Inexpensive DIY Dog Collars for Multiple Dog Households

A while back my Coonhound lost three sets of collars with tags in as many months and ended up wearing faded beat-up collars from the "old collar box".  All of my dogs really needed an upgrade,  instead of spending $40 for new collars I just ordered some nylon webbing and reused the old hardware, it upgraded all five collars plus bought enough hardware/webbing for 3 new ones for about $10 total.

It is a fun/quick project that gives your pack a spiffy new look for very little money. Plus if your dogs are not hard on their collars (mine are) t is easy to add a colorful ribbon to make a fashion statement. You can also make a "designer choke" out of webbing/ribbon and two D rings and leashes for walks/trips.

This site has what I think is the best pricing on webbing plus they sell every sort of buckle/adjuster/clip imaginable by the piece: https://www.strapworks.com The quality is good and their nylon webbing is UV resistant so it doesn't fade, that is important since I like my dogs to wear matching bright red/orange collars for safety (especially during hunting season), three have a reflective strip which glows brightly when hit with a flashlight or headlights "just in case".

One tip though, their "heavy" nylon webbing isn't really all that heavy and next time I will probably double it up for the larger dog collars. At .60 a yard the cost is just pennies. Also if you buy supplies at a fabric store stay away from fabric store d-rings, they are fine for tags but they will break open/fail at the worst possible time if you use them with a leash.



On the other end of the spectrum if you have a large or giant breed dog and want to spoil them with an elaborate high end leather collar for Christmas check out this site: https://www.fordogtrainers.com/dog-collars-c-66/  Their products are all custom made in Israel and the quality is phenomenal.  My mastiff has the "Vintage War Dog Collar" and the "Royal Nappa Padded Braided Dog Collar for Fashion Walking" along with a couple of leashes.

They cater to the mastiff and working dog owners that like to "brag on their dog" plus they have a lot of high end gear for Schutzhund/Police dogs. Though some of their pricier padded collars are very thick/heavy and probably not suitable for dogs under 100 lbs.

War Dog Collar with Brass Plates:


Nappa Collar:

Unfortunately, nylon webbing is not resistant to UV radiation. There are some companies where you can order polyester webbing by the meter, such as 50 meters from this website: https://polimex.net/en/store/product/857-leash-webbing, but it doesn't have any pattern. At Dario, you can design the webbing yourself through their design service and place an order, but it starts at 100 meters: https://dario-nadruki.com/en/offer/webbings/leash-webbing-for-animals/.

Hi Kamil, Welcome to Permies!
Good point about the UV resistance of plastics. I seem to remember polyester being used for car seatbelts, so it must have a reasonable lifetime (although also does degrade in time ). Our dogs have gone through thier collars at a rate of knots - mostly through loss. We ended up buying them a well fitting craftsman made leather collar each from these people , since they lost the half check collars somewhere in the garden. However it's nice to have an option to DIY as well.

I wrote an article with step by step how-to instructions for making a dog collar 13 years ago. Even though the instructions indicate nylon webbing, it works for polyester just as well. In my experience nylon doesn't have much trouble with UV, but it can become waterlogged and mildewy more than polyester or polypropylene. But if it's allowed to dry, nylon does fine outdoors.

If you prefer a martingale style collar, I have a how-to for that as well: https://countrybrookdesign.com/how-to/collars/how-to-make-a-martingale-collar

The belt and buckle from a discarded men's belt would make an excellent collar for a large dog. Except, the danger is there is no "breakaway" mechanism to prevent strangulation.

This is not hypothetical -- I once had a Great Dane who managed to get a stout spruce branch through his collar and the breakaway did not work. He was gasping for air and panicking (making it tighter), but I was able to take some of the tension off and cut away the collar with a pocketknife.