pheasant habitat. I think this device is for piece of mind in always knowing you can find your dogs. It certainly isnt an advantage in killing birds. My beeper collar provides nearly instant point notification and makes it far easier to find a dog in thick cover.

Disable the point alert on the watch. Enable it only on the Alpha unit with a unique alarm. Then when the alarm sounds you can use the watch to determine the direction and distance to the dog when it goes on point. Thats what I did after the second hunt and it works great, the delay was horrible so I disabled the alert. The dog still shows on point on the watch via a little dog icon, until the dog moves, but doesn’t interfere with the view of the direction arrow or distance on the watch display.

 

[Tilzbow]

I have an alpha 300i with a couple of the tt25 collars. The battery life is stellar and the main reason I went with the new version. I hunted for a week and didnt need to charge the units. They were at 10% and I would of but forgot the charger.

Training with it isnt great but its doable. I have a fenix 6 watch and I like the interface but only when im running a single dog. If I have both out the watch interface sucks.

It was expensive but it works.

I think the point alert is super slow. Ive watched dogs be on point 10 ish seconds and not be alerted. Only an issue on public land roosters usually but frustrating.

The update rate settings on the Alpha unit impact the timing of point alert. Longer time on update rate results in more delay on the point alert. Shorter update rate lowers battery life but if you’re able to charge the collar daily this won’t be an issue.

 

[TSAMP]

The update rate settings on the Alpha unit impact the timing of point alert. Longer time on update rate results in more delay on the point alert. Shorter update rate lowers battery life but if you’re able to charge the collar daily this won’t be an issue.

Already set to the 2.5 sec update rate, which to my knowledge is the fastest.

 

[MrTim]

I have 2 pointers and I run the Alpha 10. I like the compact size, and I have never had the need for a large screen.

 

[Public Land Drew]

I run a 200 with a TT25 and a garmin fenix 7 solar. I love unit and interface between the watch and alpha.

I do have a few cons. I travel to hunt every weekend, not uncommon for me to put 3-5 hours one way to hunt. I notice thé alpha and fenix tend to need compass calibration each time for it to be accurate.

the stand alone unit is a major upgrade over the pathfinder and app.

 

[Tilzbow]

Already set to the 2.5 sec update rate, which to my knowledge is the fastest.

That’s what I’ve got mine set to and I’ve never seen a point alert take more than 4-5 seconds so I’m not sure if there’s anything else you can do. Even 5 seconds can seem like a long, long time when the dog first goes on point and the adrenaline kicks in.

Generally speaking (not directed at TSAMP) but If my dog won’t hold birds and not push them so that a 5-10 second delay doesn’t really make a difference then there’s a major issue, especially with wild chukar when the dog’s on point 200 yards up a steep rocky hill and it’s going to take me at least 5 minutes to get there.

 

[Alchemy]

What do you like about the 550+ versus Alpha options?

You cant train with an Alpha 100/200/300, its too cumbersome and cant change intensity levels within the time frame tyou need to make a correction. The 550+ is a pro 70 with a tracker its truly the only "training collar" that tracks. If you got an alpha you really need another training collar and why do that? Garmin is the top dog and its not even close in the track and train game.....

 

[Tilzbow]

You cant train with an Alpha 100/200/300, its too cumbersome and cant change intensity levels within the time frame tyou need to make a correction. The 550+ is a pro 70 with a tracker its truly the only "training collar" that tracks. If you got an alpha you really need another training collar and why do that? Garmin is the top dog and its not even close in the track and train game.....

I’ll respectfully disagree but I understand where you’re coming from. It took me some time to get use to the Garmin and figure out how I wanted to set it up. Until then I went back to my other collars for a short time.

The Alpha 300 has three programmable buttons at that top and those can be set for three different levels of continuous intensity and that should be more than enough for any situation. One can also set up multiple sets of programs for one or more dogs that can be toggled through for different purposes using the buttons on the side. Also, once any button is pushed it’s also quick and easy to increase or decrease the intensity for that button using the buttons on the side. Lastly for training if I’m using anything other than the lowest stimulation level the dog can feel the problem is likely me and not the dog (I have this problem more than I care to admit….) and I haven’t established the dogs understanding of what I expect before using the e-collar. The only complaint I’ve heard from a professional trainer is the Garmin’s lowest intensity setting is too high for his preference and he prefers the Dogtra for that reason.

All that said, I currently own a Dogtra, a Sportdog and a Garmin 300i. The Dogtra is a refurbished unit I bought from the breeder/trainer who sold me my pup and I rarely use it (it’s too easy to accidentally increase the intensity level) I use the Sportdog for training and daily walks and my wife uses it (because it’s what we used on our last dogs and she’s use to it) and the Garmin I use for training and hunting.

 

[Tilzbow]

I run a 200 with a TT25 and a garmin fenix 7 solar. I love unit and interface between the watch and alpha.

I do have a few cons. I travel to hunt every weekend, not uncommon for me to put 3-5 hours one way to hunt. I notice thé alpha and fenix tend to need compass calibration each time for it to be accurate.

the stand alone unit is a major upgrade over the pathfinder and app.

This is an excellent point and I definitely need to calibrate both unit’s compasses when I get to my spot. The watch consistently shows the wrong direction.

 

[zekepa]

I us the Pro 550 plus and tt25 for hunting, pairs with my Fenix 6

Daily use is a pro 70 since I got a 4th dog, before that it was the Sport Pro worked just fine for 3 dogs

 

[BCDJR]

I'm going to upgrade my GPS collar setup this off-season from the Pathfinder Mini I've been using. I want a standalone unit I can have on my vest at all times, and also has watch compatibility. Sick of digging out my phone constantly when I get a point notification, draining the phone battery on day long hunts, and the general glitch-iness of the Pathfinder app.

Collar will be used almost exclusively for hunting, although I'd like the ability to train the next pup with the same unit if possible and run multiple dogs on the same controller. Main focus is reliable point notifications and compass, and simple operation.

Ready to make the switch to Garmin, and the last post on this is a few years old.

What are you guys using going into 2026, and how do you like it?

I use the 550 plus. I’m just used to having my receiver on my belt. I hunt so I could not stand to carry a gun and try to look at one of those other receivers. I do have a Garmin watch. I don’t remember the model but it’s one of the cheapest ones that allow dog tracking. I’ve run up to two pointers on it . I will vibrate when one goes on point. That’s a real help when hunting. I also use the tracking collars TT15 and TT25. I’m not crazy about the holster for the 550 plus receiver as it hangs upside down.

 

[sndmn11]

I have a 550 pro plus and I can use it without looking like a video game controller. I rarely interact with the dog through it while hunting. Mine will push out to several hundreds yards lately with the roosters running.

Training I can focus on the dog and connect with her instantly through what we of the few buttons is appropriate.

I get point notifications quickly and can feel them most of the time through the unit clipped on my belt, they transfer through to my 7pro watch within a few seconds. I use a high plains gear holster that stays horizontal so I can glance down at the screen easily. I never hold onto the controller.

I believe the direction arrow on the handheld isn't terribly precise for where I wear mine, but have never calibrated it.

The direction arrow on the watch is good. However, long sleeves cover it up easily, so it's main use is for point vibration. Short sleeves it is easy.

A friend has the alpha300 and ended up buying a pro550plus controller also. He carries both while hunting because he likes seeing where the dog has gone on a map.

I don't mind the double dog display on the watch, we actually get notifications from each others dogs when we aren't hunting together which is neat.

I think a lot of guys like the Instinct3 as the bare bones dog track watch.


I'd do the same thing if I started over. 550 pro plus, and a watch.

 

[TSAMP]

Disable the point alert on the watch. Enable it only on the Alpha unit with a unique alarm. Then when the alarm sounds you can use the watch to determine the direction and distance to the dog when it goes on point. Thats what I did after the second hunt and it works great, the delay was horrible so I disabled the alert. The dog still shows on point on the watch via a little dog icon, until the dog moves, but doesn’t interfere with the view of the direction arrow or distance on the watch display.

Can confirm this worked great. No more on point text on the watch. Love using the watch to close the distance once I hear the buzzer. I did get some points today but it does take awhile to register even at the 2.5 refresh rate. Roosters this late in the year arent patient and we worked 3 birds 300 yards plus without getting a point long enough to register. Its hard out here for a dude and a dog